# The cognitive mechanisms of complex planning

> **NIH NIH R21** · NEW YORK UNIVERSITY · 2022 · $151,505

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY/ABSTRACT
The goal of this project is to lay the groundwork for understanding the neural basis of complex
planning. Planning, defined as sequential decision-making that involves mental simulation of
potential futures, is crucial for the organization of our behavior in everyday life — from
navigation to playing sports or writing a long text. Real-world planning is often “complex”, in the
sense that there is a explosively large number of possible futures and the decision-maker has to
think multiple steps ahead. By contrast, studies of human planning typically use simple tasks, in
which the number of possible states is low and thinking ahead is barely necessary. To serve as
a suitable behavioral paradigm to study complex planning, a task should meet multiple criteria: it
should require thinking ahead, it should be novel to subjects, it should have simple rules, and it
should allow for computational modeling in order to disentangle component processes. We
previously developed a behavioral paradigm that satisfies these requirements, as well as a
computational process model of choices in this task based on a heuristic value function and
partial tree search. This model can be used to estimate depth of planning (EDOP). The goals of
the present proposal are two-fold: to prepare the model for use in future neural studies by
establishing the construct validity of EDOP (Aim 1), and to go beyond choice data to probe the
dynamics of complex planning using eye movements made while a choice is being prepared
(Aim 2). Although this work does not have direct clinical relevance, it could in the future serve to
improve the behavioral and neural characterization of deficits in planning, as well as the
effectiveness of interventions. Planning is disrupted in many neurological and psychiatric
disorders. For example, performance on planning tasks is impaired in individuals with
Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, Autism Spectrum Disorder, and prefrontal lesions.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10528185
- **Project number:** 1R21MH126269-01A1
- **Recipient organization:** NEW YORK UNIVERSITY
- **Principal Investigator:** Wei Ji Ma
- **Activity code:** R21 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2022
- **Award amount:** $151,505
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2022-09-14 → 2024-08-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10528185

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10528185, The cognitive mechanisms of complex planning (1R21MH126269-01A1). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-26 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10528185. Licensed CC0.

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