Impulsive-compulsive disorders in Parkinson’s Disease: influence on individual and social decision-making processes

Aim. Parkinson’s Disease (PD) has been considered for a long time as a neurodegenerative disorder affecting mainly motor functions, because of the involvement of basal ganglia. Recent research has shown that these brain structures have a crucial role even in higher level cognitive and social functions, as executive ones, impulse control and decision-making. Method. A research of the peer-reviewed scientific literature was conducted in order to identify articles on the dysfunctions in individual and social decision-making in PD. Results and discussion. This work provides the reader with a literature review on individual and social decision-making processes in PD, highlighting how the existence of impulse control disorders and the associated reward-seeking behaviors might elucidate the social symptoms of PD, both in terms of abnormal risk proneness and/or reward salience.