Understanding the human brain clock & related neuroscience
Thursday, November 22, 2018
Friday, November 09, 2018
National Cancer Institute Designates BrainHQ as a Research-Tested Intervention Program
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National Cancer Institute Designates BrainHQ as a Research-Tested Intervention Program
// Posit Science | Brain Fitness & Brain Training
Monday, November 5, 2018
(SAN FRANCISCO) — The National Cancer Institute (NCI) of the US National Institutes of Health has designated BrainHQ online brain exercises, made by Posit Science, as a part of its "Research-Tested Intervention Programs" (RTIPs). BrainHQ is now included in the NCI database of evidence-based cancer interventions and program materials for program planners and public health practitioners.
The RTIPs program was set up by NCI to more rapidly move new science into "programs for people." It is a searchable database to help practitioners and program planners find evidence-based interventions that have sufficient relevance to be considered for use in real-world settings.
BrainHQ was selected for inclusion into the RTIPs program because it was tested in research studies, produced positive behavioral and psychosocial findings in cancer survivors, and study results were published in peer-reviewed medical journals. These findings were independently reviewed and scored by NCI and its partners as part of the process by which BrainHQ was included in the RTIPs program.
In selecting BrainHQ for RTIPs, NCI looked at published studies on the use of BrainHQ to address common complaints of cognitive impairment associated with cancer and its treatment. These cognitive impairments are often referred to as "cancer-induced cognitive impairment" or, more colloquially, as "chemobrain." Up to 90 percent of cancer survivors report cognitive issues from cancer or its treatment. There is no widely-accepted treatment for chemobrain.
NCI reviewed an 82-person randomized controlled trial conducted at the University of Indiana, which found that those who used a set of visual processing exercises now found in BrainHQ showed improvements, as compared to the control group, in objective measures of processing speed and verbal memory, as well as on standard measures of perceived cognitive functioning, symptom distress (anxiety, mood, fatigue), and quality of life. NCI also took note of a 242-person pragmatic study led by researchers at the University of Sydney in Australia, which found improvements compared to the control group in self-reported cognitive symptoms, symptom distress, and quality of life.
"We are honored that BrainHQ has been selected by the National Cancer Institute for inclusion in the Research-Tested Intervention Programs," said Dr. Henry Mahncke, CEO of Posit Science. "It is our mission to get scientific breakthroughs like brain-plasticity-based training out of the research lab and into the hands of people it can help. That crucially depends on groups like NCI RTIPs to qualitatively evaluate the level of evidence in new scientific fields, so that program planners and public health practitioners can deliver services that improve people's lives. "
There are now more than 100 peer-reviewed medical and science journal articles on the benefits of Posit Science exercises and assessments, across varied populations. BrainHQ exercises have been shown to improve standard measures of cognition (speed, attention, memory), quality of life (mood, confidence, health-related quality of life) and real-world activities (gait, balance, driving) in healthy adults.
About Posit Science
Posit Science is the leading provider of clinically proven brain fitness training. Its exercises, available online at www.BrainHQ.com, have been shown to significantly improve brain speed, attention, memory and numerous standard measures of quality of life in multiple studies published in more than 60 peer-reviewed articles in leading science and medical journals. Three public television documentaries as well as numerous stories on news programs, in national magazines, and in major newspapers have featured Posit Science's work. The company's science team is led by renowned neuroscientist Michael Merzenich, PhD.
Press Contact
Posit Science PR Team
media@brainhq.com
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Friday, November 02, 2018
The Biological Roots of Intelligence | The Scientist Magazine®
https://www.the-scientist.com/features/the-biological-roots-of-intelligence-64931
Wednesday, October 24, 2018
Problems with bi-factor intelligence research - theoretically agnostic and psychologically naive
 | Kevin McGrew (@iqmobile) |
Problems with #bifactor #intelligence #IQ test research studies. #gfactor may not represent a real thing or ability but may be an #emergent factor...like #SES or #DJI. #g and primary abilities uncorrelated....seriously????? Bifactor models are theoretically #agnostic pic.twitter.com/Go77F32UTI | |
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Monday, October 22, 2018
Sunday, October 21, 2018
Levels of intelligence research, explanation and reductionism - see you at #FASP2018
Levels of #intelligence research and explanation. Part of my #CHC theory update presentation at #FASP2018 this coming week. #brain #brainnetworks #neuroscience #psychometrics #IQ
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Kevin McGrew, PhD
Educational Psychologist
Director, Institute for Applied Psychometrics
IAP
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Friday, October 19, 2018
CHC UPDATE: Running with scissors at FASP
| Kevin McGrew (@iqmobile) |
#runningwithscissors #CHC theory update next week at #FASP conference is when I tackle the #bifactor #allyouneedisg #ghadist negative #IQ test research for the first time. A wild romp in the research. pic.twitter.com/X1gNJu1FPO | |
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Sunday, October 14, 2018
Friday, October 12, 2018
Thursday, Oct. 11, 2018 - The Brain Clock "Times"
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Kevin McGrew, PhD
Educational Psychologist
Director
Institute for Applied Psychometrics
www.themindhum.com
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Saturday, September 29, 2018
Timing Training in Female Soccer Players: Effects on Skilled Movement Performance and Brain Responses
Timing Training in Female Soccer Players: Effects on Skilled Movement Performance and Brain Responses. Frontiers in Human Neuroscience. Article link.
Marius Sommer, Charlotte K. Häger, Carl Johan Boraxbekk and Louise Rönnqvist
Abstract
Although trainers and athletes consider “good timing skills” critical for optimal sport
performance, little is known in regard to how sport-specific skills may benefit from timing training. Accordingly, this study investigated the effects of timing training on soccer skill performance and the associated changes in functional brain response in elite- and sub-elite female soccer players. Twenty-five players (mean age 19.5 years; active in the highest or second highest divisions in Sweden), were randomly assigned to either an experimental- or a control group. The experimental group (n = 12) was subjected to a 4-week program (12 sessions) of synchronized metronome training (SMT). We evaluated effects on accuracy and variability in a soccer cross-pass task. The associated brain response was captured by functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) while watching videos with soccer-specific actions. SMT improved soccer cross-pass performance, with a significant increase in outcome accuracy, combined with a decrease in outcome variability. SMT further induced changes in the underlying brain response associated with observing a highly familiar soccer-specific action, denoted as decreased activation in the cerebellum post SMT. Finally, decreased cerebellar activation was associated with improved cross-pass performance and sensorimotor synchronization. These findings suggest a more efficient neural recruitment during action observation after SMT. To our knowledge, this is the first controlled study providing behavioral and neurophysiological evidence that timing training may positively influence soccer-skill, while strengthening the action-perception coupling via enhanced sensorimotor synchronization abilities, and thus influencing the underlying brain responses.
