The Influence of Mental Imagery Expertise of Pen and Paper Players versus Computer Gamers upon Performance and Electrocortical Correlates in a Difficult Mental Rotation Task

We investigated the influence of mental imagery expertise in 15 pen and paper role-players as an expert group compared to the gender-matched control group of computer role-players in the difficult Vandenberg and Kuse mental rotation task. In this task, the participants have to decide which two of four rotated figures match the target figure. The dependent measures were performance speed and accuracy. In our exploratory investigation, we further examined midline frontal theta band activation, parietal alpha band activation, and parietal alpha band asymmetry in EEG as indicator for the chosen rotation strategy. Additionally, we explored the gender influence on performance and EEG activation, although a very small female sample section was given. The expected gender difference concerning performance accuracy was negated by expertise in pen and paper role-playing women, while the gender-specific difference in performance speed was preserved. Moreover, gender differences concerning electro-cortical measures revealed differences in rotation strategy, with women using top-down strategies compared to men, who were using top-down strategies and active inhibition of associative cortical areas. These strategy uses were further moderated by expertise, with higher expertise leading to more pronounced activation patters, especially during successful performance. However, due to the very limited sample size, the findings of this explorative study have to be interpreted cautiously.

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Mental Rotation Meets the Motion Aftereffect: The Role of hV5/MT+ in Visual Mental Imagery

Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience ◽

10.1162/jocn.2010.21525 ◽

2011 ◽

Vol 23 (6) ◽

pp. 1395-1404 ◽

Cited By ~ 19

Author(s):

Ruth Seurinck ◽

Floris P. de Lange ◽

Erik Achten ◽

Guy Vingerhoets

Keyword(s):

Mental Rotation ◽

Mental Imagery ◽

Parietal Cortex ◽

Neural Activity ◽

Posterior Parietal Cortex ◽

Visual Motion ◽

Motion Aftereffect ◽

Mental Rotation Task ◽

Behavioral Performance ◽

Visual Mental Imagery

A growing number of studies show that visual mental imagery recruits the same brain areas as visual perception. Although the necessity of hV5/MT+ for motion perception has been revealed by means of TMS, its relevance for motion imagery remains unclear. We induced a direction-selective adaptation in hV5/MT+ by means of an MAE while subjects performed a mental rotation task that elicits imagined motion. We concurrently measured behavioral performance and neural activity with fMRI, enabling us to directly assess the effect of a perturbation of hV5/MT+ on other cortical areas involved in the mental rotation task. The activity in hV5/MT+ increased as more mental rotation was required, and the perturbation of hV5/MT+ affected behavioral performance as well as the neural activity in this area. Moreover, several regions in the posterior parietal cortex were also affected by this perturbation. Our results show that hV5/MT+ is required for imagined visual motion and engages in an interaction with parietal cortex during this cognitive process.

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Facilitated event-related power-modulations during transcranial alternating current stimulation (tACS) revealed by concurrent tACS-MEG

10.1101/249409 ◽

2018 ◽

Author(s):

Florian H. Kasten ◽

Burkhard Maess ◽

Christoph S. Herrmann

Keyword(s):

Mental Rotation ◽

Spatial Filtering ◽

Alternating Current ◽

Mental Rotation Task ◽

Oscillatory Activity ◽

Control Analysis ◽

Alpha Band ◽

Oscillatory Dynamics ◽

Continuous Application ◽

Transcranial Alternating Current Stimulation

AbstractNon-invasive approaches to modulate oscillatory activity in the brain receive growing popularity in the scientific community. Transcranial alternating current stimulation (tACS) has been shown to modulate neural oscillations in a frequency specific manner. Due to a massive stimulation artifact at the targeted frequency, only little is known about effects of tACS during stimulation. I.e. it remains unclear how the continuous application of tACS affects event-related oscillations during cognitive tasks. Depending on whether tACS merely affects pre‐ or post-stimulus oscillations or both, stimulation can alter patterns of event-related oscillatory dynamics in various directions or may not affect them at all. Thus, knowledge about these directions is crucial to plan, predict and understand outcomes of solely behavioral tACS experiments. Here, a recently proposed procedure to suppress tACS artifacts by projecting MEG data into source space using spatial filtering was utilized to recover event-related power modulations in the alpha band during a mental rotation task. MEG of twenty-five volunteers was continuously recorded. After 10 minutes of baseline measurement, they received either 20 minutes of tACS at individual alpha frequency or sham stimulation. Another 40 minutes of MEG were acquired thereafter. Data were projected into source space and carefully examined for residual artifacts. Results revealed strong facilitation of event-related power modulations in the alpha band during tACS application. Data provide first direct evidence, that tACS does not counteract top-down suppression of intrinsic oscillations, but rather enhances pre-existent power modulations within the range of the individual alpha (=stimulation) frequency.SignificanceTranscranial alternating current stimulation (tACS) is increasingly used in cognitive neuroscience to study the causal role of brain oscillations and cognition. However, online effects of tACS so far largely remain a ‘black box’ due to an intense electromagnetic artifact encountered during stimulation. The current study is the first to employ a spatial filtering approach to recover and systematically study event-related oscillatory dynamics during tACS, which can potentially be altered in various directions. TACS facilitated pre-existing patterns of oscillatory dynamics during the employed mental rotation task, but does not counteract or overwrite them. In addition, control analysis and a measure to quantify tACS artifact suppression are provided that can enrich future studies investigating tACS online effects.

