The Neural Representation of Mental Models Across Content Type: A Common Spatial Structure

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Katherine L Alfred ◽  
Andrew C Connolly ◽  
Joshua S. Cetron ◽  
David J. M. Kraemer
Keyword(s):  
Prefrontal Cortex ◽  
Mental Models ◽  
Deductive Reasoning ◽  
Neural Representation ◽  
Direct Perception ◽  
Relational Reasoning ◽  
Reasoning Task ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Frontoparietal Network ◽  
Anterior Prefrontal Cortex

Mental models provide a cognitive framework that allows for organizing and manipulating information while reasoning about the world. Deductive reasoning with mental models is supported by a frontoparietal network, including regions of anterior prefrontal cortex associated with relational integration, and superior parietal regions associated with spatial cognition. Based in part on this evidence, mental models are often considered spatial representations. However, studies of transitive reasoning often rely on direct perception of stimuli that are inherently spatial in content, leaving open the possibility that the associated neural representations are specific to content that is inherently spatial or concretely perceivable. Here we directly test the hypothesis that the neural representation of mental models generated through transitive reasoning relies on this same frontoparietal network irrespective of the spatial nature of the stimulus content. Specifically, participants generated three distinct mental models through a transitive reasoning task. The content within the three models ranges from expressly visuospatial to entirely abstract. Moreover, all of the mental models participants generated were based on inferred relationships that were never directly observed. Multivariate representational similarity analysis was used to assess the correlation between these to-be-learned mental models and the patterns of neural activity elicited while viewing individual stimuli after training. Patterns representative of the mental models were revealed in both superior parietal lobule and anterior prefrontal cortex. Notably, these neural patterns were highly convergent across stimulus types. These results support the conclusion that, independent of content, relational reasoning using mental models relies on neural mechanisms associated with spatial processing.

scholarly journals Mental models use common neural spatial structure for spatial and abstract content

2020 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Katherine L. Alfred ◽  
Andrew C. Connolly ◽  
Joshua S. Cetron ◽  
David J. M. Kraemer
Keyword(s):  
Mental Models ◽  
Neural Mechanisms ◽  
Superior Parietal Lobule ◽  
Frontoparietal Network ◽  
Spatial Features ◽  
Neural Representations ◽  
Cognitive Framework ◽  
Stimulus Content ◽  
Anterior Prefrontal Cortex ◽  
Abstract Content

AbstractMental models provide a cognitive framework allowing for spatially organizing information while reasoning about the world. However, transitive reasoning studies often rely on perception of stimuli that contain visible spatial features, allowing the possibility that associated neural representations are specific to inherently spatial content. Here, we test the hypothesis that neural representations of mental models generated through transitive reasoning rely on a frontoparietal network irrespective of the spatial nature of the stimulus content. Content within three models ranges from expressly visuospatial to abstract. All mental models participants generated were based on inferred relationships never directly observed. Here, using multivariate representational similarity analysis, we show that patterns representative of mental models were revealed in both superior parietal lobule and anterior prefrontal cortex and converged across stimulus types. These results support the conclusion that, independent of content, transitive reasoning using mental models relies on neural mechanisms associated with spatial cognition.

Altered Resting-State Frontoparietal Control Network in Children with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder

2015 ◽  
Vol 21 (4) ◽  
pp. 271-284 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hsiang-Yuan Lin ◽  
Wen-Yih Isaac Tseng ◽  
Meng-Chuan Lai ◽  
Kayako Matsuo ◽  
Susan Shur-Fen Gau
Keyword(s):  
Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder ◽  
Prefrontal Cortex ◽  
Functional Connectivity ◽  
Resting State ◽  
Control Network ◽  
Children With Adhd ◽  
Hyperactivity Disorder ◽  
Anterior Prefrontal Cortex ◽  
The Right ◽  
Frontoparietal Control Network