Conclusion
In summary, this is the first controlled study demonstrating that improved motor timing and multisensory integration, as an effect of SMT, also is associated with changes in functional brain response. The present study provides both behavioral and neurophysiological evidence that timing training positively influences soccer-skill, strengthens the action-perception coupling by means of enhanced sensorimotor synchronization abilities, and affect underlying brain responses. These findings are in accordance with the idea that SMT may result in increased brain communication efficiency and synchrony between brain regions (McGrew, 2013), which in the present study was evident by reduced activation within brain areas important for temporal planning, movement coordination and action recognition and understanding (cerebellum). Also, our results complement findings indicating that the cerebellum plays an important role in the action-perception coupling (Christensenetal.,2014),and confirm recent theories supporting a cognitive-perceptual role of the cerebellum (e.g., Roth et al., 2013).Probing the influence of timing training on the underlying brain activation during soccer specific action observation is an important approach as it provides a window into the brain plasticity associated with non-task specific (timing) training, and to the underlying brain activation of skilled performance. The present study suggests that the underlying brain activation during action observation, which is claimed to be important for action recognition and understanding (e.g., Rizzolatti and Craighero, 2004), may be influenced in other ways than through task-specific training (e.g., Calvo-Merino et al., 2005) or observational learning (e.g., Cross et al., 2013). Such knowledge of how SMT may alter brain activity within regions facilitating the action perception coupling is likely important for enhancing training techniques within sports, as well as for developing new rehabilitative techniques for many clinical populations.
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Marius Sommer, Charlotte K. Häger, Carl Johan Boraxbekk and Louise Rönnqvist
Abstract
Although trainers and athletes consider “good timing skills” critical for optimal sport
performance, little is known in regard to how sport-specific skills may benefit from timing training. Accordingly, this study investigated the effects of timing training on soccer skill performance and the associated changes in functional brain response in elite- and sub-elite female soccer players. Twenty-five players (mean age 19.5 years; active in the highest or second highest divisions in Sweden), were randomly assigned to either an experimental- or a control group. The experimental group (n = 12) was subjected to a 4-week program (12 sessions) of synchronized metronome training (SMT). We evaluated effects on accuracy and variability in a soccer cross-pass task. The associated brain response was captured by functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) while watching videos with soccer-specific actions. SMT improved soccer cross-pass performance, with a significant increase in outcome accuracy, combined with a decrease in outcome variability. SMT further induced changes in the underlying brain response associated with observing a highly familiar soccer-specific action, denoted as decreased activation in the cerebellum post SMT. Finally, decreased cerebellar activation was associated with improved cross-pass performance and sensorimotor synchronization. These findings suggest a more efficient neural recruitment during action observation after SMT. To our knowledge, this is the first controlled study providing behavioral and neurophysiological evidence that timing training may positively influence soccer-skill, while strengthening the action-perception coupling via enhanced sensorimotor synchronization abilities, and thus influencing the underlying brain responses.
Conclusion
In summary, this is the first controlled study demonstrating that improved motor timing and multisensory integration, as an effect of SMT, also is associated with changes in functional brain response. The present study provides both behavioral and neurophysiological evidence that timing training positively influences soccer-skill, strengthens the action-perception coupling by means of enhanced sensorimotor synchronization abilities, and affect underlying brain responses. These findings are in accordance with the idea that SMT may result in increased brain communication efficiency and synchrony between brain regions (McGrew, 2013), which in the present study was evident by reduced activation within brain areas important for temporal planning, movement coordination and action recognition and understanding (cerebellum). Also, our results complement findings indicating that the cerebellum plays an important role in the action-perception coupling (Christensenetal.,2014),and confirm recent theories supporting a cognitive-perceptual role of the cerebellum (e.g., Roth et al., 2013).Probing the influence of timing training on the underlying brain activation during soccer specific action observation is an important approach as it provides a window into the brain plasticity associated with non-task specific (timing) training, and to the underlying brain activation of skilled performance. The present study suggests that the underlying brain activation during action observation, which is claimed to be important for action recognition and understanding (e.g., Rizzolatti and Craighero, 2004), may be influenced in other ways than through task-specific training (e.g., Calvo-Merino et al., 2005) or observational learning (e.g., Cross et al., 2013). Such knowledge of how SMT may alter brain activity within regions facilitating the action perception coupling is likely important for enhancing training techniques within sports, as well as for developing new rehabilitative techniques for many clinical populations.
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Wednesday, September 26, 2018
A Dynamical Systems Perspective on Flexible Motor Timing
A Dynamical Systems Perspective on Flexible Motor Timing
https://www.cell.com/trends/cognitive-sciences/fulltext/S1364-6613(18)30172-4
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Wednesday, September 12, 2018
How Feedback Synchronizes the Auditory Brain : The Hearing Journal
How Feedback Synchronizes the Auditory Brain : The Hearing Journal
https://journals.lww.com/thehearingjournal/Pages/articleviewer.aspx?year=2018&issue=09000&article=00011&type=Fulltext
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Saturday, September 08, 2018
Largest brain study of 62,454 scans identifies drivers of brain aging: Schizophrenia, cannabis use, and alcohol abuse are just several disorders that are related to accelerated brain aging
Largest brain study of 62,454 scans identifies drivers of brain aging: Schizophrenia, cannabis use, and alcohol abuse are just several disorders that are related to accelerated brain aging
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2018/08/180821112010.htm?utm_campaign=coschedule&utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=Mark_Sisson
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Monday, September 03, 2018
A mechanistic model of connector hubs, modularity and cognition
A mechanistic model of connector hubs, modularity and cognition
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41562-018-0420-6
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Thursday, August 30, 2018
Individual Brain Charting: A high-resolution brain map of cognitive functions
Individual Brain Charting: A high-resolution brain map of cognitive functions
https://www.humanbrainproject.eu/en/follow-hbp/news/individual-brain-charting-a-high-resolution-brain-map-of-cognitive-functions/
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Monday, August 27, 2018
Intelligence and Uncertainty: Implications of Hierarchical Predictive Processing for the Neuroscience of Cognitive Ability
Intelligence and Uncertainty: Implications of Hierarchical Predictive Processing for the Neuroscience of Cognitive Ability
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0149763418302045
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Kevin McGrew, PhD
Educational Psychologist
Director, Institute for Applied Psychometrics
IAP
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Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences: Vol 1423, No 1
Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences: Vol 1423, No 1
https://nyaspubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/toc/17496632/2018/1423/1
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Saturday, August 25, 2018
The Lifespan Human Connectome Project in Development: A large-scale study of brain connectivity development in 5-21 year olds.
The Lifespan Human Connectome Project in Development: A large-scale study of brain connectivity development in 5-21 year olds.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/30142446
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Sunday, August 19, 2018
A distributed brain network predicts general intelligence from resting-state human neuroimaging data.
A distributed brain network predicts general intelligence from resting-state human neuroimaging data.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/30104429
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Kevin McGrew, PhD
Educational Psychologist
Director, Institute for Applied Psychometrics
IAP
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Friday, August 17, 2018
On the biological basis of musicality - Honing - 2018 - Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences
On the biological basis of musicality - Honing - 2018 - Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences
https://nyaspubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/nyas.13638
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Kevin McGrew, PhD
Educational Psychologist
Director, Institute for Applied Psychometrics
IAP
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Brain Networks Responsible for Naming Objects Identified
Brain Networks Responsible for Naming Objects Identified
https://neurosciencenews.com/object-naming-networks-9704/
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Saturday, August 11, 2018
Beyond IQ: Mining the “no-mans-land” between Intelligence and IQ: Journal of Intelligence special issue
I am pleased to see the Journal of Intelligence addressing the integration of non-cognitive variables (personality; self-beliefs; motivational constructs; often called the “no-mans land” between intelligence and personality— I believe this catchy phrase was first used by Stankov) with intellectual constructs to better understanding human performance. I have had a long-standing interest in such comprehensive models as reflected by my articulation of the Model of Academic Competence and Motivation (MACM) and repeated posting of “beyond IQ” information at my blogs.