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The Embodied Nature of Motor Imagery Processes Highlighted by Short-Term Limb Immobilization

Experimental Psychology (formerly Zeitschrift für Experimentelle Psychologie) ◽

10.1027/1618-3169/a000237 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 61 (3) ◽

pp. 180-186 ◽

Cited By ~ 15

Author(s):

Aurore Meugnot ◽

Yves Almecija ◽

Lucette Toussaint

Keyword(s):

Mental Rotation ◽

Motor Imagery ◽

Response Times ◽

Mental Rotation Task ◽

Hand Movements ◽

Control Group ◽

Short Term ◽

Left Hand ◽

Post Test ◽

Limb Immobilization

We investigated the embodied nature of motor imagery processes through a recent use-dependent plasticity approach, a short-term limb immobilization paradigm. A splint placed on the participants’ left-hand during a brief period of 24 h was used for immobilization. The immobilized participants performed two mental rotation tasks (a hand mental rotation task and a number mental rotation task) before (pre-test) and immediately after (post-test) the splint removal. The control group did not undergo the immobilization procedure. The main results showed an immobilization-induced effect on left-hand stimuli, resulting in a lack of task-repetition benefit. By contrast, accuracy was higher and response times were shorter for right-hand stimuli. No immobilization-induced effects appeared for number stimuli. These results revealed that the cognitive representation of hand movements can be modified by a brief period of sensorimotor deprivation, supporting the hypothesis of the embodied nature of motor simulation processes.

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Event-related desynchronization (ERD) in the alpha band during a hand mental rotation task

Neuroscience Letters ◽

10.1016/j.neulet.2013.02.036 ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 541 ◽

pp. 238-242 ◽

Cited By ~ 29

Author(s):

Xiaogang Chen ◽

Guangyu Bin ◽

Ian Daly ◽

Xiaorong Gao

Keyword(s):

Mental Rotation ◽

Mental Rotation Task ◽

Alpha Band ◽

Event Related Desynchronization

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Influence of Subclinical Neck Pain on the Ability to Perform a Mental Rotation Task: A 4-Week Longitudinal Study With a Healthy Control Group Comparison

Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics ◽

10.1016/j.jmpt.2015.12.002 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 39 (1) ◽

pp. 23-30 ◽

Cited By ~ 7

Author(s):

Julianne K. Baarbé ◽

Michael W.R. Holmes ◽

Heather E. Murphy ◽

Heidi Haavik ◽

Bernadette A. Murphy

Keyword(s):

Longitudinal Study ◽

Neck Pain ◽

Mental Rotation ◽

Mental Rotation Task ◽

Healthy Control Group ◽

Control Group ◽

Group Comparison ◽

Healthy Control

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Individual Differences in Mental Rotation

Experimental Psychology (formerly Zeitschrift für Experimentelle Psychologie) ◽

10.1027/1618-3169/a000184 ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 60 (3) ◽

pp. 164-171 ◽

Cited By ~ 20

Author(s):

Peter Khooshabeh ◽

Mary Hegarty ◽

Thomas F. Shipley

Keyword(s):

Individual Differences ◽

Mental Rotation ◽

Response Times ◽

Task Demands ◽

Mental Rotation Task ◽

Imagery Ability ◽

Alternative Strategies

Two experiments tested the hypothesis that imagery ability and figural complexity interact to affect the choice of mental rotation strategies. Participants performed the Shepard and Metzler (1971) mental rotation task. On half of the trials, the 3-D figures were manipulated to create “fragmented” figures, with some cubes missing. Good imagers were less accurate and had longer response times on fragmented figures than on complete figures. Poor imagers performed similarly on fragmented and complete figures. These results suggest that good imagers use holistic mental rotation strategies by default, but switch to alternative strategies depending on task demands, whereas poor imagers are less flexible and use piecemeal strategies regardless of the task demands.

