Peering into the future: Eye movements predict neural repetition effects during episodic simulation.

Imagining future scenarios involves recombining different elements of past experiences into a coherent event, a process broadly supported by the brain's default network. Prior work suggests that distinct brain regions may contribute to the inclusion of different simulation features. Here we examine how activity in these brain regions relates to the vividness of future simulations. Thirty-four healthy young adults imagined future events with familiar people and locations in a two-part study involving a repetition suppression paradigm. First, participants imagined events while their eyes were tracked during a behavioral session. Immediately after, participants imagined events during MRI scanning. The events to be imagined were manipulated such that some were identical to those imagined in the behavioral session while others involved new locations, new people, or both. In this way, we could examine how self-report ratings and eye movements predict brain activity during simulation along with specific simulation features. Vividness ratings were negatively correlated with eye movements, in contrast to an often-observed positive relationship with past recollection. Moreover, fewer eye movements predicted greater involvement of the hippocampus during simulation, an effect specific to location features. Our findings suggest that eye movements may facilitate scene construction for future thinking, lending support to frameworks that spatial information forms the foundation of episodic simulation.

Structure-Function Interactions in the Hippocampus and Prefrontal Cortex Are Associated with Episodic Memory in Healthy Aging.

Aging comes with declines in episodic memory. Memory decline is accompanied by structural and functional alterations within key brain regions, including the hippocampus and lateral prefrontal cortex, as well as their affiliated default and frontoparietal control networks. Most studies have examined how structural or functional differences relate to memory independently. Here we implemented a multimodal, multivariate approach to investigate how interactions between individual differences in structural integrity and functional connectivity relate to episodic memory performance in healthy aging. In a sample of younger (N = 111; mean age, 22.11 years) and older (N = 78; mean age, 67.29 years) adults, we analyzed structural MRI and multiecho resting-state fMRI data. Participants completed measures of list recall (free recall of words from a list), associative memory (cued recall of paired words), and source memory (cued recall of the trial type, or the sensory modality in which a word was presented). The findings revealed that greater structural integrity of the posterior hippocampus and middle frontal gyrus were linked with a pattern of increased within-network connectivity, which together were related to better associative and source memory in older adulthood. Critically, older adults displayed better memory performance in the context of decreased hippocampal volumes when structural differences were accompanied by functional reorganization. This functional reorganization was characterized by a pruning of connections between the hippocampus and the limbic and frontoparietal control networks. Our work provides insight into the neural mechanisms that underlie age-related compensation, revealing that the functional architecture associated with better memory performance in healthy aging is tied to the structural integrity of the hippocampus and prefrontal cortex.

Differences in the content and coherence of autobiographical memories between younger and older adults: Insights from text analysis.

Several studies have shown that older adults generate autobiographical memories with fewer specific details than younger adults, a pattern typically attributed to age-relate declines in episodic memory. A relatively unexplored question is how aging affects the content used to represent and recall these memories. We recently proposed that older adults may predominately represent and recall autobiographical memories at the gist level. Emerging from this proposal is the hypothesis that older adults represent memories with a wider array of content topics and recall memories with a distinct narrative style when compared to younger adults. We tested this hypothesis by applying natural language processing approaches to a data set of autobiographical memories described by healthy younger and older adults. We used topic modeling to estimate the distribution (i.e., diversity) of content topics used to represent a memory, and sentence embedding to derive an internal similarity score to estimate the shifts in content when narrating a memory. First, we found that older adults referenced a wider array of content topics (higher content diversity) than younger adults when recalling their autobiographical memories. Second, we found older adults were included more content shifts when narrating their memories than younger adults, suggesting a reduced reliance on choronology to form a coherent memory. Third, we found that the content diversity measures were positively related to specific detail generation for older adults, potentially reflecting age-related compensation for episodic memory difficulties. We discuss how our results shed light on how younger and older adults differ in the way they remember and describe the past. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

Taking stock of the past: A psychometric evaluation of the Autobiographical Interview.

Autobiographical memory (AM) involves a rich phenomenological re-experiencing of a spatio-temporal event from the past, which is challenging to objectively quantify. The Autobiographical Interview (AI; Levine et al. Psychology and Aging, 17(4), 677-689, 2002) is a manualized performance-based assessment designed to quantify episodic (internal) and semantic (external) features of recalled and verbally conveyed prior experiences. The AI has been widely adopted, yet has not undergone a comprehensive psychometric validation. We investigated the reliability, validity, association to individual differences measures, and factor structure in healthy younger and older adults (N = 352). Evidence for the AI's reliability was strong: the subjective scoring protocol showed high inter-rater reliability and previously identified age effects were replicated. Internal consistency across timepoints was robust, suggesting stability in recollection. Central to our validation, internal AI scores were positively correlated with standard, performance-based measures of episodic memory, demonstrating convergent validity. The two-factor structure for the AI was not well supported by confirmatory factor analysis. Adjusting internal and external detail scores for the number of words spoken (detail density) improved trait estimation of AM performance. Overall, the AI demonstrated sound psychometric properties for inquiry into the qualities of autobiographical remembering.