AbstractThe frontoparietal control network, anatomically and functionally interposed between the dorsal attention network and default mode network, underpins executive control functions. Individuals with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) commonly exhibit deficits in executive functions, which are mainly mediated by the frontoparietal control network. Involvement of the frontoparietal control network based on the anterior prefrontal cortex in neurobiological mechanisms of ADHD has yet to be tested. We used resting-state functional MRI and seed-based correlation analyses to investigate functional connectivity of the frontoparietal control network in a sample of 25 children with ADHD (7–14 years; mean 9.94±1.77 years; 20 males), and 25 age-, sex-, and performance IQ-matched typically developing (TD) children. All participants had limited in-scanner head motion. Spearman’s rank correlations were used to test the associations between altered patterns of functional connectivity with clinical symptoms and executive functions, measured by the Conners’ Continuous Performance Test and Spatial Span in the Cambridge Neuropsychological Test Automated Battery. Compared with TD children, children with ADHD demonstrated weaker connectivity between the right anterior prefrontal cortex (PFC) and the right ventrolateral PFC, and between the left anterior PFC and the right inferior parietal lobule. Furthermore, this aberrant connectivity of the frontoparietal control network in ADHD was associated with symptoms of impulsivity and opposition-defiance, as well as impaired response inhibition and attentional control. The findings support potential integration of the disconnection model and the executive dysfunction model for ADHD. Atypical frontoparietal control network may play a pivotal role in the pathophysiology of ADHD. (JINS, 2015, 21, 271–284)

The role of the anterior prefrontal cortex in human cognition

Nature ◽  
10.1038/20178 ◽  
1999 ◽  
Vol 399 (6732) ◽  
pp. 148-151 ◽  
Author(s):  
Etienne Koechlin ◽  
Gianpaolo Basso ◽  
Pietro Pietrini ◽  
Seth Panzer ◽  
Jordan Grafman
Keyword(s):  
Prefrontal Cortex ◽  
Human Cognition ◽  
Anterior Prefrontal Cortex

The trained and untrained users’ mental models compatibility with the icons of search modules in Iranian digital library applications

2017 ◽  
Vol 35 (2) ◽  
pp. 290-302 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sanaz Rahrovani ◽  
Mahdieh Mirzabeigi ◽  
Javad Abbaspour
Keyword(s):  
User Interface ◽  
Mental Models ◽  
Information Literacy ◽  
Digital Library ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
User Group ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Software Applications ◽  
Fields Of Study ◽  
Study Results

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate the trained and untrained users’ mental models compatibility with search module icons in three Iranian digital library applications, namely, Nika, Azarakhsh, and Simorgh. Design/methodology/approach The population of this survey consisted of two groups including trained and untrained users. The trained user group consisted of 174 samples, all of which were included in the study due to scarcity of the samples. The untrained user group consisted of 8,210 samples, from which 267 cases were selected through stratified sampling. Findings Results showed that the trained users’ mental models were more compatible with the search module icons than those of the untrained users. The comparison of three software applications showed that the mental models of trained and untrained users had the highest compatibility with the search icons of Azarakhsh and the lowest compatibility with those of Nika. Concerning the untrained users’ status in terms of their fields of study, results showed that users majoring technical and engineering field and those in agriculture had, respectively, the highest and lowest mental models compatibility with the icons embedded in the user interface of the studied applications. Originality/value Since the mental models may be incomplete or inaccurate, the study of the trained and untrained users’ mental models compatibility with the search module icons of user interface embedded in various library applications may help in assessing the software’ status and the designers’ level of success in conveying the content. This also may assist information literacy specialists to estimate the required amount of training for trained and untrained users.

scholarly journals Brain electrical traits of logical validity

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Francisco Salto ◽  
Carmen Requena ◽  
Paula Álvarez-Merino ◽  
Luís F. Antón-Toro ◽  
Fernando Maestú
Keyword(s):  
Prefrontal Cortex ◽  
Reaction Time ◽  
Medial Prefrontal Cortex ◽  
Deductive Reasoning ◽  
Significant Activity ◽  
Temporal Window ◽  
Logical Validity ◽  
Electrical Demand ◽  
Brain Processing ◽  
Temporal Windows

