scholarly journals “The Enemy of My Enemy is My Friend”: Shared Negative but not Positive Emotional Experience is Associated with Neural Synchrony in the Medial Prefrontal Cortex

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jiani Li ◽  
MACRINA DIEFFENBACH ◽  
MATTHEW D. LIEBERMAN
Keyword(s):  
Prefrontal Cortex ◽  
Medial Prefrontal Cortex ◽  
Subjective Experience ◽  
Near Infrared ◽  
Emotional Experience ◽  
Human Life ◽  
Neural Synchrony ◽  
Functional Near Infrared Spectroscopy ◽  
Neural Signature ◽  
The Impact

Prevalent, automatic, and powerful, emotional experience forms an integral part of human life. Despite numerous studies pointing at the impact of emotion in shaping one’s interpretation of situation and guiding action, emotional experience has not been studied extensively due to its idiosyncratic nature. However, advances in neuroimaging techniques and statistical analysis methods enabled more rigorous investigation of subjective experience, one of which is neural synchrony. Here we sought to examine if neural synchrony in regions within the default mode network, including medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC), bilateral temporoparietal junctions (TPJ) and inferior parietal lobules (IPL), underlies shared emotional experience. A hundred and four participants watched political videos while being scanned by Functional Near-Infrared Spectroscopy (fNIRS) and rated their emotional experience afterwards. Although initial Inter- Subject Correlation Analysis and Inter-Subject Representational Similarity Analysis did not yield significant findings, we addressed limitations of both approaches – loss of dimensionality and unequal comparisons of dyads – by combining them with k-means clustering. This improved version of analysis revealed that subjects who reported more similarly negative, but not positive, emotional experiences exhibited more synchronized neural fluctuations in mPFC. The results suggest that neural synchrony in mPFC may be driven primarily by negative sentiments and serve as a neural signature for subjective emotional experience.

scholarly journals Tablet Use Affects Preschoolers’ Executive Function: fNIRS Evidence from the Dimensional Change Card Sort Task

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hui Li ◽  
Dandan Wu ◽  
Jinfeng Yang ◽  
Jiutong Luo ◽  
Sha Xie ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Prefrontal Cortex ◽  
Executive Function ◽  
Infrared Spectroscopy ◽  
Near Infrared ◽  
Dimensional Change ◽  
Heavy User ◽  
Functional Near Infrared Spectroscopy ◽  
Card Sort ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Dimensional Change Card Sort

This study aims to examine the impact of tablet use on preschoolers’ executive function during the Dimensional Change Card Sort Task (DCCS) task using the functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS). Altogether 38 Chinese preschoolers (Mage = 5.0 years, SD = 0.69 years, 17 girls) completed the tasks before the COVID-19 lockdown. Eight children never used tablets, while 16 children were diagnosed as the ‘heavy-user'. The results indicated that: (1) the 'Non-user' outperformed the 'Heavy-user' with a significantly higher correct rate in the DCCS task; (2) the two groups differed significantly in the activation of the prefrontal cortex (BA 9): the 'Non-user' pattern is normal and healthy, whereas the 'Heavy-user' pattern is not normal and needs further exploration.

scholarly journals Tablet Use Affects Preschoolers’ Executive Function: fNIRS Evidence from the Dimensional Change Card Sort Task

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (5) ◽  
pp. 567
Author(s):  
Hui Li ◽  
Dandan Wu ◽  
Jinfeng Yang ◽  
Jiutong Luo ◽  
Sha Xie ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Prefrontal Cortex ◽  
Executive Function ◽  
Infrared Spectroscopy ◽  
Near Infrared ◽  
Dimensional Change ◽  
Heavy User ◽  
Functional Near Infrared Spectroscopy ◽  
Card Sort ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Dimensional Change Card Sort

This study aims to examine the impact of heavy use of tablets on preschoolers’ executive function during the Dimensional Change Card Sort (DCCS) task using the functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS). Altogether, 38 Chinese preschoolers (Mage = 5.0 years, SD = 0.69 years, 17 girls) completed the tasks before the COVID-19 lockdown. Eight children never used tablets, while 16 children were diagnosed as the ‘heavy-user’. The results indicated that: (1) the ‘non-user’ outperformed the ‘heavy-user’ with a significantly higher correct rate in the DCCS task; (2) the two groups differed significantly in the activation of the prefrontal cortex (BA 9): the ‘non-user’ pattern is normal and healthy, whereas the ‘heavy-user’ pattern is not normal and needs further exploration.

Making social neuroscience less WEIRD: Using fNIRS to measure neural signatures of persuasive influence in a Middle East participant sample

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shannon Burns ◽  
Lianne N. Barnes ◽  
Ian A. McCulloh ◽  
Munqith M. Dagher ◽  
Emily B. Falk ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Prefrontal Cortex ◽  
Near Infrared ◽  
Brain Activity ◽  
Health And Safety ◽  
Social Neuroscience ◽  
Functional Near Infrared Spectroscopy ◽  
Future Directions ◽  
Neuroscience Research ◽  
Neuropsychological Functions ◽  
Arabic Speaking