Creativity at rest: Exploring functional network connectivity of creative experts.

The neuroscience of creativity seeks to disentangle the complex brain processes that underpin the generation of novel ideas. Neuroimaging studies of functional connectivity, particularly functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), have revealed individual differences in brain network organization associated with creative ability; however, much of the extant research is limited to laboratory-based divergent thinking measures. To overcome these limitations, we compare functional brain connectivity in a cohort of creative experts (n = 27) and controls (n = 26) and examine links with creative behavior. First, we replicate prior findings showing reduced connectivity in visual cortex related to higher creative performance. Second, we examine whether this result is driven by integrated or segregated connectivity. Third, we examine associations between functional connectivity and vivid distal simulation separately in creative experts and controls. In accordance with past work, our results show reduced connectivity to the primary visual cortex in creative experts at rest. Additionally, we observe a negative association between distal simulation vividness and connectivity to the lateral visual cortex in creative experts. Taken together, these results highlight connectivity profiles of highly creative people and suggest that creative thinking may be related to, though not fully redundant with, the ability to vividly imagine the future.

Age differences in functional brain networks associated with loneliness and empathy.

Loneliness is associated with differences in resting-state functional connectivity (RSFC) within and between large-scale networks in early- and middle-aged adult cohorts. However, age-related changes in associations between sociality and brain function into late adulthood are not well understood. Here, we examined age differences in the association between two dimensions of sociality-loneliness and empathic responding-and RSFC of the cerebral cortex. Self-report measures of loneliness and empathy were inversely related across the entire sample of younger (mean age = 22.6y, n = 128) and older (mean age = 69.0y, n = 92) adults. Using multivariate analyses of multi-echo fMRI RSFC, we identified distinct functional connectivity patterns for individual and age group differences associated with loneliness and empathic responding. Loneliness in young and empathy in both age groups was related to greater visual network integration with association networks (e.g., default, fronto-parietal control). In contrast, loneliness was positively related to within- and between-network integration of association networks for older adults. These results extend our previous findings in early- and middle-aged cohorts, demonstrating that brain systems associated with loneliness, as well as empathy, differ in older age. Further, the findings suggest that these two aspects of social experience engage different neurocognitive processes across human life-span development.

Hippocampus and temporal pole functional connectivity is associated with age and individual differences in autobiographical memory.

Recollection of one's personal past, or autobiographical memory (AM), varies across individuals and across the life span. This manifests in the amount of episodic content recalled during AM, which may reflect differences in associated functional brain networks. We take an individual differences approach to examine resting-state functional connectivity of temporal lobe regions known to coordinate AM content retrieval with the default network (anterior and posterior hippocampus, temporal pole) and test for associations with AM. Multiecho resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) and autobiographical interviews were collected for 158 younger and 105 older healthy adults. Interviews were scored for internal (episodic) and external (semantic) details. Age group differences in connectivity profiles revealed that older adults had lower connectivity within anterior hippocampus, posterior hippocampus, and temporal pole but greater connectivity with regions across the default network compared with younger adults. This pattern was positively related to posterior hippocampal volumes in older adults, which were smaller than younger adult volumes. Connectivity associations with AM showed two significant patterns. The first dissociated connectivity related to internal vs. external AM across participants. Internal AM was related to anterior hippocampus and temporal pole connectivity with orbitofrontal cortex and connectivity within posterior hippocampus. External AM was related to temporal pole connectivity with regions across the lateral temporal cortex. In the second pattern, younger adults displayed temporal pole connectivity with regions throughout the default network associated with more detailed AMs overall. Our findings provide evidence for discrete ensembles of brain regions that scale with systematic variation in recollective styles across the healthy adult life span.

Age differences in the functional architecture of the human brain.

