Processing of the same narrative stimuli elicits common functional connectivity dynamics between individuals

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Cognitive Science
• Psychology

Background:

• Conscious experience may relate to diverse brain states.
• Sensory stimulation alters brain activity and neural synchrony.
• Moment-to-moment cognitive processing dynamics are not well understood.

Purpose of the Study:

• Investigate how complex naturalistic stimuli alter brain network dynamics.
• Understand how these dynamics support information processing.
• Examine neural synchrony during naturalistic movie watching.

Main Methods:

• Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) during movie watching, scrambled movies, and rest.
• Analysis of whole-brain connectivity patterns using phase-synchrony between brain networks.
• Correlation of synchronization dynamics with subjective experience (suspense).

Main Results:

• Distinct brain connectivity patterns observed for each condition.
• Higher inter-participant brain pattern synchronization during movie watching vs. rest/scrambled movies.
• Synchronization levels correlated with movie engagement and suspenseful scenes.

Conclusions:

• Processing shared high-level information induces common neural dynamics.
• Whole-brain functional connectivity tracks variations in information processing and subjective experience.
• Naturalistic stimuli provide insights into real-world neural dynamics.