Pub Date : 2026-01-31DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2026.109383
Jia-Li Liu, Jun-Yan Ye, Tian-Xiao Yang, Ji-Fang Cui, Wen-Hao Lai, Yu-Lun He, Peng Zhang, Zhi-Jian Jiang, Tao Chen, Simon S Y Lui, Gui-Fang Chen, Ti-Jiang Zhang, Ya Wang, Raymond C K Chan
Episodic future thinking (EFT) involves the ability to imagine future events and is closely related to personal goals. Schizophrenia patients are impaired in EFT. The best possible self is a representation of personal goals and can be integrated with EFT intervention. Few studies considered the role of personal goals or examined the neural basis of EFT improvements in schizophrenia patients. The present study aimed to fill these gaps. We hypothesized that the Best Possible Self based Future Specificity (BPSFS) intervention could improve EFT in schizophrenia patients and personal goals would play an important role. Moreover, altered functional connectivity in the default mode network may underlie the intervention effect. In our study, sixty schizophrenia patients were recruited, randomly assigned to the intervention group (n = 29) and control group (n = 31), and completed the study. The intervention group completed a four-week eight-session BPSFS training and the control group completed psychoeducation with the same sessions. EFT tasks with different goal types, future goal fluency task, and resting-state magnetic resonance imaging were completed before and after the treatment. The BPSFS intervention significantly improved the EFT specificity, and the future goal fluency improvement partially mediated this effect. Furthermore, the intervention group showed increased functional connectivity between the temporal parietal junction and frontal pole, which was associated with EFT specificity improvement. Taken together, these findings indicate that the BPSFS intervention could enhance EFT ability in schizophrenia patients, and the underlying neural basis might involve increased functional connectivity in the temporal parietal junction.
情景未来思维（EFT）涉及想象未来事件的能力，与个人目标密切相关。精神分裂症患者的EFT功能受损。最好的自我是个人目标的代表，可以与EFT干预相结合。很少有研究考虑到个人目标的作用或检查EFT改善精神分裂症患者的神经基础。本研究旨在填补这些空白。我们假设最佳可能自我未来特异性（Best Possible Self - based Future Specificity， BPSFS）干预可以改善精神分裂症患者的EFT，而个人目标可能在其中发挥重要作用。此外，默认模式网络中功能连接的改变可能是干预效应的基础。本研究共招募60例精神分裂症患者，随机分为干预组（n = 29）和对照组（n = 31），完成研究。干预组完成了为期四周的八期BPSFS培训，对照组完成了同样的心理教育。治疗前后分别完成不同目标类型的EFT任务、未来目标流畅性任务和静息状态磁共振成像。BPSFS干预显著提高了EFT特异性，未来目标流畅性的提高部分介导了这一作用。此外，干预组显示颞顶叶交界处和额极之间的功能连通性增加，这与EFT特异性改善有关。综上所述，这些发现表明BPSFS干预可以增强精神分裂症患者的EFT能力，其潜在的神经基础可能涉及到颞顶交界处功能连接的增加。
{"title":"Episodic future thinking intervention in schizophrenia patients: Effects and neural correlates.","authors":"Jia-Li Liu, Jun-Yan Ye, Tian-Xiao Yang, Ji-Fang Cui, Wen-Hao Lai, Yu-Lun He, Peng Zhang, Zhi-Jian Jiang, Tao Chen, Simon S Y Lui, Gui-Fang Chen, Ti-Jiang Zhang, Ya Wang, Raymond C K Chan","doi":"10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2026.109383","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2026.109383","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Episodic future thinking (EFT) involves the ability to imagine future events and is closely related to personal goals. Schizophrenia patients are impaired in EFT. The best possible self is a representation of personal goals and can be integrated with EFT intervention. Few studies considered the role of personal goals or examined the neural basis of EFT improvements in schizophrenia patients. The present study aimed to fill these gaps. We hypothesized that the Best Possible Self based Future Specificity (BPSFS) intervention could improve EFT in schizophrenia patients and personal goals would play an important role. Moreover, altered functional connectivity in the default mode network may underlie the intervention effect. In our study, sixty schizophrenia patients were recruited, randomly assigned to the intervention group (n = 29) and control group (n = 31), and completed the study. The intervention group completed a four-week eight-session BPSFS training and the control group completed psychoeducation with the same sessions. EFT tasks with different goal types, future goal fluency task, and resting-state magnetic resonance imaging were completed before and after the treatment. The BPSFS intervention significantly improved the EFT specificity, and the future goal fluency improvement partially mediated this effect. Furthermore, the intervention group showed increased functional connectivity between the temporal parietal junction and frontal pole, which was associated with EFT specificity improvement. Taken together, these findings indicate that the BPSFS intervention could enhance EFT ability in schizophrenia patients, and the underlying neural basis might involve increased functional connectivity in the temporal parietal junction.</p>","PeriodicalId":19279,"journal":{"name":"Neuropsychologia","volume":" ","pages":"109383"},"PeriodicalIF":2.0,"publicationDate":"2026-01-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146106606","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2026-01-29DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2026.109379
Meagan E Beckerson, McKayla R Kurtz, Elizabeth Valles-Capetillo, Rajesh K Kana