Joel Schneider and I briefly touched in this topic in our soon to be published CHC intelligence theory update chapter. Below is the select text and some awesome figures crafted by Joel.
Our simplified conceptual structure of knowledge abilities is presented in Figure 3.10. At the center of overlapping knowledge domains is general knowledge—knowledge and skills considered important for any member of the population to know (e.g., literacy, numeracy, self-care, budgeting, civics, etiquette, and much more). The bulk of each knowledge domain is the province of specialists, but some portion is considered important for all members of society to know. Drawing inspiration from F. L. Schmidt (2011, 2014), we posit that interests and experience drive acquisition of domain-specific knowledge.
In Schmidt's model, individual differences in general knowledge are driven largely by individual differences in fluid intelligence and general interest in learning, also known as typical intellectual engagement (Goff & Ackerman, 1992). In contrast, individual differences in domain-specific knowledge are more driven by domain-specific in-terests, and also by the “tilt” of one's specific abilities (Coyle, Purcell, Snyder, & Richmond, 2014; Pässler, Beinicke, & Hell, 2015). In Figure 3.11, we present a simplified hypothetical synthesis of several ability models in which abilities, interests, and personality traits predict general and specific knowledge (Ackerman, 1996a, 1996b, 2000; Ackerman, Bowen, Beier, & Kanfer, 2001; Ackerman & Heggestad, 1997; Ackerman & Rolfhus, 1999; Fry & Hale, 1996; Goff & Ackerman, 1992; Kail, 2007; Kane et al., 2004; Rolfhus & Ackerman, 1999; Schmidt, 2011, 2014; Schneider et al., 2016; Schneider & Newman, 2015; Woodcock, 1993; Ziegler, Danay, Heene, Asendorpf, & Bühner, 2012).
Click on images to enlarge.
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Joel Schneider and I briefly touched in this topic in our soon to be published CHC intelligence theory update chapter. Below is the select text and some awesome figures crafted by Joel.
Our simplified conceptual structure of knowledge abilities is presented in Figure 3.10. At the center of overlapping knowledge domains is general knowledge—knowledge and skills considered important for any member of the population to know (e.g., literacy, numeracy, self-care, budgeting, civics, etiquette, and much more). The bulk of each knowledge domain is the province of specialists, but some portion is considered important for all members of society to know. Drawing inspiration from F. L. Schmidt (2011, 2014), we posit that interests and experience drive acquisition of domain-specific knowledge.
In Schmidt's model, individual differences in general knowledge are driven largely by individual differences in fluid intelligence and general interest in learning, also known as typical intellectual engagement (Goff & Ackerman, 1992). In contrast, individual differences in domain-specific knowledge are more driven by domain-specific in-terests, and also by the “tilt” of one's specific abilities (Coyle, Purcell, Snyder, & Richmond, 2014; Pässler, Beinicke, & Hell, 2015). In Figure 3.11, we present a simplified hypothetical synthesis of several ability models in which abilities, interests, and personality traits predict general and specific knowledge (Ackerman, 1996a, 1996b, 2000; Ackerman, Bowen, Beier, & Kanfer, 2001; Ackerman & Heggestad, 1997; Ackerman & Rolfhus, 1999; Fry & Hale, 1996; Goff & Ackerman, 1992; Kail, 2007; Kane et al., 2004; Rolfhus & Ackerman, 1999; Schmidt, 2011, 2014; Schneider et al., 2016; Schneider & Newman, 2015; Woodcock, 1993; Ziegler, Danay, Heene, Asendorpf, & Bühner, 2012).
Click on images to enlarge.
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Friday, August 10, 2018
Study: Brain training games could be used to assess cognitive abilities, replace the Mini-Mental State Exam (MMSE)
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Study: Brain training games could be used to assess cognitive abilities, replace the Mini-Mental State Exam (MMSE)
// SharpBrains
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The Use of Mobile Games to Assess Cognitive Function of Elderly with and without Cognitive Impairment (Journal of Alzheimer's Disease):
Abstract: In the past few years numerous mobile games have been developed to train the brain. There is a lack of information about the relation between the scores obtained in these games and the cognitive abilities of the patients. The aim of this study was to determine whether or not mobile games can be used to assess cognitive abilities of elderly. Twenty healthy young adults, 29 old patients with cognitive impairments (Mini-Mental State Exam (MMSE) [20- 24]) and 27-aged controls participated in this study. Scores obtained in 7 mobile games were correlated with MMSE and the Addenbrooke's Cognitive Evaluation revised (ACE-R). Statistically significant differences were found for all games between patients with cognitive impairments and the aged controls. Correlations between the average scores of the games and the MMSE and ACE-R are significant (R = 0.72 [p < 0.001] and R = 0.81 [p < 0.001], respectively). Scores of cognitive mobile games could be used as an alternative to MMSE and ACE-R to evaluate cognitive function of aged people with and without cognitive impairment at least when MMSE is higher than 20/30.
Study in context:
- What are cognitive abilities and how to boost them?
- Brainnovations Winner Jan Samzelius on why monitoring Typing Cadence may help detect early Parkinson's and Alzheimer's Disease
- Firms Race to Find New Ways to Scan Brain Health
- Solving the Brain Fitness Puzzle Is the Key to Self-Empowered Aging
- Five reasons the future of brain enhancement is digital, pervasive and (hopefully) bright
- Save the Date for 2018 SharpBrains Virtual Summit: Investing in Brain Health for All (December 4–6th)
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Kevin McGrew, PhD
Educational Psychologist
Director, Institute for Applied Psychometrics
IAP
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Thursday, August 09, 2018
Saturday, August 04, 2018
Children's academic attainment is linked to the global organization of the white matter connectome - Bathelt - - Developmental Science
Children's academic attainment is linked to the global organization of the white matter connectome - Bathelt - - Developmental Science
https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/desc.12662
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Kevin McGrew, PhD
Educational Psychologist
Director, Institute for Applied Psychometrics
IAP
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Thursday, August 02, 2018
Is auditory perceptual timing a core deficit of developmental coordination disorder? - Trainor - 2018 - Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences
Is auditory perceptual timing a core deficit of developmental coordination disorder? - Trainor - 2018 - Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences
https://nyaspubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/nyas.13701
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Thursday, July 19, 2018
When Mind Wandering is a Strategy, Not a Disadvantage
When Mind Wandering is a Strategy, Not a Disadvantage
https://www.psychologicalscience.org/publications/observer/obsonline/when-mind-wandering-is-a-strategy-not-a-disadvantage.html
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Searching for the fundamental mental processes that cut across diagnostic categories, driving confusion and distress
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Searching for the fundamental mental processes that cut across diagnostic categories, driving confusion and distress
// BPS Research Digest
By Alex Fradera
The number of psychiatric diagnoses keep on growing, with perhaps ten times as many categories now as there were 50 years ago. This may in part reflect our growing knowledge, which is welcome. But the sheer density of diagnoses makes it difficult for researchers or clinicians to see the wood for the trees, and it encourages them to settle into silos. It would be advantageous for clinical research and practice if we could introduce some elegance to our understanding. A recent movement in psychology and psychiatry is seeking to do exactly this. It follows evidence that, in the words of US psychologists Robert Kruger and Nicholas Eaton in their 2015 review, "many mental disorders are manifestations of relatively few core underlying dimensions." In the latest foray from this movement, the Journal of Clinical Psychology has published a review outlining another potential core feature: the repetitive occurrence of negative thoughts.
