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Brain-environment alignment during movie watching predicts fluid intelligence and affective function in adulthood
Raluca Petrican1, Kim S Graham1, Andrew D Lawrence1
1Cardiff University Brain Research Imaging Centre (CUBRIC), School of Psychology, Cardiff University, Maindy Road, Cardiff CF24 4HQ, United Kingdom.
Neuroimage
|May 21, 2021
Summary
Brain functional connectivity (FC) dynamics change with age, impacting cognitive and affective responses. Younger adults show better brain-environment alignment, crucial for fluid intelligence, while older adults exhibit increased FC integration, potentially hindering adaptive processing.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Cognitive Science
- Aging Research
Background:
- Brain activity and functional connectivity (FC) exhibit moment-to-moment fluctuations.
- The role of brain signal variability in cognitive adaptation is known, but the relevance of dynamic FC changes is debated.
- Understanding FC variability is key to cognitive-affective responses to environmental demands.
Purpose of the Study:
- Investigate cognitive-affective implications of FC variability and network communication profiles in adulthood.
- Identify brain communication pathways underlying FC reconfiguration at multiple timescales.
- Understand how perceptual and conceptual processing shape neural tuning to environmental dynamics.
Main Methods:
- Utilized a graph theoretical approach on neuroimaging and behavioral data.
- Analyzed data from movie-watching experiments (Cambridge Center for Ageing and Neuroscience, Human Connectome Project).
- Examined FC variability related to concrete perceptual and abstract conceptual changes.
Main Results:
- FC variability increased with age, but coupling with concrete environmental features was stronger in younger adults.
- Age-distinct network communication profiles emerged: greater default mode network integration in older adults, and enhanced attention/control network flow in younger adults.
- Fluid intelligence correlated with brain-environment alignment, with stronger moment-to-moment FC variability linked to poorer fluid intelligence and increased vigilance.
Conclusions:
- The adaptiveness of dynamic FC reconfiguration changes across the lifespan due to network communication profiles.
- Brain-environment alignment is crucial, with moment-to-moment FC variability potentially indicating a bias towards perceptual processing, hindering strategic cognitive engagement.
- Findings highlight the importance of dynamic brain signal variability in adapting to environmental complexity across adulthood.
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