Externalizing behaviors such as aggression, defiance, and hyperactivity are common in autistic and non-autistic children. Research suggests that externalizing behaviors are not associated with intellectual functioning (FSIQ), gender, language, or autism symptom severity. Instead, recent studies suggest externalizing behaviors are more related to and are often linked to difficulties in executive functioning (EF). The current study examined behavioral and neural predictors of externalizing behaviors in a transdiagnostic sample of school-age children (N = 90; ages 7-13 years; 48 autistic, 42 non-autistic). Parents completed measures of EF (Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Function, Second Edition; BRIEF-2) and externalizing behaviors (Behavior Assessment System for Children, Third Edition; BASC-3). Children completed resting-state fMRI scans. After controlling for age and FSIQ, the BRIEF-2 composite index scores (Behavioral, Emotional, and Cognitive Regulation) significantly predicted externalizing behaviors. Seed-to-seed analyses revealed positive associations between externalizing behaviors and connectivity among the left superior parietal lobule, left inferior parietal lobule, anterior insula, and lateral frontal ECN nodes. Seed-to-voxel analyses showed widespread alterations, including increased connectivity within frontoparietal executive regions alongside reduced connectivity in salience-related areas, such as cingulate and insula. This dual connectivity profile suggests a neural mechanism involving compensatory executive engagement paired with diminished salience processing that may contribute to behavioral dysregulation. These results suggest that executive dysfunction, at both the behavioral and neural levels, is associated with externalizing behaviors in children regardless of diagnostic status. Findings underscore the potential utility of EF-based interventions for mitigating externalizing problems in both autistic and non-autistic populations.
{"title":"Brain network disruption underlying externalizing behaviors.","authors":"Meagan E Beckerson, McKayla R Kurtz, Elizabeth Valles-Capetillo, Rajesh K Kana","doi":"10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2026.109379","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2026.109379","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Externalizing behaviors such as aggression, defiance, and hyperactivity are common in autistic and non-autistic children. Research suggests that externalizing behaviors are not associated with intellectual functioning (FSIQ), gender, language, or autism symptom severity. Instead, recent studies suggest externalizing behaviors are more related to and are often linked to difficulties in executive functioning (EF). The current study examined behavioral and neural predictors of externalizing behaviors in a transdiagnostic sample of school-age children (N = 90; ages 7-13 years; 48 autistic, 42 non-autistic). Parents completed measures of EF (Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Function, Second Edition; BRIEF-2) and externalizing behaviors (Behavior Assessment System for Children, Third Edition; BASC-3). Children completed resting-state fMRI scans. After controlling for age and FSIQ, the BRIEF-2 composite index scores (Behavioral, Emotional, and Cognitive Regulation) significantly predicted externalizing behaviors. Seed-to-seed analyses revealed positive associations between externalizing behaviors and connectivity among the left superior parietal lobule, left inferior parietal lobule, anterior insula, and lateral frontal ECN nodes. Seed-to-voxel analyses showed widespread alterations, including increased connectivity within frontoparietal executive regions alongside reduced connectivity in salience-related areas, such as cingulate and insula. This dual connectivity profile suggests a neural mechanism involving compensatory executive engagement paired with diminished salience processing that may contribute to behavioral dysregulation. These results suggest that executive dysfunction, at both the behavioral and neural levels, is associated with externalizing behaviors in children regardless of diagnostic status. Findings underscore the potential utility of EF-based interventions for mitigating externalizing problems in both autistic and non-autistic populations.</p>","PeriodicalId":19279,"journal":{"name":"Neuropsychologia","volume":" ","pages":"109379"},"PeriodicalIF":2.0,"publicationDate":"2026-01-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146093144","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
This study examined both voluntary and involuntary visual mental imagery using pupillometry. We developed a unified experimental paradigm in which 50 participants either deliberately imagined visual scenes (voluntary imagery) or processed brightness-related words (involuntary imagery), while their pupil size was continuously recorded. Subjective vividness was assessed through questionnaires and self-reports. At the group level, brightness-related stimuli reliably elicited stronger pupil constriction than darkness-related stimuli, replicating prior findings. However, substantial inter-individual variability, combined with the absence of correlation with self-reported imagery measures, points to limitations in the protocol's sensitivity at the individual level. These results underscore the need to refine pupillometric paradigms before applying them to atypical populations, such as individuals with aphantasia. Our findings contribute to the development of objective, physiological tools for assessing visual mental imagery, and highlight the importance of individual-level analyses in future research on both typical and atypical imagery.