AbstractNeuroscience has studied deductive reasoning over the last 20 years under the assumption that deductive inferences are not only de jure but also de facto distinct from other forms of inference. The objective of this research is to verify if logically valid deductions leave any cerebral electrical trait that is distinct from the trait left by non-valid deductions. 23 subjects with an average age of 20.35 years were registered with MEG and placed into a two conditions paradigm (100 trials for each condition) which each presented the exact same relational complexity (same variables and content) but had distinct logical complexity. Both conditions show the same electromagnetic components (P3, N4) in the early temporal window (250–525 ms) and P6 in the late temporal window (500–775 ms). The significant activity in both valid and invalid conditions is found in sensors from medial prefrontal regions, probably corresponding to the ACC or to the medial prefrontal cortex. The amplitude and intensity of valid deductions is significantly lower in both temporal windows (p = 0.0003). The reaction time was 54.37% slower in the valid condition. Validity leaves a minimal but measurable hypoactive electrical trait in brain processing. The minor electrical demand is attributable to the recursive and automatable character of valid deductions, suggesting a physical indicator of computational deductive properties. It is hypothesized that all valid deductions are recursive and hypoactive.

Employee's lying behavior and the role of self-awareness

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Kirk Chang ◽  
Sylvain Max ◽  
Jérémy Celse
Keyword(s):  
Design Methodology ◽  
Deductive Reasoning ◽  
Research Approach ◽  
Self Awareness ◽  
Laboratory Setting ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Quasi Experimental ◽  
Research Findings ◽  
Practical Implications

Purpose Employee’s lying behavior has become ubiquitous at work, and managers are keen to know what can be done to curb such behavior. Managers often apply anti-lying strategies in their management and, in particular, the role of self-awareness on lying intervention has drawn academic attention recently. Drawing on multi-disciplinary literature, this study aims to investigate the efficacy of self-awareness in reducing lying behavior. Design/methodology/approach Following the perspectives of positivism and deductive reasoning, a quasi-experimental research approach was adopted. Employees from Dijon, France were recruited as research participants. Based on the literature, different conditions (scenario manipulation) were designed and implemented in the laboratory, in which participants were exposed to pre-set lying opportunities and their responses were analyzed accordingly. Findings Unlike prior studies which praised the merits of self-awareness, the authors found that self-awareness did not decrease lying behavior, not encouraging the confession of lying either. Employees actually lied more when they believed other employees were lying. Practical implications This study suggests managers not to rely on employee’s self-awareness; rather, the concept of self-awareness should be incorporated into the work ethics, and managers should schedule regular workshops to keep employees informed of the importance of ethics. When employees are regularly reminded of the ethics and appreciate its importance, their intention of lying is more likely to decrease. Originality/value To the best of the atuhors’ knowledge, the current research is the first in its kind to investigate lying intervention of employees in the laboratory setting. Research findings have brought new insights into the lying intervention literature, which has important implication on the implementation of anti-lying strategies.

The factors of consumer confidence recovery after scandals in food supply chain safety

2018 ◽  
Vol 30 (5) ◽  
pp. 1379-1400 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shuhui Wang ◽  
Paul Alexander
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Food Safety ◽  
Supply Chains ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Deductive Reasoning ◽  
Consumer Confidence ◽  
Milk Formula ◽  
Extended Model ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Before And After

Purpose Viewing consumer confidence as a set of static factors has informed previous research and underpinned strategies used in recovering from food safety quality failures, but this approach has not delivered reliable and quick recovery from large-scale food safety scandals. The purpose of this paper is to examine extant models and the factors they are composed of, and suggest an extended model that has a better potential for consumer confidence. The paper focuses on food products where supply chains are visible, and use these features to group the findings. Design/methodology/approach In this study principal components and logit analyses are used to assess the role of 30 variables operating in a consumer confidence model constructed from several existing in the literature. This combined model considers emotional, cognitive, trust and sociodemographic factors. In total, 14 independent factors are identified. The authors examine the factors, and from these, the decision-making mechanisms before and after the Sanlu Infant Milk Formula (IMF) scandal of 2008. Findings The authors find that the factors considered by consumers are different for different IMF supply chains, and different again before and after the scandal. The authors develop the argument for an extension to the existing models, incorporating a dynamic consumer confidence system. Research limitations/implications The paper uses a single survey after the focus event to establish “before” and “after” decision-making factors. Since the IMF scandal is recent and of very high profile, this is likely valid even if it carries memory bias effects. The study is directly applicable to food safety scandals in a Chinese context. Deductive reasoning extends our assertions to a wider context. They are logically validated but have not been formally tested. Practical implications Using this system as a framework a checklist for recovery from a similar food safety scandal is suggested. The authors also suggest more general use for use where supply chains features are visible to consumers. Originality/value Models for food safety consumer confidence recovery have previously focused on identifying models and the static factors they consist of. These do represent a reflection of how this phenomenon operates, but using the principals of this model nevertheless does not result in good recovery from extreme food safety failures. This paper contributes by extending these models to one that can be applied for better recovery.

scholarly journals Interpersonal Synchrony Special Issue The role of anterior prefrontal cortex (area 10) in face-to-face deception measured with fNIRS

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paola Pinti ◽  
Andrea Devoto ◽  
Isobel Greenhalgh ◽  
Ilias Tachtsidis ◽  
Paul W Burgess ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Prefrontal Cortex ◽  
Near Infrared ◽  
Brain Activity ◽  
Lie Detection ◽  
Brain Activation ◽  
Functional Near Infrared Spectroscopy ◽  
Face To Face ◽  
Interpersonal Synchrony ◽  
Anterior Prefrontal Cortex

Abstract Anterior prefrontal cortex (PFC, Brodmann area 10) activations are often, but not always, found in neuroimaging studies investigating deception, and the precise role of this area remains unclear. To explore the role of the PFC in face-to-face deception, we invited pairs of participants to play a card game involving lying and lie detection while we used functional near infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) to record brain activity in the PFC. Participants could win points for successfully lying about the value of their cards or for detecting lies. We contrasted patterns of brain activation when the participants either told the truth or lied, when they were either forced into this or did so voluntarily and when they either succeeded or failed to detect a lie. Activation in the anterior PFC was found in both lie production and detection, unrelated to reward. Analysis of cross-brain activation patterns between participants identified areas of the PFC where the lead player’s brain activity synchronized their partner’s later brain activity. These results suggest that during situations that involve close interpersonal interaction, the anterior PFC supports processing widely involved in deception, possibly relating to the demands of monitoring one’s own and other people’s behaviour.

scholarly journals Subjective value and decision entropy are jointly encoded by aligned gradients across the human brain

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sebastian Bobadilla-Suarez ◽  
Olivia Guest ◽  
Bradley C. Love
Keyword(s):  
Prefrontal Cortex ◽  
Human Brain ◽  
Ventromedial Prefrontal Cortex ◽  
Neural Representation ◽  
Retrospective Evaluation ◽  
Systematic Fashion ◽  
Subjective Value ◽  
Fmri Analysis ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
The Brain

AbstractRecent work has considered the relationship between value and confidence in both behavior and neural representation. Here we evaluated whether the brain organizes value and confidence signals in a systematic fashion that reflects the overall desirability of options. If so, regions that respond to either increases or decreases in both value and confidence should be widespread. We strongly confirmed these predictions through a model-based fMRI analysis of a mixed gambles task that assessed subjective value (SV) and inverse decision entropy (iDE), which is related to confidence. Purported value areas more strongly signalled iDE than SV, underscoring how intertwined value and confidence are. A gradient tied to the desirability of actions transitioned from positive SV and iDE in ventromedial prefrontal cortex to negative SV and iDE in dorsal medial prefrontal cortex. This alignment of SV and iDE signals could support retrospective evaluation to guide learning and subsequent decisions.

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