The intrinsic functional organization of the brain changes into older adulthood. Age differences are observed at multiple spatial scales, from global reductions in modularity and segregation of distributed brain systems, to network-specific patterns of dedifferentiation. Whether dedifferentiation reflects an inevitable, global shift in brain function with age, circumscribed, experience-dependent changes, or both, is uncertain. We employed a multimethod strategy to interrogate dedifferentiation at multiple spatial scales. Multi-echo (ME) resting-state fMRI was collected in younger (n = 181) and older (n = 120) healthy adults. Cortical parcellation sensitive to individual variation was implemented for precision functional mapping of each participant while preserving group-level parcel and network labels. ME-fMRI processing and gradient mapping identified global and macroscale network differences. Multivariate functional connectivity methods tested for microscale, edge-level differences. Older adults had lower BOLD signal dimensionality, consistent with global network dedifferentiation. Gradients were largely age-invariant. Edge-level analyses revealed discrete, network-specific dedifferentiation patterns in older adults. Visual and somatosensory regions were more integrated within the functional connectome; default and frontoparietal control network regions showed greater connectivity; and the dorsal attention network was more integrated with heteromodal regions. These findings highlight the importance of multiscale, multimethod approaches to characterize the architecture of functional brain aging.

Neurocognitive aging data release with behavioral, structural and multi-echo functional MRI measures.

Central to understanding human behavior is a comprehensive mapping of brain-behavior relations within the context of lifespan development. Reproducible discoveries depend upon well-powered samples of reliable data. We provide to the scientific community two, 10-minute, multi-echo functional MRI (ME-fMRI) runs, and structural MRI (T1-MPRAGE), from 181 healthy younger (ages 18-34 y) and 120 older adults (ages 60-89 y). T2-FLAIR MRIs and behavioral assessments are available in a majority subset of over 250 participants. Behavioral assessments include fluid and crystallized cognition, self-reported measures of personality, and socioemotional functioning. Initial quality control and validation of these data is provided. This dataset will be of value to scientists interested in BOLD signal specifically isolated from ME-fMRI, individual differences in brain-behavioral associations, and cross-sectional aging effects in healthy adults. Demographic and behavioral data are available within the Open Science Framework project "Goal-Directed Cognition in Older and Younger Adults" ( http://osf.io/yhzxe/ ), which will be augmented over time; neuroimaging data are available on OpenNeuro ( https://openneuro.org/datasets/ds003592 ).

Temporal pole volume is associated with episodic autobiographical memory in healthy older adults.

Recollection of personal past events differs across the lifespan. Older individuals recall fewer episodic details and convey more semantic information than young. Here we examine how gray matter volumes in temporal lobe regions integral to episodic and semantic memory (hippocampus and temporal poles, respectively) are related to age differences in autobiographical recollection. Gray matter volumes were obtained in healthy young (n = 158) and old (n = 105) adults. The temporal pole was demarcated and hippocampus segmented into anterior and posterior regions to test for volume differences between age groups. The Autobiographical Interview was administered to measure episodic and semantic autobiographical memory. Volume associations with episodic and semantic autobiographical memory were then assessed. Brain volumes were smaller for older adults in the posterior hippocampus. Autobiographical memory was less episodic and more semanticized for older versus younger adults. Older adults also showed positive associations between temporal pole volumes and episodic autobiographical recall; in the young, temporal pole volume was positively associated with performance on standard laboratory measures of semantic memory. Exploratory analyses revealed that age-related episodic autobiographical memory associations with anterior hippocampal volumes depended on sex. These findings suggest that age differences in brain structures implicated in episodic and semantic memory may portend reorganization of neural circuits to support autobiographical memory in later life.

White matter lesion load is associated with lower within- and greater between- network connectivity across older age.

White matter hyperintensities (WMH) are among the most prominent structural changes observed in older adulthood. These changes coincide with functional changes to the intrinsic network organization of the aging brain. Yet little is known about how WMH are associated with changes to the whole-brain functional connectome in normal aging. We used a lesion prediction algorithm to quantify WMH as well as resting-state multiecho functional magnetic resonance imaging to characterize resting-state functional connectivity in a cross-sectional sample of healthy older adults (N = 105, 60-83 years of age). In a multivariate analysis, we found that higher lesion load was associated with a global pattern of network dedifferentiation, marked by lower within- and greater between- network connectivity. Network specific changes included greater visual network integration and greater posterior-anterior connectivity. The relationship between WMH and resting-state functional connectivity was negatively associated with fluid IQ as well as Blood Oxygen Level Dependent signal dimensionality. Reduced functional network segregation is a widely observed pattern of age-related change. Our findings show that these functional changes are associated with the accumulation of WMH in older adulthood.

Troubled past: A critical psychometric assessment of the self-report Survey of Autobiographical Memory (SAM).