{"title":"Pupil changes to voluntary and involuntary visual imagery: A unified paradigm with implications for aphantasia research","authors":"Claire Vanbuckhave , Nicole Huson , Hélène Lœvenbruck , Nathalie Guyader , Alan Chauvin","doi":"10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2026.109378","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2026.109378","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>This study examined both voluntary and involuntary visual mental imagery using pupillometry. We developed a unified experimental paradigm in which 50 participants either deliberately imagined visual scenes (voluntary imagery) or processed brightness-related words (involuntary imagery), while their pupil size was continuously recorded. Subjective vividness was assessed through questionnaires and self-reports. At the group level, brightness-related stimuli reliably elicited stronger pupil constriction than darkness-related stimuli, replicating prior findings. However, substantial inter-individual variability, combined with the absence of correlation with self-reported imagery measures, points to limitations in the protocol's sensitivity at the individual level. These results underscore the need to refine pupillometric paradigms before applying them to atypical populations, such as individuals with aphantasia. Our findings contribute to the development of objective, physiological tools for assessing visual mental imagery, and highlight the importance of individual-level analyses in future research on both typical and atypical imagery.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":19279,"journal":{"name":"Neuropsychologia","volume":"223 ","pages":"Article 109378"},"PeriodicalIF":2.0,"publicationDate":"2026-01-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146065377","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Macular degeneration (MD) causes central vision loss and leads to long-term reorganization of visual functions. Central vision loss in MD severely reduces access to high spatial frequencies (HSF) that convey fine visual details, while low spatial frequencies (LSF) remain relatively accessible through peripheral vision and may support compensatory processing. This study investigated whether repeated training in categorizing filtered scenes improves peripheral scene recognition by enhancing spatial frequency processing. Ten MD patients and ten age- and gender-matched controls performed a scene categorization task (indoor vs. outdoor) using LSF or HSF images. Both groups completed a 12-session training protocol: patients performed the task at their preferred retinal location (PRL), and controls fixated with their fovea and viewed stimuli through an individualized artificial scotoma matched to their paired patient. Before training, MD patients showed a marked deficit for HSF scenes compared to controls, and a milder deficit for LSF scenes. After training, patients exhibited a significant improvement in categorizing LSF scenes, and an improvement specifically limited to HSF outdoor scenes, suggesting enhanced use of preserved peripheral information and partial compensation for the HSF deficit. Older controls also showed reduced performance for HSF scenes in peripheral vision, and similarly benefited from training. These results highlight the potential of perceptual training to enhance peripheral visual processing in MD patients, particularly by leveraging coarse visual cues. They support the idea that such protocols may be beneficial not only for visual rehabilitation in MD but also for preserving visual-cognitive functions in normal aging.