The proliferation of psychiatric diagnoses was baked in from the beginning. Modern psychiatry sought to apply the burgeoning medical model to the mind, treating madness as illness. Physical illnesses are considered as discrete categories, even if they produce overlapping symptoms like a fever, because we can point to their distinct microbial origins.
This has influenced how we approach mental health, meaning someone struggling could be diagnosed with a phobia and also with an eating disorder and maybe separately with depression (and anxiety, and another eating disorder, and another phobia, and OCD…ad infinitum). We bracket these issues out as if they each originate from their own unique strain of mind bacteria. But mental disorders are rooted in dysfunctional mental processes, of which there are only so many. If we put aside the disease model and look for these processes, maybe we can get to a more solid and elegant foundation.
One example would be internalising-externalising. In internalising disorders such as depression, OCD, anxiety and bulimia, the individual tends to draw problems inwards to an inappropriate degree; issues are suppressed or privately managed using ineffective or unhealthy strategies. Meanwhile, externalising disorders like pyromania, kleptomania, and conditions like oppositional defiant disorder or conduct disorder, all involve manifesting problematic thoughts or emotions by projecting them onto the world.
According Kruger and Eaton's landmark review, these aren't just convenient labels: they may actually be more informative than the specific diagnoses. For instance, suicide risk may be better predicted by internalising in all its forms than a specific diagnosis like depression. Similarly, externalising behaviour of any kind is a strong predictor of other forms of externalising, suggesting that it might sometimes be useful to think of the problem as externalising, which can manifest in different ways depending on contextual factors.
Still, this division is too simple to explain everything about mental health. But in interaction with some other features, perhaps we can start to arrive at a complete model that cuts across diagnostic categories while also capturing the richness of psychiatric conditions. What other relevant factors are there? We recently covered work that suggested another potential trans-diagnostic structure: meta-cognition, the ability to judge your cognitive ability. People who were more anxious or depressed showed more accuracy, but less confidence, in how they judged their performance on a mental task, whereas those who tended towards compulsive behaviour (such as those with schizophrenia or OCD) showed overconfidence and did less well. In our piece we described how this pattern can account for patterns of behaviour found in the real world, such as pessimism and jumping to conclusions, respectively.
Now in the most recent example, Deanna Kaplan and her team at the University of Arizona suggest another trans-diagnostic feature: "maladaptive repetitive thought". This is found across many mental health disorders, typically accompanied by a sense that the thoughts are uncontrollable, a negative flavour, and a fixation on seeking rather than solving problems. Consider the ruminative thoughts that characterise depression, the worries that surge up in anxiety, and the obsessive thoughts that drive OCD. Kaplan's team suggest that these different manifestations should be thought of as variations on a key theme, often differing simply in whether the thoughts are focused on the past, present or future.
The researchers note that their model helped them to draw connections to other related phenomena such as the problematic grief phenomenon of yearning, which pulls you into the past towards a desire that cannot be satisfied. They also see parallels in somatic hypervigilance, the constant monitoring of bodily sensations for any cause for alarm. Again, the same features come up: negative valence, uncontrollability, and seeking of problems, in this case in the present moment.
It's not news that unwelcome thoughts are a frequent feature of poor mental health. But as with the internalising and externalising dimensions, it's possible that grouping mental health problems that share repetitive thought processes could offer fresh way of looking at the root causes of people's difficulties. It could be that the core problems driving all psychological disorders are countable on our fingers – if so, and if we can identity these core processes, then it will be easier to understand how they develop, and to apply advances from one area of treatment to another, as well as to see when doing so would be ill-advised.
For example, consider how the three features of internalising/externalising, meta-cognitive judgment and repetitive thought processes could be used to organise our understanding of the recently proposed diagnostic category of maladaptive daydreaming, whereby people are compulsively drawn to their daydreams at the cost of their psychological health. This certainly seems to involve internalising, and could involve overconfident misjudgment of whether the daydreaming is beneficial. And what is a daydream if not an extended, imagistic form of thought (much like a yearning)?
I believe we may be on the verge of a real advance in psychiatry, akin to the turn from individual symptoms to mental syndromes we made one hundred years ago. By looking past surface issues and gripping the fundamental mental processes that drive confusion and distress, we might be better placed to remedy them.
Alex Fradera (@alexfradera) is Staff Writer at BPS Research Digest
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Wednesday, July 18, 2018
White matter matters: Changes in white matter tracts due to reading intervention
More research supporting “white matter matters”.
Rapid and widespread white matter plasticity during an intensive reading intervention
Nature Communications
Elizabeth Huber, Patrick M. Donnelly, Ariel Rokem & Jason D. Yeatman
ABSTRACT
White matter tissue properties are known to correlate with performance across domains ranging from reading to math, to executive function. Here, we use a longitudinal intervention design to examine experience-dependent growth in reading skills and white matter in grade school-aged, struggling readers. Diffusion MRI data were collected at regular intervals during an 8-week, intensive reading intervention. These measurements reveal large-scale changes throughout a collection of white matter tracts, in concert with growth in reading skill. Additionally, we identify tracts whose properties predict reading skill but remain fixed throughout the intervention, suggesting that some anatomical properties stably predict the ease with which a child learns to read, while others dynamically reflect the effects of experience. These results underscore the importance of considering recent experience when interpreting cross-sectional anatomy–behavior correlations. Widespread changes throughout the white matter may be a hallmark of rapid plasticity associated with an intensive learning experience.
Very interesting. The arcuate fasciculus tracts have also been implicated in higher order thinking (Gf) such as in the P-FIT model of intelligence. Also see white paper that implicates the AF in temporal processing “brain clock” timing interventions
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Rapid and widespread white matter plasticity during an intensive reading intervention
Nature Communications
Elizabeth Huber, Patrick M. Donnelly, Ariel Rokem & Jason D. Yeatman
ABSTRACT
White matter tissue properties are known to correlate with performance across domains ranging from reading to math, to executive function. Here, we use a longitudinal intervention design to examine experience-dependent growth in reading skills and white matter in grade school-aged, struggling readers. Diffusion MRI data were collected at regular intervals during an 8-week, intensive reading intervention. These measurements reveal large-scale changes throughout a collection of white matter tracts, in concert with growth in reading skill. Additionally, we identify tracts whose properties predict reading skill but remain fixed throughout the intervention, suggesting that some anatomical properties stably predict the ease with which a child learns to read, while others dynamically reflect the effects of experience. These results underscore the importance of considering recent experience when interpreting cross-sectional anatomy–behavior correlations. Widespread changes throughout the white matter may be a hallmark of rapid plasticity associated with an intensive learning experience.