The Survey of Autobiographical Memory (SAM) was designed as an easy-to-administer measure of self-perceived autobiographical memory (AM) recollection capacity. We provide a comprehensive psychometric evaluation of the SAM in younger and older adults. First, we evaluated the reliability of the SAM as a measure of self-perceived recollective capacity. Next, we tested whether the SAM was a valid measure of episodic and autobiographical memory performance, as assessed with widely used performance-based measures. Finally, we investigated associations between the SAM, cognitive measures and self-reported assessments of psychological functioning. The SAM demonstrated reliability as a self-report measure of perceived recollective capacity. High internal consistency was observed across subscales, with the exception of SAM-semantic. Evidence for independence among the subscales was mixed: SAM-episodic and SAM-semantic items showed poor correspondence with respective subscales. Good correspondence was observed between the future and spatial items and their SAM subscales. The SAM showed limited associations with AM performance as measured by the Autobiographical Interview (AI), yet was broadly associated with self-reported AI event vividness. SAM scores were weakly associated with performance-based memory measures and were age-invariant, inconsistent with known age effects on declarative memory. Converging evidence indicated that SAM-episodic and SAM-semantic subscales are not independent and should not be interpreted as specific measures of episodic or semantic memory. The SAM was robustly associated with self-efficacy, suggesting an association with confidence in domain general self-report abilities. We urge caution in the use and interpretation of the SAM as a measure of AM, pending revision and further psychometric validation.

Age differences in intuitive moral decision-making: Associations with inter-network neural connectivity.

Positions of power involving moral decision-making are often held by older adults (OAs). However, little is known about age differences in moral decision-making and the intrinsic organization of the aging brain. In this study, younger adults (YAs; n = 117, Mage = 22.11) and OAs (n = 82, Mage = 67.54) made decisions in hypothetical moral dilemmas and completed resting-state multi-echo functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) scans. Relative to YAs, OAs were more likely to endorse deontological decisions (i.e., decisions based on adherence to a moral principle or duty), but only when the choice was immediately compelling or intuitive. By contrast, there was no difference between YAs and OAs in utilitarian decisions (i.e., decisions aimed at maximizing collective well-being) when the utilitarian choice was intuitive. Enhanced connections between the posterior medial core of the default network (pmDN) and the dorsal attention network, and overall reduced segregation of pmDN from the rest of the brain, were associated with this increased deontological-intuitive moral decision-making style in OAs. The present study contributes to our understanding of age differences in decision-making styles by taking into account the intuitiveness of the moral choice, and it offers further insights as to how age differences in intrinsic brain connectivity relate to these distinct moral decision-making styles in YAs and OAs. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).

Inter-regional BOLD signal variability is an organizational feature of functional brain networks.

Neuronal variability patterns promote the formation and organization of neural circuits. Macroscale similarities in regional variability patterns may therefore be linked to the strength and topography of inter-regional functional connections. To assess this relationship, we used multi-echo resting-state fMRI and investigated macroscale connectivity-variability associations in 154 adult humans (86 women; mean age = 22yrs). We computed inter-regional measures of moment-to-moment BOLD signal variability and related them to inter-regional functional connectivity. Region pairs that showed stronger functional connectivity also showed similar BOLD signal variability patterns, independent of inter-regional distance and structural similarity. Connectivity-variability associations were predominant within all networks and followed a hierarchical spatial organization that separated sensory, motor and attention systems from limbic, default and frontoparietal control association networks. Results were replicated in a second held-out fMRI run. These findings suggest that macroscale BOLD signal variability is an organizational feature of large-scale functional networks, and shared inter-regional BOLD signal variability may underlie macroscale brain network dynamics.

Mind the gap: Congruence between present and future motivational states shapes prospective decisions.

Poor estimation of one's future actions has been associated with the influence of reward over executive control processes during prospection. However, the neural mechanisms underlying this reward-control trade-off remain poorly understood. In the present study, we take advantage of projection bias, underestimating how motivations will change in the future, to examine brain and behavior changes during prospection about future decisions. To manipulate motivation, we altered satiety (hungry vs. satiated) and asked human participants (N = 25) to place bids on snack foods while undergoing fMRI scanning across two sessions. While hungry, participants bid for the right to consume snacks in both a future congruent motivational state (hungry) and a future incongruent motivational state (satiated). In a second session, while satiated, participants placed bids for the right to immediately consume the items. Imagination of a congruent future state was associated with brain activity in regions implicated in prospection. Imagination of an incongruent future state was related to brain activity in areas related to cognitive control. Projection bias, the difference between bids during incongruent prospection (hungry to satiated, session one) and realization (satiated, session two), was negatively related to thalamic and insular engagement. Bias was positively related to engagement of the ventral striatum, a region involved in reward processing. These results suggest that the relative activation between reward and control systems is influenced by the congruence of present and future motivational states, and shapes bias in predictions about future behavior.