{"title":"Enhancing peripheral scene recognition through spatial frequency training: Behavioral evidence from macular degeneration and healthy aging","authors":"Cynthia Faurite , Célia Michaud , Pauline Olivier , Mathilde Gallice , Christophe Chiquet , Vincent Soler , Isabelle Berry , Benoit R. Cottereau , Carole Peyrin","doi":"10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2026.109377","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2026.109377","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Macular degeneration (MD) causes central vision loss and leads to long-term reorganization of visual functions. Central vision loss in MD severely reduces access to high spatial frequencies (HSF) that convey fine visual details, while low spatial frequencies (LSF) remain relatively accessible through peripheral vision and may support compensatory processing. This study investigated whether repeated training in categorizing filtered scenes improves peripheral scene recognition by enhancing spatial frequency processing. Ten MD patients and ten age- and gender-matched controls performed a scene categorization task (indoor vs. outdoor) using LSF or HSF images. Both groups completed a 12-session training protocol: patients performed the task at their preferred retinal location (PRL), and controls fixated with their fovea and viewed stimuli through an individualized artificial scotoma matched to their paired patient. Before training, MD patients showed a marked deficit for HSF scenes compared to controls, and a milder deficit for LSF scenes. After training, patients exhibited a significant improvement in categorizing LSF scenes, and an improvement specifically limited to HSF outdoor scenes, suggesting enhanced use of preserved peripheral information and partial compensation for the HSF deficit. Older controls also showed reduced performance for HSF scenes in peripheral vision, and similarly benefited from training. These results highlight the potential of perceptual training to enhance peripheral visual processing in MD patients, particularly by leveraging coarse visual cues. They support the idea that such protocols may be beneficial not only for visual rehabilitation in MD but also for preserving visual-cognitive functions in normal aging.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":19279,"journal":{"name":"Neuropsychologia","volume":"223 ","pages":"Article 109377"},"PeriodicalIF":2.0,"publicationDate":"2026-01-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146053163","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2026-01-23DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2026.109374
Madeleine Heynen , Alyssa W. Sullivan , Claire E. Manley , Serena Micheletti , Elisa M. Fazzi , Lotfi B. Merabet
Visuospatial processing dysfunctions are common in individuals with cerebral visual impairment (CVI) and can have a significant impact on how they perceive and interact with their surrounding environment. To gain further insight into the nature of these deficits, we assessed visual scanning performance in individuals with CVI compared to neurotypically developed controls. In this exploratory story, 16 individuals with CVI (mean age = 19.56 years ± 5.59 SD; mean verbal IQ = 94.85 ± 21.84) and 19 control participants (mean age = 21.37 years ± 5.21 SD; mean verbal IQ = 123.79 ± 12.59) completed the Star Cancellation Test (SCT). Gaze behavior was also recorded using wearable eye tracking (Tobii Pro Glasses 3; 100 Hz sampling rate) during naturalistic and standardized administration of the assessment. Controlling for age and verbal IQ level, we found that while test accuracy was not significantly lower in CVI participants, they took significantly longer to complete the task compared to controls. CVI participants also tended to spend more time verifying their work and had lower cancellation efficiency (a composite performance index incorporating accuracy and completion time). Regarding gaze metrics, CVI subjects had longer total fixation durations and higher fixation counts, as well as greater total saccade amplitudes (scan path length) and saccade counts. However, group differences were not significant when comparing normalized gaze metrics (i.e., average fixation duration and average saccade amplitude). The observed differences in behavioral performance and gaze metrics in CVI are consistent with a profile of less efficient and more effortful visual scanning and search. The use of standardized assessments combined with wearable eye tracking can provide further insight into the nature of visuospatial processing dysfunctions in this population.
{"title":"Assessing visuospatial abilities related to visual scanning in cerebral visual impairment using the star cancellation test combined with wearable eye tracking","authors":"Madeleine Heynen , Alyssa W. Sullivan , Claire E. Manley , Serena Micheletti , Elisa M. Fazzi , Lotfi B. Merabet","doi":"10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2026.109374","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2026.109374","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Visuospatial processing dysfunctions are common in individuals with cerebral visual impairment (CVI) and can have a significant impact on how they perceive and interact with their surrounding environment. To gain further insight into the nature of these deficits, we assessed visual scanning performance in individuals with CVI compared to neurotypically developed controls. In this exploratory story, 16 individuals with CVI (mean age = 19.56 years ± 5.59 SD; mean verbal IQ = 94.85 ± 21.84) and 19 control participants (mean age = 21.37 years ± 5.21 SD; mean verbal IQ = 123.79 ± 12.59) completed the Star Cancellation Test (SCT). Gaze behavior was also recorded using wearable eye tracking (Tobii Pro Glasses 3; 100 Hz sampling rate) during naturalistic and standardized administration of the assessment. Controlling for age and verbal IQ level, we found that while test accuracy was not significantly lower in CVI participants, they took significantly longer to complete the task compared to controls. CVI participants also tended to spend more time verifying their work and had lower cancellation efficiency (a composite performance index incorporating accuracy and completion time). Regarding gaze metrics, CVI subjects had longer total fixation durations and higher fixation counts, as well as greater total saccade amplitudes (scan path length) and saccade counts. However, group differences were not significant when comparing normalized gaze metrics (i.e., average fixation duration and average saccade amplitude). The observed differences in behavioral performance and gaze metrics in CVI are consistent with a profile of less efficient and more effortful visual scanning and search. The use of standardized assessments combined with wearable eye tracking can provide further insight into the nature of visuospatial processing dysfunctions in this population.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":19279,"journal":{"name":"Neuropsychologia","volume":"223 ","pages":"Article 109374"},"PeriodicalIF":2.0,"publicationDate":"2026-01-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146045983","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2026-01-19DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2026.109373
Sebastian P. Suggate , Fraser Milton , Jeremy Tree
People self-report a vast range of mental imagery experiences, from vivid and realistic to none whatsoever (i.e., aphantasia). Aphantasia aside, quantifying and measuring individual differences in mental imagery skill remains a significant challenge, with research reliant on the self-report Vividness of Visual Imagery Questionnaire (VVIQ). Currently, there are very few behavioural tasks measuring mental imagery, hence we used the mental comparisons task (MCT – Suggate, 2024) in which participants mentally compare a visual, auditory, or tactile property of stimuli in the physical absence of those objects. Using an online pre-registered study, we tested performance on the MCT for participants who have aphantasia (n = 48) versus those without (n = 95). In addition to the MCT and VVIQ, measures included the Plymouth Sensory Imagery Questionnaire, and questions on how they solved the MCT task. Consistent with other work, there appeared to be small non-significant correlations between self-report and behavioural measures. Aphantasics as a group appeared generally slower, but more accurate, on the MCT. Correcting for speed-accuracy trade-offs via balanced integration scores revealed that aphantasics had an advantage on tactile stimuli. In summary, findings support the idea that aphantasic participants have preserved performance generally, with better tactile mental processing. The extent to which the MCT measures voluntary mental imagery, or can be solved without imagery altogether, is discussed.
{"title":"Multimodal mental comparisons in those with and without aphantasia","authors":"Sebastian P. Suggate , Fraser Milton , Jeremy Tree","doi":"10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2026.109373","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2026.109373","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>People self-report a vast range of mental imagery experiences, from vivid and realistic to none whatsoever (i.e., aphantasia). Aphantasia aside, quantifying and measuring individual differences in mental imagery skill remains a significant challenge, with research reliant on the self-report Vividness of Visual Imagery Questionnaire (VVIQ). Currently, there are very few behavioural tasks measuring mental imagery, hence we used the mental comparisons task (MCT – Suggate, 2024) in which participants mentally compare a visual, auditory, or tactile property of stimuli in the physical absence of those objects. Using an online pre-registered study, we tested performance on the MCT for participants who have aphantasia (<em>n</em> = 48) versus those without (<em>n</em> = 95). In addition to the MCT and VVIQ, measures included the Plymouth Sensory Imagery Questionnaire, and questions on how they solved the MCT task. Consistent with other work, there appeared to be small non-significant correlations between self-report and behavioural measures. Aphantasics as a group appeared generally slower, but <em>more</em> accurate, on the MCT. Correcting for speed-accuracy trade-offs via balanced integration scores revealed that aphantasics had an advantage on tactile stimuli. In summary, findings support the idea that aphantasic participants have preserved performance generally, with better tactile mental processing. The extent to which the MCT measures voluntary mental imagery, or can be solved without imagery altogether, is discussed.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":19279,"journal":{"name":"Neuropsychologia","volume":"222 ","pages":"Article 109373"},"PeriodicalIF":2.0,"publicationDate":"2026-01-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146018786","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2026-01-19DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2026.109372
Uma Prashant Navare , Veerle Hobbelink , Francesca Ciardo , Kyveli Kompatsiari , Davide De Tommaso , Agnieszka Wykowska