Very interesting. The arcuate fasciculus tracts have also been implicated in higher order thinking (Gf) such as in the P-FIT model of intelligence. Also see white paper that implicates the AF in temporal processing “brain clock” timing interventions
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
Tuesday, July 17, 2018
There's No Way to Diagnose Alzheimer's Disease Right Now. Bill Gates Wants to Change That
There's No Way to Diagnose Alzheimer's Disease Right Now. Bill Gates Wants to Change That
http://time.com/5341036/bill-gates-alzheimers-disease-research/
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Sunday, July 15, 2018
Excellent conceptual framework for organizing mind wandering research
Trends in Cognitive Sciences, June 2018, Vol. 22, No. 6
ABSTRACT
As empirical research on mind-wandering accelerates, we draw attention to an emerging trend in how mind-wandering is conceptualized. Previously articulated definitions of mind-wandering differ from each other in important ways, yet they also maintain overlapping characteristics. This conceptual structure suggests that mind-wandering is best considered from a family-resemblances perspective, which entails treating it as a graded, heterogeneous construct and clearly measuring and describing the specific aspect(s) of mind-wandering that researchers are investigating. We believe that adopting this family-resemblances approach will increase conceptual and methodological connections among related phenomena in the mind-wandering family and encourage a more nuanced and precise understanding of the many varieties of mind-wandering.
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Sunday, July 08, 2018
Waves move across the human brain to support memory
Waves move across the human brain to support memory
https://medicalxpress.com/news/2018-06-human-brain-memory.html
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Monday, July 02, 2018
Napping associated with better cognitive function in older adults
I should live a long time
Napping associated with better cognitive function in older adults
https://www.healio.com/family-medicine/sleep-medicine/news/online/%7Be4468d50-435e-48e3-aa84-80c90eac8a4b%7D/napping-associated-with-better-cognitive-function-in-older-adults
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Napping associated with better cognitive function in older adults
https://www.healio.com/family-medicine/sleep-medicine/news/online/%7Be4468d50-435e-48e3-aa84-80c90eac8a4b%7D/napping-associated-with-better-cognitive-function-in-older-adults
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BRAIN Publication Roundup – June 2018
BRAIN Publication Roundup – June 2018
https://brainupdate.nih.gov/2018/06/27/brain-publication-roundup-june-2018/
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Wednesday, June 20, 2018
Mind wandering is fine in some situations, Harvard-based study says
Mind wandering is fine in some situations, Harvard-based study says
https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2018/06/mind-wandering-is-fine-in-some-situations-harvard-based-study-says/
Sent from Flipboard
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Kevin McGrew, PhD
Educational Psychologist
Director, Institute for Applied Psychometrics
IAP
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Saturday, June 16, 2018
Parallels and Divergence Between Neuroscience and Humanism: Considerations for the Music Therapist | Music Therapy Perspectives
Parallels and Divergence Between Neuroscience and Humanism: Considerations for the Music Therapist | Music Therapy Perspectives
https://academic.oup.com/mtp/advance-article-abstract/doi/10.1093/mtp/miy011/5039159
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Saturday, June 09, 2018
Rapid and widespread white matter plasticity during an intensive reading intervention
Rapid and widespread white matter plasticity during an intensive reading intervention
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-018-04627-5
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4 simple exercises to strengthen your attention and reduce distractibility
4 simple exercises to strengthen your attention and reduce distractibility
https://ideas.ted.com/4-simple-exercises-to-strengthen-your-attention-and-reduce-distractibility/
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Saturday, June 02, 2018
Can emotional intelligence (Gei) be trained: A meta-analysis
Can emotional intelligence be trained? A meta-analysis
Please cite this article as: Mattingly, V., Human Resource Management Review (2018), https://doi.org/10.1016/j.hrmr.2018.03.002
Victoria Mattingly, Kurt Kraiger
Keywords: Emotional intelligence, Training Meta-analysis
A B S T R A C T
Human resource practitioners place value on selecting and training a more emotionally in-telligent workforce. Despite this, research has yet to systematically investigate whether emo-tional intelligence can in fact be trained. This study addresses this question by conducting a meta-analysis to assess the effect of training on emotional intelligence, and whether effects are mod-erated by substantive and methodological moderators. We identified a total of 58 published and unpublished studies that included an emotional intelligence training program using either a pre-post or treatment-control design. We calculated Cohen's d to estimate the effect of formal training on emotional intelligence scores. The results showed a moderate positive effect for training, regardless of design. Effect sizes were larger for published studies than dissertations. Effect sizes were relatively robust over gender of participants, and type of EI measure (ability v. mix-edmodel). Further, our effect sizes are in line with other meta-analytic studies of competency-based training programs. Implications for practice and future research on EI training are discussed.
See prior Gei posts here and here.
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Please cite this article as: Mattingly, V., Human Resource Management Review (2018), https://doi.org/10.1016/j.hrmr.2018.03.002
Victoria Mattingly, Kurt Kraiger
Keywords: Emotional intelligence, Training Meta-analysis
A B S T R A C T
Human resource practitioners place value on selecting and training a more emotionally in-telligent workforce. Despite this, research has yet to systematically investigate whether emo-tional intelligence can in fact be trained. This study addresses this question by conducting a meta-analysis to assess the effect of training on emotional intelligence, and whether effects are mod-erated by substantive and methodological moderators. We identified a total of 58 published and unpublished studies that included an emotional intelligence training program using either a pre-post or treatment-control design. We calculated Cohen's d to estimate the effect of formal training on emotional intelligence scores. The results showed a moderate positive effect for training, regardless of design. Effect sizes were larger for published studies than dissertations. Effect sizes were relatively robust over gender of participants, and type of EI measure (ability v. mix-edmodel). Further, our effect sizes are in line with other meta-analytic studies of competency-based training programs. Implications for practice and future research on EI training are discussed.
See prior Gei posts here and here.
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Thursday, May 24, 2018
Genetic Mutations Help ID New Brain Development Disorder
Genetic Mutations Help ID New Brain Development Disorder
https://psychcentral.com/news/2018/05/24/genetic-mutations-help-id-new-brain-development-disorder/135638.html
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Monday, May 21, 2018
Mindfulness training induces structural connectome changes in insula networks
Mindfulness training induces structural connectome changes in insula networks
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-018-26268-w
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Thursday, May 17, 2018
Interactive Metronome study: Clapping in time parallels literacy and calls upon overlapping neural mechanisms in early readers
Clapping in time parallels literacy and calls upon overlapping neural mechanisms in early readers
Annals of the New York Academy Of Science. Article link here.
Link to complete paper at IM site.
Silvia Bonacina Jennifer Krizman Travis White‐Schwoch Nina Krau
Abstract
The auditory system is extremely precise in processing the temporal information of perceptual events and using these cues to coordinate action. Synchronizing movement to a steady beat relies on this bidirectional connection between sensory and motor systems, and activates many of the auditory and cognitive processes used when reading. Here, we use Interactive Metronome, a clinical intervention technology requiring an individual to clap her hands in time with a steady beat, to investigate whether the links between literacy and synchronization skills, previously established in older children, are also evident in children who are learning to read. We tested 64 typically developing children (ages 5–7 years) on their synchronization abilities, neurophysiological responses to speech in noise, and literacy skills. We found that children who have lower variability in synchronizing have higher phase consistency, higher stability, and more accurate envelope encoding—all neurophysiological response components linked to language skills. Moreover, performing the same task with visual feedback reveals links with literacy skills, notably processing speed, phonological processing, word reading, spelling, morphology, and syntax. These results suggest that rhythm skills and literacy call on overlapping neural mechanisms, supporting the idea that rhythm training may boost literacy in part by engaging sensory‐motor systems.
