Although damage to the medial frontal cortex causes profound decision-making impairments, it has been difficult to pinpoint the relative
contributions of key anatomical subdivisions. Here we use function magnetic resonance imaging to examine the contributions of human
ventromedial prefrontal cortex (vmPFC) and dorsal anterior cingulate cortex (dACC) during sequential choices between multiple alternatives—
two key features of choices made in ecological settings. By carefully constructing options whose current value at any given
decision was dissociable from their longer term value, we were able to examine choices in current and long-term frames of reference. We
present evidence showing that activity at choice and feedback in vmPFC and dACC was tied to the current choice and the best long-term
option, respectively. vmPFC, mid-cingulate, and posterior cingulate cortex encoded the relative value between the chosen and next best
option at each sequential decision, whereas dACC encoded the relative value of adapting choices from the option with the highest value in
the longer term. Furthermore, at feedback we identify temporally dissociable effects that predict repetition of the current choice and
adaptation away from the long-term best option in vmPFC and dACC, respectively. These functional dissociations at choice and feedback
suggest that sequential choices are subject to competing cortical mechanisms