Sense of Joint Agency (SoJA), is the feeling of control experienced by humans for their own, as well as their partner's actions, when acting in joint action with others. SoJA is ubiquitous in human-human interaction. Therefore, it is both interesting as well as relevant to understand the factors that affect the formation of SoJA both in human-human and in human-robot interaction. On the one hand, previous work suggests that sensorimotor cues may be the main determinant of “lower-level” implicit SoJA in human-human joint action. On the other hand, recent work shows that contextual factors, such as perceived intentionality, can impact the formation of implicit SoJA with a humanoid robot. In the current study, we aimed to investigate, using behavioral and electroencephalography (EEG) measures, whether endowing a humanoid robot with a precisely human sensorimotor pattern would be sufficient to elicit SoJA with the robot, even without manipulating the perceived intentionality of the robot. Participants completed a joint task with another human, and with a robot that was controlled by another human, thus endowing the robot with a precisely human sensorimotor repertoire. Importantly, participants completed two sessions with this controlled robot. In one session, they were (factually) told that the robot was controlled by another human. In another session, they were told that the robot was pre-programmed. We expected that participants may attribute less intentionality to the robot they believed was pre-programmed. In either session, participants' perception regarding the robot's intentionality was not explicitly manipulated. Interval estimates for self- and other-generated actions were used to estimate SoJA. In addition, we also measured participants' readiness potential (RP) for self- and partner actions, and their N100 responses for self- and partner-generated sensory outcomes in the task. The results show that temporal estimates, and ERPs, did not differ between self- and partner-generated action-outcome conditions, in both human-human and human-robot sessions. Thus, these results suggest that endowing a humanoid robot with a human sensorimotor pattern may be sufficient to elicit SoJA in joint action with the robot, regardless of the intentionality attributed to the robot. Furthermore, an exploratory spectral analysis of movement-related beta activity suggested that people may nevertheless disengage earlier from the joint action when interacting with a robot partner, as compared to a human partner. Together, our results contribute to understanding the mechanisms that underlie the emergence of SoJA in joint action, as well as the extent to which artificial agents, such as humanoid robots, can be integrated into our teamwork as “full” interaction partners.
{"title":"Investigating the role of sensorimotor versus contextual cues in the sense of joint agency: a human-human and human-robot study","authors":"Uma Prashant Navare , Veerle Hobbelink , Francesca Ciardo , Kyveli Kompatsiari , Davide De Tommaso , Agnieszka Wykowska","doi":"10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2026.109372","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2026.109372","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Sense of Joint Agency (SoJA), is the feeling of control experienced by humans for their own, as well as their partner's actions, when acting in joint action with others. SoJA is ubiquitous in human-human interaction. Therefore, it is both interesting as well as relevant to understand the factors that affect the formation of SoJA both in human-human and in human-robot interaction. On the one hand, previous work suggests that sensorimotor cues may be the main determinant of “lower-level” implicit SoJA in human-human joint action. On the other hand, recent work shows that contextual factors, such as perceived intentionality, can impact the formation of implicit SoJA with a humanoid robot. In the current study, we aimed to investigate, using behavioral and electroencephalography (EEG) measures, whether endowing a humanoid robot with a precisely human sensorimotor pattern would be sufficient to elicit SoJA with the robot, even without manipulating the perceived intentionality of the robot. Participants completed a joint task with another human, and with a robot that was controlled by another human, thus endowing the robot with a precisely human sensorimotor repertoire. Importantly, participants completed two sessions with this controlled robot. In one session, they were (factually) told that the robot was controlled by another human. In another session, they were told that the robot was pre-programmed. We expected that participants may attribute less intentionality to the robot they believed was pre-programmed. In either session, participants' perception regarding the robot's intentionality was not explicitly manipulated. Interval estimates for self- and other-generated actions were used to estimate SoJA. In addition, we also measured participants' readiness potential (RP) for self- and partner actions, and their N100 responses for self- and partner-generated sensory outcomes in the task. The results show that temporal estimates, and ERPs, did not differ between self- and partner-generated action-outcome conditions, in both human-human and human-robot sessions. Thus, these results suggest that endowing a humanoid robot with a human sensorimotor pattern may be sufficient to elicit SoJA in joint action with the robot, regardless of the intentionality attributed to the robot. Furthermore, an exploratory spectral analysis of movement-related beta activity suggested that people may nevertheless disengage earlier from the joint action when interacting with a robot partner, as compared to a human partner. Together, our results contribute to understanding the mechanisms that underlie the emergence of SoJA in joint action, as well as the extent to which artificial agents, such as humanoid robots, can be integrated into our teamwork as “full” interaction partners.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":19279,"journal":{"name":"Neuropsychologia","volume":"223 ","pages":"Article 109372"},"PeriodicalIF":2.0,"publicationDate":"2026-01-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146015896","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2026-01-17DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2026.109371
Stefan Wiens, Mingailė Greičiūtė, Billy Gerdfeldter, Annika Andersson
