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Large lump-sum vs. small sequential monetary loss: A comparison of relevant neural substrates

Poster Session B - Sunday, March 8, 2026, 8:00 – 10:00 am PDT, Fairview/Kitsilano Ballroom

Dr Masayo Noda¹ (masanoda@kinjo-u.ac.jp), Hiroki C. Tanabe², Ayumi Yoshioka³, Masato Kimura⁴; ¹Kinjo Gakuin University, ²Nagoya University, ³Ritsumeikan University, Research Organization of Science and Technology, ⁴KONICA MINOLTA, INC.

It is crucial for people to avoid situations in which they experience sequential losses for the sake of their wellbeing. This study examined the neural substrates involved in large monetary loss and small sequential loss. Participants were asked to participate in a game of purchasing stocks while using an MRI scanner. In the experiment, participants made financial losses in two ways: over four successive times, and the equivalent amount of these losses in just one instance. The brain regions were compared when the participants incurred the losses for the fourth of four sequential losses (5-day condition) with the equivalent total amount of losses in one instance (2-day condition). The results showed that significant brain activation, in the 5-day condition as opposed to the 2-day condition, was observed in the bilateral lingual and fusiform gyri, and left cerebellum exterior, extending to the right angular and supramarginal gyri. The right superior frontal and middle frontal gyri and right caudate were also activated. In contrast, no significant activation was found in the 2-day compared to the 5-day condition. The right caudate in the dorsal striatum is involved in sequential financial loss. However, it cannot be confidently concluded that the activation of the dorsal striatum reflected dissatisfaction because findings concerning the activation of the striatum were inconsistent in previous studies (Balodis et al., 2012; Oldham et al., 2018). Future studies are needed to thoroughly explore the role of the striatum in a variety of losses.

Topic Area: THINKING: Decision making