Anticipatory Electrodermal Activity and Decision Making in a Computer Poker-Game

摘要

Playing the poker game variant No Limit Texas Hold'em (NLHE) requires constant and rapid decision making. Players need to continually assess the profitability of different actions with poker hands of varying strengths. Currently, little is known about how the decision-making processes required in NLHE are reflected in emotion-related physiological responses. Electrodermal activity (EDA) was measured from 29 healthy volunteers during playing a modified NLHE poker game on a computer. Predecision EDA was distinctly associated with various actions, increasing in the order of folding, calling and betting/raising. An association with poker hand strength and EDA was found. Actions taken with strong and weak hands elicited higher EDA compared with actions taken with hands of medium/uncertain strength. EDA is suggested to index the anticipated utility of poker game decisions, with anticipated utility increasing in the order of folding (no anticipated utility), calling (some anticipated utility) and betting/ raising (high anticipated utility) actions.