The large majority of social neuroscience research uses WEIRD populations – participants from Western, educated, industrialized, rich, and democratic locations. This makes it difficult to claim whether neuropsychological functions are universal or culture specific. In this study, we demonstrate one approach to addressing the imbalance by using portable neuroscience equipment in a study of persuasion conducted in Jordan with an Arabic-speaking sample. Participants were shown persuasive videos on various health and safety topics while their brain activity was measured using functional near infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS). Self-reported persuasiveness ratings for each video were then recorded. Consistent with previous research conducted with American subjects, this work found that activity in the dorsomedial and ventromedial prefrontal cortex predicted how persuasive participants found the videos and how much they intended to engage in the messages’ endorsed behaviors. Further, activity in the left ventrolateral prefrontal cortex was associated with persuasiveness ratings, but only in participants for whom the message was personally relevant. Implications for these results on the understanding of the brain basis of persuasion and on future directions for neuroimaging in diverse populations are discussed.

scholarly journals Classification of Prefrontal Cortex Activity Based on Functional Near-Infrared Spectroscopy Data upon Olfactory Stimulation

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (6) ◽  
pp. 701
Author(s):  
Cheng-Hsuan Chen ◽  
Kuo-Kai Shyu ◽  
Cheng-Kai Lu ◽  
Chi-Wen Jao ◽  
Po-Lei Lee
Keyword(s):  
Prefrontal Cortex ◽  
Infrared Spectroscopy ◽  
Near Infrared Spectroscopy ◽  
Near Infrared ◽  
Kernel Functions ◽  
Olfactory Stimulation ◽  
Support Vector ◽  
Hemodynamic Response Function ◽  
Functional Near Infrared Spectroscopy ◽  
Data Set

The sense of smell is one of the most important organs in humans, and olfactory imaging can detect signals in the anterior orbital frontal lobe. This study assessed olfactory stimuli using support vector machines (SVMs) with signals from functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) data obtained from the prefrontal cortex. These data included odor stimuli and air state, which triggered the hemodynamic response function (HRF), determined from variations in oxyhemoglobin (oxyHb) and deoxyhemoglobin (deoxyHb) levels; photoplethysmography (PPG) of two wavelengths (raw optical red and near-infrared data); and the ratios of data from two optical datasets. We adopted three SVM kernel functions (i.e., linear, quadratic, and cubic) to analyze signals and compare their performance with the HRF and PPG signals. The results revealed that oxyHb yielded the most efficient single-signal data with a quadratic kernel function, and a combination of HRF and PPG signals yielded the most efficient multi-signal data with the cubic function. Our results revealed superior SVM analysis of HRFs for classifying odor and air status using fNIRS data during olfaction in humans. Furthermore, the olfactory stimulation can be accurately classified by using quadratic and cubic kernel functions in SVM, even for an individual participant data set.

scholarly journals Comparison of Activation in the Prefrontal Cortex of Native Speakers of Mandarin by Ability of Japanese as a Second Language Using a Novel Speaking Task

Healthcare ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (4) ◽  
pp. 412
Author(s):  
Li Cong ◽  
Hideki Miyaguchi ◽  
Chinami Ishizuki
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Prefrontal Cortex ◽  
Cognitive Load ◽  
Near Infrared ◽  
Native Speakers ◽  
Brain Activation ◽  
Brain Regions ◽  
Strong Inhibition ◽  
Functional Near Infrared Spectroscopy ◽  
High Level

Evidence shows that second language (L2) learning affects cognitive function. Here in this work, we compared brain activation in native speakers of Mandarin (L1) who speak Japanese (L2) between and within two groups (high and low L2 ability) to determine the effect of L2 ability in L1 and L2 speaking tasks, and to map brain regions involved in both tasks. The brain activation during task performance was determined using prefrontal cortex blood flow as a proxy, measured by functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS). People with low L2 ability showed much more brain activation when speaking L2 than when speaking L1. People with high L2 ability showed high-level brain activation when speaking either L2 or L1. Almost the same high-level brain activation was observed in both ability groups when speaking L2. The high level of activation in people with high L2 ability when speaking either L2 or L1 suggested strong inhibition of the non-spoken language. A wider area of brain activation in people with low compared with high L2 ability when speaking L2 is considered to be attributed to the cognitive load involved in code-switching L1 to L2 with strong inhibition of L1 and the cognitive load involved in using L2.

Social hyperscanning with fNIRS

Gesture ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 19 (2-3) ◽  
pp. 196-222
Author(s):  
Michela Balconi ◽  
Angela Bartolo ◽  
Giulia Fronda
Keyword(s):  
Prefrontal Cortex ◽  
Infrared Spectroscopy ◽  
Near Infrared Spectroscopy ◽  
Dorsolateral Prefrontal Cortex ◽  
Near Infrared ◽  
Brain Connectivity ◽  
Gestural Communication ◽  
Functional Near Infrared Spectroscopy ◽  
Dorsolateral Prefrontal ◽  
Posterior Parietal

Abstract The interest of neuroscience has been aimed at the investigation of the neural bases underlying gestural communication. This research explored the intra- and inter-brain connectivity between encoder and decoder. Specifically, adopting a “hyperscanning paradigm” with the functional Near-infrared Spectroscopy (fNIRS) cerebral connectivity in oxygenated (O2Hb) and deoxygenated (HHb) hemoglobin levels were revealed during the reproduction of affective, social, and informative gestures of different valence. Results showed an increase of intra- and inter-brain connectivity in dorsolateral prefrontal cortex for affective gestures, in superior frontal gyrus for social gestures and in frontal eyes field for informative gestures. Moreover, encoder showed a higher intra-brain connectivity in posterior parietal areas more than decoder. Finally, an increasing of inter-brain connectivity more than intra-brain (ConIndex) was observed in left regions for positive gestures. The present research has explored how the individuals neural tuning mechanisms turn out to be strongly influenced by the nature of specific gestures.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document