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Associative Imagery as a Strategy to Improve Destination Memory in Younger and Older Adults

Innovation in Aging ◽

10.1093/geroni/igaa057.1164 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 4 (Supplement_1) ◽

pp. 361-362

Author(s):

Tara Johnson ◽

Katie Stanko ◽

Susan Jefferson

Keyword(s):

Older Adults ◽

Mental Imagery ◽

Source Monitoring ◽

Memory Performance ◽

Grocery Store ◽

Control Group ◽

False Alarms ◽

Imagery Condition ◽

Destination Memory ◽

Shared Information

Abstract Destination memory errors (inability to remember to whom information was shared) affects all ages, but older adults are particularly vulnerable due to poor source monitoring. Individuals may assume information was already shared when it was not or repeat previously shared information. The current study explored two mental imagery strategies (vivid imagery, visualizing context) to improve destination memory. Using a software program, younger and older adults told randomly generated facts to random celebrity faces. Participants were unaware of the upcoming memory tests. The control group did not use a strategy. The imagery group used vivid imagery to connect the fact and face (e.g., visualize Oprah on a dime to remember Oprah was told that dimes have 118 ridges). The context group visualized a provided context (e.g., grocery store) when telling a fact to a face. Assessments of performance on item memory (facts, faces) as well as destination memory (face-fact pairings) were counterbalanced. Results indicated an associative memory deficit among older adults, which was driven by a higher rate of false alarms. However, across all adults, the vivid imagery condition was more accurate than the control condition, and they demonstrated fewer false alarms. These findings suggest that older adults can use mental imagery to reduce false alarms and improve destination memory performance. Implications include reducing age stereotypes, improving conversations, and decreasing potentially dangerous situations (e.g., withholding important health information thinking it already was shared with a doctor).

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Neuroimaging correlates of insight in obsessive compulsive disorder: A fMRI study

European Psychiatry ◽

10.1016/j.eurpsy.2017.01.344 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 41 (S1) ◽

pp. S409-S409

Author(s):

A. Gadad ◽

D.Y.C.J. Reddy ◽

D.G. Venkatasubramanian ◽

D.J. C.N

Keyword(s):

Mental Rotation ◽

Negative Correlation ◽

Mental Rotation Task ◽

Healthy Controls ◽

Inferior Parietal Lobule ◽

Good Insight ◽

Compulsive Disorder ◽

Accuracy Ratio ◽

Parietal Lobule ◽

Medial Frontal Gyrus

Aim of the studyTo study the neural substrates of insight in OCD by comparing patients with good insight, patients with poor insight and matched healthy controls using functional MRI.MethodologySubjects were recruited from among patients attending OCD clinic, adult psychiatry services and psychiatry ward inpatients of National Institute of Mental Health And Neurosciences (NIMHANS), Bangalore. They were further divided into ‘good insight’ (n = 30) and ‘poor insight’ (n = 14) using Brown's assessment of belief's scale. Control subjects (n = 30) were recruited from consenting volunteers. 3 T MRI was used mental rotation task was paradigm used for fMRI and analysis was done by SPM 8.ResultsPoor insight patients and good insight patients comparison revealed differential activation in left superior/medial frontal gyrus (corresponding to the DLPFC). A negative correlation between BABS score and activation of right inferior parietal lobule. Mental rotation task behavioural data results: OCD patients as a group had significantly lower accuracy compared to healthy controls. Poor insight group had significantly decreased accuracy ratio compared to good insight group and healthy controls. A negative correlation was noted between BABS score and accuracy ratio, indicating that poorer the insight, greater the errors during the active task.ConclusionInsight has been important prognostic factor in OCD. Poor insight patients had specific deficits in left medial frontal gyrus and right inferior parietal lobule as compared to good insight patients and healthy controls. Together, these indicate that insight has a strong neurobiological underpinning in OCD.Disclosure of interestThe authors have not supplied their declaration of competing interest.

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Occipitoparietal alpha-band responses to the graded allocation of top-down spatial attention

Journal of Neurophysiology ◽

10.1152/jn.00654.2013 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 112 (6) ◽

pp. 1307-1316 ◽

Cited By ~ 14

Author(s):

Isabel Dombrowe ◽

Claus C. Hilgetag

Keyword(s):

Visual Field ◽

Spatial Attention ◽

Brain Regions ◽

Alpha Band ◽

Top Down ◽

Attentional Resources ◽

Parietal Lobes ◽

Visual Spatial ◽

Entire Visual Field ◽

Band Activity

The voluntary, top-down allocation of visual spatial attention has been linked to changes in the alpha-band of the electroencephalogram (EEG) signal measured over occipital and parietal lobes. In the present study, we investigated how occipitoparietal alpha-band activity changes when people allocate their attentional resources in a graded fashion across the visual field. We asked participants to either completely shift their attention into one hemifield, to balance their attention equally across the entire visual field, or to attribute more attention to one-half of the visual field than to the other. As expected, we found that alpha-band amplitudes decreased stronger contralaterally than ipsilaterally to the attended side when attention was shifted completely. Alpha-band amplitudes decreased bilaterally when attention was balanced equally across the visual field. However, when participants allocated more attentional resources to one-half of the visual field, this was not reflected in the alpha-band amplitudes, which just decreased bilaterally. We found that the performance of the participants was more strongly reflected in the coherence between frontal and occipitoparietal brain regions. We conclude that low alpha-band amplitudes seem to be necessary for stimulus detection. Furthermore, complete shifts of attention are directly reflected in the lateralization of alpha-band amplitudes. In the present study, a gradual allocation of visual attention across the visual field was only indirectly reflected in the alpha-band activity over occipital and parietal cortexes.

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