Economic choice is thought to involve the elicitation of the subjective values of the choice options. Thus far, value estimation in animals has relied upon stochastic choices between multiple options presented in repeated trials and expressed from averages of dozens of trials. However, subjective reward valuations are made moment-to-moment and do not always require alternative options; their consequences are usually felt immediately. Here we describe a Becker-DeGroot-Marschak (BDM) auction-like mechanism that provides more direct and simple valuations with immediate consequences. The BDM encourages agents to truthfully reveal their true subjective value in individual choices (’incentive compatibility’). Monkeys reliably placed well-ranked BDM bids for up to five juice volumes while paying from a water budget. The bids closely approximated the average subjective values estimated with conventional binary choices, thus demonstrating procedural invariance and aligning with the wealth of knowledge acquired with these less direct estimation methods. The feasibility of BDM bidding in monkeys paves the way for an analysis of subjective neuronal value signals in single trials rather than from averages; the feasibility also bridges the gap to the increasingly used BDM method in human neuroeconomics.

中文翻译：

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恒河猴拍卖揭示的奖励价值

经济选择被认为涉及对选择的主观价值的引出。到目前为止，动物的价值估计依赖于在重复试验中呈现的多个选项之间的随机选择，并从数十次试验的平均值中表达出来。然而，主观奖励估值是即时进行的，并不总是需要其他选择；他们的后果通常是立即感受到的。在这里，我们描述了一种类似 Becker-DeGroot-Marschak (BDM) 的拍卖机制，该机制提供了更直接、更简单的估值，并具有立竿见影的效果。BDM 鼓励代理真实地揭示他们在个人选择中的真实主观价值（“激励兼容性”）。Monkeys 可靠地对最多五个果汁量的 BDM 出价，同时从水预算中支付。投标非常接近使用传统二元选择估计的平均主观值，从而证明了程序不变性并与使用这些不太直接的估计方法获得的知识财富保持一致。在猴子中进行 BDM 投标的可行性为在单次试验中而不是从平均值分析主观神经元值信号铺平了道路；该可行性还弥补了与人类神经经济学中越来越多地使用的 BDM 方法之间的差距。