A Correspondence between Individual Differences in the Brain's Intrinsic Functional Architecture and the Content and Form of Self-Generated Thoughts
Krzysztof J. Gorgolewski, Daniel J. Lurie, Sebastian Urchs, Judy Kipping, R. Cameron Craddock, Michael P. Milham, Daniel S. Margulies, Jonathan Smallwood
PLoS One May 13, 2014 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0097176 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Observational study Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Topics | Default mode network |
| Keywords | Cognitive psychology Insula Cognition Resting State FMRI Posterior cingulate Brain mapping Visual cortex Homogeneous Homogeneity statistics Electroencephalography |
| Citations | 180 |
| Key findings | Self-generated thoughts cluster into distinct dimensions of content and form, and individual differences in these dimensions relate to distributed patterns of intrinsic brain activity. |
Abstract
Although neural activity often reflects the processing of external inputs, intrinsic fluctuations in activity have been observed throughout the brain. These may relate to patterns of self-generated thought that can occur while not performing goal-driven tasks. To understand the relationship between self-generated mental activity and intrinsic neural fluctuations, we developed the New York Cognition Questionnaire (NYC-Q) to assess the content and form of an individual's experiences during the acquisition of resting-state fMRI data. The data were collected as a part of the Nathan Kline Rockland Enhanced sample. We decomposed NYC-Q scores using exploratory factor analysis and found that self-reported thoughts clustered into distinct dimensions of content (future related, past related, positive, negative, and social) and form (words, images, and specificity). We used these components to perform an individual difference analysis exploring how differences in the types of self-generated thoughts relate to whole brain measures of intrinsic brain activity (fractional amplitude of low frequency fluctuations, regional homogeneity, and degree centrality). We found patterns of self-generated thoughts related to changes that were distributed across a wide range of cortical areas. For example, individuals who reported greater imagery exhibited greater low frequency fluctuations in a region of perigenual cingulate cortex, a region that is known to participate in the so-called default-mode network. We also found certain forms of thought were associated with other areas, such as primary visual cortex, the insula, and the cerebellum. For example, individuals who reported greater future thought exhibited less homogeneous neural fluctuations in a region of lateral occipital cortex, a result that is consistent with the claim that particular types of self-generated thought depend on processes that are decoupled from sensory processes. These data provide evidence that self-generated thought is a heterogeneous category of experience and that studying its content can be helpful in understanding brain dynamics.
Comparable studies
Other observational and cohort studies on default mode network, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| A default mode of brain function Normal adult human brain | 2001 | Observational study | |
| Resting-State Functional Connectivity Reflects Structural Connectivity in the Default Mode Network Healthy subjects | 2008 | Observational cohort | |
| Meditation experience is associated with increased cortical thickness Participants with extensive Insight meditation experience and matched controls | 2005 | Observational cohort | n = 20 |
| Meditation experience is associated with differences in default mode network activity and connectivity Experienced meditators and matched meditation-naive controls | 2011 | Observational cohort | |
| The precuneus/posterior cingulate cortex plays a pivotal role in the default mode network: Evidence from a partial correlation network analysis Healthy subjects | 2008 | Observational study |
Citations in the library
Cited by 23
- The default mode network in cognition: a topographical perspective Nature Reviews Neuroscience July 5, 2021
- The wandering brain: Meta-analysis of functional neuroimaging studies of mind-wandering and related spontaneous thought processes Neuroimage February 25, 2015
- Left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex supports context-dependent prioritisation of off-task thought Nature Communications August 23, 2019
- Effects of Sad and Happy Music on Mind-Wandering and the Default Mode Network Scientific Reports October 25, 2017
- The relationship between individual variation in macroscale functional gradients and distinct aspects of ongoing thought Neuroimage June 22, 2020
and 18 more in the library
Cites 10
- A default mode of brain function Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences January 16, 2001
- Experience sampling during fMRI reveals default network and executive system contributions to mind wandering. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences May 26, 2009
- Neural Correlates of Ongoing Conscious Experience: Both Task-Unrelatedness and Stimulus-Independence Are Related to Default Network Activity PLoS One February 14, 2011
- The Decoupled Mind: Mind-wandering Disrupts Cortical Phase-locking to Perceptual Events Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience April 17, 2014
- The balanced mind: the variability of task-unrelated thoughts predicts error monitoring. Frontiers in Human Neuroscience 2013
and 5 more in the library