A central feature of consciousness is the association between external events and subjective experiences of content. These experiences range from low level (detection) to high level (identification). For example, a visual experience may range from seeing something on a computer screen (detection) to seeing the digit 3 (identification). In research, neural processes that correlate with these experiences are called neural correlates of consciousness (NCCs). In vision, a candidate NCC is the visual awareness negativity (VAN) that is derived from event-related potentials, occurring about 200 ms after stimulus onset over posterior electrode sites. Because previous research does not resolve whether VAN is more sensitive to low-level experiences (detection awareness) than high-level experiences (identification awareness), we conducted two preregistered experiments. In both experiments, two staircases continuously adjusted stimulus opacity to separately target detection awareness and identification awareness. In Experiment 1, subjects viewed either individual digits (N = 15) or individual letters or digits (N = 15). For both types of stimuli, VAN was similarly sensitive to detection awareness and identification awareness. As a follow up, Experiment 2 (N = 28) examined whether stimulus size affects VAN to identification awareness using digit stimuli. Results showed identification VAN for both digit sizes, and VAN was unaffected by stimulus size. These results confirm the sensitivity of VAN to both low-level experiences (detection) and high-level experiences (identification). However, results emphasize the limited specificity of VAN in separating between low-level and high-level experiences, suggested by the similarity of VAN in both conditions.
{"title":"Electrophysiological correlates of detection and identification awareness for digits and letters","authors":"Stefan Wiens, Mingailė Greičiūtė, Billy Gerdfeldter, Annika Andersson","doi":"10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2026.109371","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2026.109371","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>A central feature of consciousness is the association between external events and subjective experiences of content. These experiences range from low level (detection) to high level (identification). For example, a visual experience may range from seeing something on a computer screen (detection) to seeing the digit 3 (identification). In research, neural processes that correlate with these experiences are called neural correlates of consciousness (NCCs). In vision, a candidate NCC is the visual awareness negativity (VAN) that is derived from event-related potentials, occurring about 200 ms after stimulus onset over posterior electrode sites. Because previous research does not resolve whether VAN is more sensitive to low-level experiences (detection awareness) than high-level experiences (identification awareness), we conducted two preregistered experiments. In both experiments, two staircases continuously adjusted stimulus opacity to separately target detection awareness and identification awareness. In Experiment 1, subjects viewed either individual digits (<em>N</em> = 15) or individual letters or digits (<em>N</em> = 15). For both types of stimuli, VAN was similarly sensitive to detection awareness and identification awareness. As a follow up, Experiment 2 (<em>N</em> = 28) examined whether stimulus size affects VAN to identification awareness using digit stimuli. Results showed identification VAN for both digit sizes, and VAN was unaffected by stimulus size. These results confirm the sensitivity of VAN to both low-level experiences (detection) and high-level experiences (identification). However, results emphasize the limited specificity of VAN in separating between low-level and high-level experiences, suggested by the similarity of VAN in both conditions.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":19279,"journal":{"name":"Neuropsychologia","volume":"222 ","pages":"Article 109371"},"PeriodicalIF":2.0,"publicationDate":"2026-01-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146003761","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Mental imagery varies dramatically across individuals, from vivid scene construction to the complete absence of visual experience, as seen in aphantasia. While the ventromedial prefrontal cortex (vmPFC) is traditionally associated with abstract, schematic representations, emerging theories suggest it also contributes to constructing perceptually rich, temporally extended mental scenarios. To test this, we developed a 7T fMRI experiment that varied imagery demands across conditions: participants memorized richly detailed scenarios, more constrained stationary objects, and semantic definitions for three abstract German words (e.g., hope). During scanning and eye-tracking, the same cue word was presented on every trial, but participants vividly re-engaged with one of three learned representations (scenario construction, object construction, or semantic definitions). Using the same word across conditions enabled us to disentangle perceptual richness from semantic scaffolding and to test directly whether vmPFC represents imagery-rich scenarios rather than functioning solely as a conceptual coordinator. Univariate analyses revealed increased activation in vmPFC, medial temporal regions, and occipital cortex during scenario construction. Multivoxel pattern analysis (MVPA) showed that the vmPFC was the only region examined in which classifier accuracy for scenarios exceeded that of object construction and semantic definitions, supporting its role in representing imagery-rich details rather than solely abstract schemas. Eye movement patterns further distinguished conditions, reflecting differences in constructive processes. These findings advance models of vmPFC function, highlighting its contribution to integrating perceptual richness with conceptual meaning in temporally extended mental scenarios.