Semanticized autobiographical memory and the default - executive coupling hypothesis of aging.

As we age, the architecture of cognition undergoes a fundamental transition. Fluid intellectual abilities decline while crystalized abilities remain stable or increase. This shift has a profound impact across myriad cognitive and functional domains, yet the neural mechanisms remain under-specified. We have proposed that greater connectivity between the default network and executive control regions in lateral prefrontal cortex may underlie this shift, as older adults increasingly rely upon accumulated knowledge to support goal-directed behavior. Here we provide direct evidence for this mechanism within the domain of autobiographical memory. In a large sample of healthy adult participants (n = 103 Young; n = 80 Old) the strength of default - executive coupling reliably predicted more semanticized, or knowledge-based, recollection of autobiographical memories in the older adult cohort. The findings are consistent with the default - executive coupling hypothesis of aging and identify this shift in network dynamics as a candidate neural mechanism associated with crystalized cognition in later life that may signal adaptive capacity in the context of declining fluid cognitive abilities.

Financial Exploitation Is Associated With Structural and Functional Brain Differences in Healthy Older Adults.

BACKGROUND: Age-related brain changes leading to altered socioemotional functioning may increase vulnerability to financial exploitation. If confirmed, this would suggest a novel mechanism leading to heightened financial exploitation risk in older adults. Development of predictive neural markers could facilitate increased vigilance and prevention. In this preliminary study, we sought to identify structural and functional brain differences associated with financial exploitation in older adults. METHODS: Financially exploited older adults (n = 13, 7 female) and a matched cohort of older adults who had been exposed to, but avoided, a potentially exploitative situation (n = 13, 7 female) were evaluated. Using magnetic resonance imaging, we examined cortical thickness and resting state functional connectivity. Behavioral data were collected using standardized cognitive assessments, self-report measures of mood and social functioning. RESULTS: The exploited group showed cortical thinning in anterior insula and posterior superior temporal cortices, regions associated with processing affective and social information, respectively. Functional connectivity encompassing these regions, within default and salience networks, was reduced, while between network connectivity was increased. Self-reported anger and hostility was higher for the exploited group. CONCLUSIONS: We observed financial exploitation associated with brain differences in regions involved in socioemotional functioning. These exploratory and preliminary findings suggest that alterations in brain regions implicated in socioemotional functioning may be a marker of financial exploitation risk. Large-scale, prospective studies are necessary to validate this neural mechanism, and develop predictive markers for use in clinical practice.

An Overview of Judgment and Decision Making Research Through the Lens of Fuzzy Trace Theory.

We present the basic tenets of fuzzy trace theory, a comprehensive theory of memory, judgment, and decision making that is grounded in research on how information is stored as knowledge, mentally represented, retrieved from storage, and processed. In doing so, we highlight how it is distinguished from traditional models of decision making in that gist reasoning plays a central role. The theory also distinguishes advanced intuition from primitive impulsivity. It predicts that different sorts of errors occur with respect to each component of judgment and decision making: background knowledge, representation, retrieval, and processing. Classic errors in the judgment and decision making literature, such as risky-choice framing and the conjunction fallacy, are accounted for by fuzzy trace theory and new results generated by the theory contradict traditional approaches. We also describe how developmental changes in brain and behavior offer crucial insight into adult cognitive processing. Research investigating brain and behavior in developing and special populations supports fuzzy trace theory's predictions about reliance on gist processing.

Genetic mapping and exome sequencing identify variants associated with five novel diseases.

The Clinic for Special Children (CSC) has integrated biochemical and molecular methods into a rural pediatric practice serving Old Order Amish and Mennonite (Plain) children. Among the Plain people, we have used single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) microarrays to genetically map recessive disorders to large autozygous haplotype blocks (mean = 4.4 Mb) that contain many genes (mean = 79). For some, uninformative mapping or large gene lists preclude disease-gene identification by Sanger sequencing. Seven such conditions were selected for exome sequencing at the Broad Institute; all had been previously mapped at the CSC using low density SNP microarrays coupled with autozygosity and linkage analyses. Using between 1 and 5 patient samples per disorder, we identified sequence variants in the known disease-causing genes SLC6A3 and FLVCR1, and present evidence to strongly support the pathogenicity of variants identified in TUBGCP6, BRAT1, SNIP1, CRADD, and HARS. Our results reveal the power of coupling new genotyping technologies to population-specific genetic knowledge and robust clinical data.