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Annals of the New York Academy Of Science. Article link here.
Link to complete paper at IM site.
Silvia Bonacina Jennifer Krizman Travis White‐Schwoch Nina Krau
Abstract
The auditory system is extremely precise in processing the temporal information of perceptual events and using these cues to coordinate action. Synchronizing movement to a steady beat relies on this bidirectional connection between sensory and motor systems, and activates many of the auditory and cognitive processes used when reading. Here, we use Interactive Metronome, a clinical intervention technology requiring an individual to clap her hands in time with a steady beat, to investigate whether the links between literacy and synchronization skills, previously established in older children, are also evident in children who are learning to read. We tested 64 typically developing children (ages 5–7 years) on their synchronization abilities, neurophysiological responses to speech in noise, and literacy skills. We found that children who have lower variability in synchronizing have higher phase consistency, higher stability, and more accurate envelope encoding—all neurophysiological response components linked to language skills. Moreover, performing the same task with visual feedback reveals links with literacy skills, notably processing speed, phonological processing, word reading, spelling, morphology, and syntax. These results suggest that rhythm skills and literacy call on overlapping neural mechanisms, supporting the idea that rhythm training may boost literacy in part by engaging sensory‐motor systems.
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Wednesday, May 16, 2018
Higher intelligence related to more efficiently organized brains-bigger/larger not always better
Click on image to enlarge
Diffusion markers of dendritic density and arborization in gray matter predict differences in intelligence. Article link.
Erhan Genç, Christoph Fraenz, Caroline Schlüter, Patrick Friedrich, Rüdiger Hossiep, Manuel C. Voelkle, Josef M. Ling, Onur Güntürkün, & Rex E. Jung
Abstract
Previous research has demonstrated that individuals with higher intelligence are more likely to have larger gray matter volume in brain areas predominantly located in parieto-frontal regions. These findings were usually interpreted to mean that individuals with more cortical brain volume possess more neurons and thus exhibit more computational capacity during reasoning. In addition, neuroimaging studies have shown that intelligent individuals, despite their larger brains, tend to exhibit lower rates of brain activity during reasoning. However, the microstructural architecture underlying both observations remains unclear. By combining advanced multi-shell diffusion tensor imaging with a culture-fair matrix-reasoning test, we found that higher intelligence in healthy individuals is related to lower values of dendritic density and arborization. These results suggest that the neuronal circuitry associated with higher intelligence is organized in a sparse and efficient manner, fostering more directed information processing and less cortical activity during reasoning.
From discussion
Taken together, the results of the present study contribute to our understanding of human intelligence differences in two ways. First, our findings confirm an important observation from previous research, namely, that bigger brains with a higher number of neurons are associated with higher intelligence. Second, we demonstrate that higher intelligence is associated with cortical mantles with sparsely and well-organized dendritic arbor, thereby increasing processing speed and network efficiency. Importantly, the findings obtained from our experimental sample were confirmed by the analysis of an independent validation sample from the Human Connectome Project25
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Tuesday, May 08, 2018
Gates, Zuckerberg team up on new education initiative
Gates, Zuckerberg team up on new education initiative
From Education, a Flipboard topic
Tech moguls Bill Gates and Mark Zuckerberg said Tuesday they will team up to help develop new technologies for kids with trouble learning — an…
Read it on Flipboard
Read it on foxbusiness.com
Sunday, May 06, 2018
The salience brain network and personality (self-directedness; cognitive control)
Abstract:
A prevailing topic in personality neuroscience is the question how personality traits are
reflected in the brain. Functional and structural networks have been examined by functional and structural magnetic resonance imaging, however, the structural correlates of functionally defined networks have not been investigated in a personality context. By using the Temperament and Character Inventory (TCI) and Diffusion Tensor Imaging (DTI), the present study assesses in a sample of 116 healthy participants how personality traits proposed in the framework of the biopsychosocial theory on personality relate to white matter pathways delineated by functional network imaging. We show that the character trait self-directedness relates to the overall microstructural integrity of white matter tracts constituting the salience network as indicated by DTI-derived measures. Self-directedness has been proposed as the executive control component of personality and describes the tendency to stay focused on the attainment of long-term goals. The present finding corroborates the view of the salience network as an executive control network that serves maintenance of rules and task-sets to guide ongoing behavior.
Click here for info regarding one of the better brain network overview articles by Bressler and Menon.
Click on image to enlarge
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
A prevailing topic in personality neuroscience is the question how personality traits are
reflected in the brain. Functional and structural networks have been examined by functional and structural magnetic resonance imaging, however, the structural correlates of functionally defined networks have not been investigated in a personality context. By using the Temperament and Character Inventory (TCI) and Diffusion Tensor Imaging (DTI), the present study assesses in a sample of 116 healthy participants how personality traits proposed in the framework of the biopsychosocial theory on personality relate to white matter pathways delineated by functional network imaging. We show that the character trait self-directedness relates to the overall microstructural integrity of white matter tracts constituting the salience network as indicated by DTI-derived measures. Self-directedness has been proposed as the executive control component of personality and describes the tendency to stay focused on the attainment of long-term goals. The present finding corroborates the view of the salience network as an executive control network that serves maintenance of rules and task-sets to guide ongoing behavior.
Click here for info regarding one of the better brain network overview articles by Bressler and Menon.
Click on image to enlarge
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Sunday, April 29, 2018
The Science of Mind Wandering
As per usual, another great summary by Dr. Jon Lieff.
The Science of Mind Wandering
Some feel that spontaneous thought occurring without specific stimulation is closest to understanding how we define ourselves. These seemingly random self-produced…
Read it on Flipboard
Read it on jonlieffmd.com
Sunday, April 15, 2018
Mapping the Human Connectome
Nice brief video overview.
Mapping the Human Connectome
In the early 1800s, Lewis and Clark set out to map the western United States. Charting the network of rivers that wound their way across the land. Like those 19th century…
Read it on Flipboard
Read it on brainfacts.org
Tuesday, April 10, 2018
Executive functioning (fully) and processing speed (mostly) mediate intelligence deficits in children born very preterm
Abstract
Children born very preterm (<32 weeks gestational age) are known to be at increased risk of neurocognitive impairments, in domains including executive functioning, processing speed, and fluid and crystallised intelligence. Given the close association between these constructs, the current study investigated a specific model, namely whether executive functioning and/or processing speed mediates the relationship between preterm birth and intelligence. Participants were 204 children born very preterm and 98 full-term children, who completed a battery of tasks measuring executive functioning, processing speed, and fluid and crystallised intelligence. Independent-samples t-tests found significantly poorer performance by children born preterm on all measures, and a confirmatory factor analysis found preterm birth to be significantly related to each of the cognitive domains. A latent-variable mediation model found that executive functioning fully mediated the associations between preterm birth and both fluid and crystallised intelligence. Processing speed fully mediated the preterm birth-fluid intelligence association, but only partially mediated the preterm birth-crystallised intelligence association. Future research should consider a longitudinal study design to test whether these deficits and mediating effects remain throughout childhood and adolescence.
