Neurobiology and computational structure of decision-making in addiction

An increasing wealth of experimental detail is becoming available about the development and nature of addiction. Critical issues such as the varying vulnerabilities of individuals who develop addiction are being illuminated across levels of phenomenological, psychological and neurobiological detail. Furthermore, a rich theoretical understanding is emerging in the field of neural reinforcement learning, with glimmers as to how this might be related to the subjective experience of those individuals affected. In this chapter, we consider some particuarly pressing current issues in the interface between experiment and theory, notably the so-called “compulsive” phase of drug taking.