{"title":"Seeing more than schemas: the vmPFC represents imagery-rich mental scenarios","authors":"Sorit Achmed Ali , Pitshaporn Leelaarporn , Rüdiger Stirnberger , Maren Bilzer , Nadja Abdel Kafi , Julia Taube , Yilmaz Sagik , Cornelia McCormick","doi":"10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2026.109370","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2026.109370","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Mental imagery varies dramatically across individuals, from vivid scene construction to the complete absence of visual experience, as seen in aphantasia. While the ventromedial prefrontal cortex (vmPFC) is traditionally associated with abstract, schematic representations, emerging theories suggest it also contributes to constructing perceptually rich, temporally extended mental scenarios. To test this, we developed a 7T fMRI experiment that varied imagery demands across conditions: participants memorized richly detailed scenarios, more constrained stationary objects, and semantic definitions for three abstract German words (e.g., hope). During scanning and eye-tracking, the same cue word was presented on every trial, but participants vividly re-engaged with one of three learned representations (scenario construction, object construction, or semantic definitions). Using the same word across conditions enabled us to disentangle perceptual richness from semantic scaffolding and to test directly whether vmPFC represents imagery-rich scenarios rather than functioning solely as a conceptual coordinator. Univariate analyses revealed increased activation in vmPFC, medial temporal regions, and occipital cortex during scenario construction. Multivoxel pattern analysis (MVPA) showed that the vmPFC was the only region examined in which classifier accuracy for scenarios exceeded that of object construction and semantic definitions, supporting its role in representing imagery-rich details rather than solely abstract schemas. Eye movement patterns further distinguished conditions, reflecting differences in constructive processes. These findings advance models of vmPFC function, highlighting its contribution to integrating perceptual richness with conceptual meaning in temporally extended mental scenarios.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":19279,"journal":{"name":"Neuropsychologia","volume":"222 ","pages":"Article 109370"},"PeriodicalIF":2.0,"publicationDate":"2026-01-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145998120","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2026-01-16DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2026.109369
Xinling Chen, Shihui Han
Prosocial behaviors are fundamentally important for social harmony but vary across individuals with diverse experiences during development. We tested the hypothesis that receiving harms and helps from others during social interactions produce opposite (decreasing or increasing) effects on prosocial behaviors in four studies. We showed that a short experience of receiving social harms reduced both prosocial decision-making and affective empathy for others’ pain whereas a short experience of receiving social helps enhanced prosocial decision-making (Experiment 1). Social harms produced stronger effects on prosocial decision-making and subjective/electroencephalography measures of empathy related to inflictors who produced harms compared to irrelevant strangers (Experiments 2 and 3). Sustained experiences of receiving social helps were able to restore the impaired prosocial decision-making and empathy caused by a short experience of receiving social harms (Experiment 4). These findings indicate opposite relationships between prosocial behavior and social harm/help and suggest empathy as a potential intermediate psychological mechanism.
{"title":"Opposite effects of social harm and help on prosocial behaviors: Behavioral and EEG studies","authors":"Xinling Chen, Shihui Han","doi":"10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2026.109369","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2026.109369","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Prosocial behaviors are fundamentally important for social harmony but vary across individuals with diverse experiences during development. We tested the hypothesis that receiving harms and helps from others during social interactions produce opposite (decreasing or increasing) effects on prosocial behaviors in four studies. We showed that a short experience of receiving social harms reduced both prosocial decision-making and affective empathy for others’ pain whereas a short experience of receiving social helps enhanced prosocial decision-making (Experiment 1). Social harms produced stronger effects on prosocial decision-making and subjective/electroencephalography measures of empathy related to inflictors who produced harms compared to irrelevant strangers (Experiments 2 and 3). Sustained experiences of receiving social helps were able to restore the impaired prosocial decision-making and empathy caused by a short experience of receiving social harms (Experiment 4). These findings indicate opposite relationships between prosocial behavior and social harm/help and suggest empathy as a potential intermediate psychological mechanism.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":19279,"journal":{"name":"Neuropsychologia","volume":"222 ","pages":"Article 109369"},"PeriodicalIF":2.0,"publicationDate":"2026-01-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145998767","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
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