Michael R. Koenigs

 

 

Human lesion studies; Emotion, decision-making, and social behavior

E-mail: mrkoenigs@wisc.edu

Research Strengths: Behavior, Cognition and Emotion

The goal of my research is to identify and characterize the brain circuits underlying emotion and social behavior. Brain-injured patients who have undergone dramatic changes in emotion, personality, and social behavior are a unique source of data in this regard. By associating specific areas of brain damage with specific changes in emotion, one can infer which brain areas are critically involved in affective function, and ultimately, which brain areas may be responsible for disorders of emotion, such as depression and anxiety.

My work primarily involves the study of neurological and neurosurgical patients with focal brain lesions. In addition to detailed mapping of the patient’s structural brain damage, we employ a range of assessment techniques that probe the patient’s emotional state as well as cognitive and psychosocial function. For example, we have shown that brain lesions involving prefrontal cortex or amygdala can alter the patient’s risk of developing certain types of psychopathology, such as depression and post-traumatic stress disorder. In other studies we have shown that brain lesions involving ventromedial prefrontal cortex can alter the patient’s “rational” decision-making, such as moral judgment, financial bargaining, or even susceptibility to commercial advertising. In future work we will continue to explore how different areas of the brain generate and regulate emotion.

Selected Publications:

• Koenigs, M., E. Huey, M. Calamia, V. Raymont, D. Tranel, and J. Grafman. 2008. Distinct regions of prefrontal cortex mediate resistance and vulnerability to depression. J. Neurosci. 28:12341-12348. [PDF]
• Koenigs, M., E. Huey, V. Raymont, B. Cheon, J. Solomon, E. Wassermann, and J. Grafman. 2008. Focal brain damage protects against post-traumatic stress disorder in combat veterans. Nature Neuroscience 11:232-237. [PDF]
• Koenigs, M. and D. Tranel. 2008. Prefrontal cortex damage abolishes brand-cued changes in cola preference. Social, Cognitive, and Affective Neuroscience 3:1-6. [PDF]
• Koenigs, M., L. Young, R. Adolphs, D. Tranel, F. Cushman, M. Hauser, and A.R. Damasio. 2007. Damage to the prefrontal cortex increases utilitarian moral judgments. Nature 446:908-11. [PDF]
• Koenigs, M. and D. Tranel. 2007. Irrational economic decision-making following ventromedial prefrontal damage: Evidence from the Ultimatum Game. J. Neurosci. 27:951-6. [PDF]
• Adolphs, R., D. Tranel, M. Koenigs, andA.R. Damasio. 2005. Preferring one taste over another without recognizing either. Nature Neuroscience 8:860-1. [PDF]