Anticipation and the control of voluntary action

Abstract

A major hallmark in the adaptive control of voluntary action is the ability to anticipate short and long term future events. Anticipation in its various forms is an important prerequisite for cognitive abilities such as planning, reasoning and the pursuit of both immediate goals and long-term goals (e.g., to invest in pension funds) that sometimes stand in opposition to immedi- ate desires and needs. Therefore, it is not surprising that diverse and rather independent research lines have evolved, all somehow targeting various anticipatory capacities that are involved in the control of voluntary action.