Default and control network connectivity dynamics track the stream of affect at multiple timescales

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Cognitive Science
• Affective Science

Background:

• Understanding the brain's representation of affect over time is complex, requiring models of real-world experiences.
• Movies offer a practical way to study synchronized emotional responses and temporal dynamics in a controlled setting.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate how brain connectivity dynamics track changes in affect during naturalistic experiences like movie watching.
• To explore the relationship between the temporal dynamics of affect and brain network activity.

Main Methods:

• Utilized time-varying intersubject brain synchronization (fMRI) and real-time behavioral reports during movie viewing.
• Analyzed connectivity patterns within the default mode network and control networks.
• Validated findings across two experiments with four independent samples and multiple analysis workflows.

Main Results:

• Affective experience polarity and intensity correlate with connectivity dynamics in the default mode and control networks.
• These connectivity changes converge in the right temporoparietal cortex.
• Revealed chronotopic connectivity maps in temporoparietal and prefrontal cortices, showing distinct timescales of affect encoding.

Conclusions:

• Brain network connectivity dynamically tracks subjective emotional experiences.
• Specific brain regions, particularly the right temporoparietal cortex, integrate affective information across time.
• The brain exhibits temporally organized representations of affect within specific cortical areas.