Keywords
- Executive function;
- Processing speed;
- Intelligence;
- Preterm birth
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Kevin McGrew, PhD
Educational Psychologist
Director, Institute for Applied Psychometrics
IAP
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Friday, April 06, 2018
AJT CHC Intelligence Test launch in Jakarta -measure of 9 broad CHC abilities
Yesterday’s AJT CHC cognitive test launch in Jakarta was a big success. I was taken aback by the special “event” flavor. Extremely professional. As I’ve stated before, the AJT is based on an Indonesia norm sample of 4,800 and will be one if the most comprehensive intelligence tests in the world (on par with the WJ IV COG). It measures 9 broad CHC domains (Gf, Gc, Gwm, Ga, Gv, Gs, Gl, Gr, and some of Gp-separate from cognitive). This has been the most personally rewarding and important project I have worked on in my 40+ years in psychology and education. It is bringing the core concept of individual differences to the education system of the fourth largest country in the world.
George and Laurel Tahija (see picture below), and their YDB foundation, are the visionaries behind this project and other projects focused on trying to help unique learners in their country. In my five years on this project I can say that I’ve never worked with so many nice people . It was a grand effort by many. I am very impressed how together we built such a comprehensive and technically sound battery of tests from scratch. I have developed a fondness for Indonesia and the people of this wonderful country. The genuine warmth and enthusiasm of the participants was personally moving.
For more information check out these two links (one; two)
Click images to enlarge.
Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
George and Laurel Tahija (see picture below), and their YDB foundation, are the visionaries behind this project and other projects focused on trying to help unique learners in their country. In my five years on this project I can say that I’ve never worked with so many nice people . It was a grand effort by many. I am very impressed how together we built such a comprehensive and technically sound battery of tests from scratch. I have developed a fondness for Indonesia and the people of this wonderful country. The genuine warmth and enthusiasm of the participants was personally moving.
For more information check out these two links (one; two)
Click images to enlarge.
Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
A Heavy Working Memory Load May Sink Brainwave ‘Synch’
A Heavy Working Memory Load May Sink Brainwave 'Synch'
Researchers report synchrony of brain waves within three regions of the brain can 'break down' when visual working memory load becomes too…
Read it on Flipboard
Read it on neurosciencenews.com
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Kevin McGrew, PhDEducational Psychologist
Director
Institute for Applied Psychometrics
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Tuesday, April 03, 2018
DARPA-funded prosthetic memory system successful in humans, study finds
DARPA-funded prosthetic memory system successful in humans, study finds
From The Brain, a Flipboard topic
Hippocampal prosthesis restores memory functions by creating "MIMO" model-based electrical stimulation of the hippocampus —…
Read it on Flipboard
Read it on kurzweilai.net
Wednesday, March 28, 2018
Spatial cognition and science achievement: The contribution of intrinsic and extrinsic spatial skills from 7 to 11 years - Hodgkiss - - British Journal of Educational Psychology
Spatial cognition and science achievement: The contribution of intrinsic and extrinsic spatial skills from 7 to 11 years - Hodgkiss - - British Journal of Educational Psychology
Read it on Flipboard
Read it on onlinelibrary.wiley.com
Tuesday, March 27, 2018
Do brain exercises work? | Popular Science
https://www.popsci.com/do-brain-exercises-work
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Kevin McGrew, PhD
Educational Psychologist
Director, Institute for Applied Psychometrics
IAP
www.themindhub.com
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Monday, March 26, 2018
European Journal of Neuroscience: Vol 47, No 6
European Journal of Neuroscience: Vol 47, No 6
A new view of social‐cognitive neurodevelopment is emerging from imaging studies of joint attention. Theory and these studies suggest that the cortical…
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Read it on onlinelibrary.wiley.com
Saturday, March 17, 2018
The importance of differential psychology for school learning: 90% of school achievement variance is due to student characteristics
This is why the study of individual differences/differential psychology is so important. If you don’t want to read the article you can watch a video of Dr. Detterman where he summarizes his thinking and this paper.
Education and Intelligence: Pity the Poor Teacher because Student Characteristics are more Significant than Teachers or Schools. Article link.
Douglas K. Detterman
Case Western Reserve University (USA)
Abstract
Education has not changed from the beginning of recorded history. The problem is that focus has been on schools and teachers and not students. Here is a simple thought experiment with two conditions: 1) 50 teachers are assigned by their teaching quality to randomly composed classes of 20 students, 2) 50 classes of 20 each are composed by selecting the most able students to fill each class in order and teachers are assigned randomly to classes. In condition 1, teaching ability of each teacher and in condition 2, mean ability level of students in each class is correlated with average gain over the course of instruction. Educational gain will be best predicted by student abilities (up to r = 0.95) and much less by teachers' skill (up to r = 0.32). I argue that seemingly immutable education will not change until we fully understand students and particularly human intelligence. Over the last 50 years in developed countries, evidence has accumulated that only about 10% of school achievement can be attributed to schools and teachers while the remaining 90% is due to characteristics associated with students. Teachers account for from 1% to 7% of total variance at every level of education. For students, intelligence accounts for much of the 90% of variance associated with learning gains. This evidence is reviewed
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
Education and Intelligence: Pity the Poor Teacher because Student Characteristics are more Significant than Teachers or Schools. Article link.
Douglas K. Detterman
Case Western Reserve University (USA)
Abstract
Education has not changed from the beginning of recorded history. The problem is that focus has been on schools and teachers and not students. Here is a simple thought experiment with two conditions: 1) 50 teachers are assigned by their teaching quality to randomly composed classes of 20 students, 2) 50 classes of 20 each are composed by selecting the most able students to fill each class in order and teachers are assigned randomly to classes. In condition 1, teaching ability of each teacher and in condition 2, mean ability level of students in each class is correlated with average gain over the course of instruction. Educational gain will be best predicted by student abilities (up to r = 0.95) and much less by teachers' skill (up to r = 0.32). I argue that seemingly immutable education will not change until we fully understand students and particularly human intelligence. Over the last 50 years in developed countries, evidence has accumulated that only about 10% of school achievement can be attributed to schools and teachers while the remaining 90% is due to characteristics associated with students. Teachers account for from 1% to 7% of total variance at every level of education. For students, intelligence accounts for much of the 90% of variance associated with learning gains. This evidence is reviewed
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Each Cell Has A Clock
Each Cell Has A Clock
For many years there was a consensus that most organisms have a circadian clock. In humans it was considered to be directed centrally by the master clock in the brain region…
Read it on Flipboard
Read it on jonlieffmd.com
Why the Brain-Body Connection Is More Important Than We Think
Why the Brain-Body Connection Is More Important Than We Think
From Brain, a Flipboard magazine by Kurt Martinson
Our brains aren't flying solo; our emotions also come into play when we're interacting with the world, new research finds. The idea that…
Read it on Flipboard
Read it on news.nationalgeographic.com
Tuesday, March 13, 2018
NSF Funding Available for Research on Augmenting Human Cognition and Intelligent Cognitive Assistants
NSF Funding Available for Research on Augmenting Human Cognition and Intelligent Cognitive Assistants
From The Brain, a Flipboard topic
In 2016, the US National Science Foundation (NSF) released a set of 10 "Big Ideas" reflecting…
Read it on Flipboard
Read it on psychologicalscience.org
Monday, March 12, 2018
CHC intelligence theory update: Live chat or later YouTube viewing from #pscyhedpodcast this Sunday evening
I am looking forward to talking about the Cattell-Horn-Carroll (CHC) model of intelligence on the #psychedpodcast this sunday evening.
