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Related Experiment Video

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Combining Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation and fMRI to Examine the Default Mode Network

Combining Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation and fMRI to Examine the Default Mode Network

Published on: December 28, 2010

Story, Daydreams, and the Default Mode Network.

Richard Brockman¹

¹Department of Psychiatry, Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons, New York, New York.

Psychodynamic Psychiatry

|June 16, 2026

Summary

Psychoanalysis offered early insights into the default mode network (DMN). This article explores DMN dysfunction in posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and its impact on time, safety, and narrative.

Keywords:

default mode network functional connectivity innate alarm system posttraumatic stress disorder

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Developing Neuroimaging Phenotypes of the Default Mode Network in PTSD: Integrating the Resting State, Working Memory, and Structural Connectivity

Developing Neuroimaging Phenotypes of the Default Mode Network in PTSD: Integrating the Resting State, Working Memory, and Structural Connectivity

Published on: July 1, 2014

Area of Science:

Neuroscience
Psychology
Psychiatry

Background:

Psychoanalysis, pioneered by Freud, provided an early observational tool for the mind.
The default mode network (DMN) was implicitly observed through psychoanalysis before its formal discovery.
The DMN plays a role in integrating perception and memory via functional connectivity.

Purpose of the Study:

To examine the causes and consequences of default mode network (DMN) pathophysiology in posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
To investigate the relationship between DMN dysfunction and altered sense of time, safety, and narrative in PTSD.

Main Methods:

Review of existing literature on psychoanalysis, default mode network (DMN) function, and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
Analysis of functional connectivity alterations in brain networks, particularly the DMN and intrinsic alarm system, in PTSD.

Main Results:

Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is characterized by significant pathology in functional connectivity within multiple brain networks.
Default mode network (DMN) dysfunction is a key feature of PTSD, impacting intrinsic alarm systems.
This pathophysiology contributes to disturbances in the sense of time, safety, and narrative coherence in individuals with PTSD.

Conclusions:

The default mode network (DMN) is critically implicated in the neurobiology of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
Understanding DMN alterations offers insights into the subjective experiences of time, safety, and narrative in PTSD.
Further research into DMN pathophysiology may lead to novel therapeutic targets for PTSD.