The Perception of HIV Risk : An fMRI Analysis of Inuitive Processes

Abstract

Current models of health risk perception emphasize the role of intuitive affective processes. Supporting this notion, recent ERP studies revealed that risky faces attain higher saliency already during early information processing, guiding selective attention. The present study used functional magnetic resonance imaging to determine neural structures associated with the processing of high versus low risk persons. Participants (N520) viewed pictures of unacquainted persons while judging the risk of HIV-infection (Human Immunodeficiency Virus) based on their physical appearance. For subsequent analyses, stimuli were divided into groups according to the individual participants’ risk estimates. Brain activity, as indexed by the blood-oxygen-level-dependent signal, was contrasted for groups of high and low risk persons using the Statistical Parametric Mapping 5 software. Persons judged to be at high as compared to those judged to be at low HIV risk elicited increased activity predominantly in dorsolateral and dorsomedial frontal cortices, as well as anterior insular cortices and right fusiform gyrus. Thus, neural structures associated with person perception, decisionmaking and emotion processing were differentially engaged when viewing high risk vs. low risk stimuli. The results provide further evidence for the importance of intuitive mechanisms in the processing and perception of health risk.