I will present material largely based on the forthcoming CHC chapter coauthored with Dr. Joel Schneider. Tune it....it shall be fun. Or, watch the discussion later on YouTube, and eventually as an audio podcast on iTunes
I will present material largely based on the forthcoming CHC chapter coauthored with Dr. Joel Schneider. Tune it....it shall be fun. Or, watch the discussion later on YouTube, and eventually as an audio podcast on iTunes
Mind-wandering may help enhance creativity, job performance and general well-being, studies show
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Mind-wandering may help enhance creativity, job performance and general well-being, studies show
// SharpBrains
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When writing a song or a piece of prose, I often choose to let my mind wander, hoping the muse will strike. If it does, it not only moves my work along but feels great, too!
That's why I was troubled by studies that found an association between mind-wandering and problems like unhappiness and depression—and even a shorter life expectancy. This research suggests that focusing one's thoughts on the present moment is linked to well-being, while spacing out—which I personally love to do—is not.
Now, new studies are bringing nuance to this science. Whether or not mind-wandering is a negative depends on a lot of factors—like whether it's purposeful or spontaneous, the content of your musings, and what kind of mood you are in. In some cases, a wandering mind can lead to creativity, better moods, greater productivity, and more concrete goals.
Here is what some recent research says about the upsides of a meandering mind.
Mind-wandering can make you more creative
It's probably not a big surprise that mind-wandering augments creativity—particularly "divergent thinking," or being able to come up with novel ideas.
In one study, researchers gave participants a creativity test called the Unusual Uses Task that asks you to dream up novel uses for an everyday item, like a paperclip or a newspaper. Between the first and second stages, participants either engaged in an undemanding task to encourage mind-wandering or a demanding task that took all of their concentration; or they were given a resting period or no rest. Those participants who engaged in mind-wandering during the undemanding task improved their performance much more than any of the other groups. Taking their focus off of the task and mind-wandering, instead, were critical to success.
"The findings reported here provide arguably the most direct evidence to date that conditions that favor mind-wandering also enhance creativity," write the authors. In fact, they add, mind-wandering may "serve as a foundation for creative inspiration."
As a more recent study found, mind-wandering improved people's creativity above and beyond the positive effects of their reading ability or fluid intelligence, the general ability to solve problems or puzzles.
Mind-wandering seems to involve the default network of the brain, which is known to be active when we are not engaged directly in tasks and is also related to creativity.
So perhaps I'm right to let my focus wander while writing: It helps my mind put together information in novel and potentially compelling ways without my realizing it. It's no wonder that my best inspirations seem to come when I'm in the shower or hiking for miles on end.
Mind-wandering can make you happier…depending on the content
The relationship between mind-wandering and mood may be more complicated than we thought.
In one study, researchers pinged participants on a regular basis to see what they were doing, whether or not their minds were wandering, and how they were feeling. As in an earlier experiment, people tended to be in a negative mood when they were mind-wandering. But when researchers examined the content of people's thoughts during mind-wandering, they found an interesting caveat: If participants' minds were engaged in interesting, off-task musings, their moods became more positive rather than more negative.
As the authors conclude, "Those of us who regularly find our minds in the clouds—musing about the topics that most engage us—can take solace in knowing that at least this form of mind-wandering is associated with elevated mood."
It may be that mood affects mind-wandering more than the other way around. In a similar study, researchers concluded that feeling sad or being in a bad mood tended to lead to unhappy mind-wandering, but that mind-wandering itself didn't lead to later bad moods. Earlier experiments may have conflated mind-wandering with rumination—an unhealthy preoccupation with past failures that is tied to depression.
"This study suggests that mind-wandering is not something that is inherently bad for our happiness," write the authors. Instead, "Sadness is likely to lead the mind to wander and that mind-wandering is likely to be [emotionally] negative."
A review of the research on mind-wandering came to a similar conclusion: Mind-wandering is distinct from rumination and therefore has a different relationship to mood.
Can we actually direct our mind-wandering toward more positive thoughts and away from rumination? It turns out that we can! One study found that people who engaged in compassion-focused meditation practices had more positive mind-wandering. As an added bonus, people with more positive mind-wandering were also more caring toward themselves and others, which itself is tied to happiness.
Mind-wandering may improve job performance
Taking a break from work can be a good thing—perhaps because our minds are freer to wander.
Mind-wandering is particularly useful when work is mind-numbing. In one study, participants reported on their mind-wandering during a repetitive task. Participants who engaged in more mind-wandering performed better and faster, decreasing their response times significantly. The researchers speculated that mind-wandering allowed people to go off-task briefly, reset, and see data with fresh eyes—so that they didn't miss sudden changes.
In another study, researchers aimed to figure out what parts of the brain were implicated in mind-wandering and discovered something unexpected. When their frontal lobes were stimulated with a small electrical current to boost mind-wandering, people's performance on an attention task slightly improved.
Of course, not every job calls for mind-wandering. A surgeon or a driver should stay focused on the task at hand, since mind-wandering could be detrimental to both. On the other hand, even for them it might be rejuvenating to take a mind-wandering break after their workday is over, leading to more focused attention the next time around.
Mind-wandering may help us with goal-setting
It seems like mind-wandering would be detrimental when it comes to planning for the future. In fact, some research suggests mind-wandering can improve goal-setting.
In a recent neuroscience experiment, participants did an undemanding task and reported on the content of their thoughts as researchers scanned their brains with fMRI. Afterwards, they wrote for 15 minutes about personal goals or TV programs (the control group). Then, they repeated these two tasks—the undemanding one and writing about goals or TV.
Analyzers unaware of the study's purpose were asked to assess the concreteness of participants' goal-setting and TV program descriptions. The result? People with wandering minds—who probably started musing about what they really wanted in life after the first writing session—ultimately came up with more concrete and higher-quality goal descriptions in the second session. Over the course of the experiment, their brains also showed an increase in connectivity between the hippocampus and the pre-frontal cortex—areas implicated in goal-setting.
Research has also found that, the more people engage in mind-wandering during a task, the more they are willing to wait for a reward afterwards. According to the researchers, this suggests that mind-wandering helps delay gratification and "engages processes associated with the successful management of long-term goals."
On the other hand, some research suggests mind-wandering makes us less "gritty"—or less able to stay focused on our goals to completion—especially if it is spontaneous rather than deliberate. So, it may be important to consider where you are in the process of goal creation before deciding mind-wandering would be a good idea.
None of this suggests that mind-wandering is better for us than being focused. More likely, both aspects of cognition serve a purpose. Under the right circumstances, a wandering mind may actually benefit us and possibly those around us. The trick is to know when to set your mind free.
— Jill Suttie, Psy.D., is Greater Good's book review editor and a frequent contributor to the magazine. Based at UC-Berkeley, Greater Good highlights ground breaking scientific research into the roots of compassion and altruism. Copyright Greater Good.
Related articles:
- New book on how to practice mindfulness meditation with humor and playfulness
- Study: Mindful meditation works. Now, how to navigate the most popular options?
- Six tips to build resilience and prevent brain-damaging stress
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