Hello, is that me you are looking for? A re-examination of the role of the DMN in social and self relevant aspects of off-task thought.

Neural activity within the default mode network (DMN) is widely assumed to relate to processing during off-task states, however it remains unclear whether this association emerges from a shared role in self or social content that is common in these conditions. In the current study, we examine the po...

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Main Authors: Charlotte Murphy, Giulia Poerio, Mladen Sormaz, Hao-Ting Wang, Deniz Vatansever, Micah Allen, Daniel S Margulies, Elizabeth Jefferies, Jonathan Smallwood
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Public Library of Science (PLoS) 2019-01-01
Series:PLoS ONE
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0216182
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author Charlotte Murphy
Giulia Poerio
Mladen Sormaz
Hao-Ting Wang
Deniz Vatansever
Micah Allen
Daniel S Margulies
Elizabeth Jefferies
Jonathan Smallwood
author_facet Charlotte Murphy
Giulia Poerio
Mladen Sormaz
Hao-Ting Wang
Deniz Vatansever
Micah Allen
Daniel S Margulies
Elizabeth Jefferies
Jonathan Smallwood
author_sort Charlotte Murphy
collection DOAJ
description Neural activity within the default mode network (DMN) is widely assumed to relate to processing during off-task states, however it remains unclear whether this association emerges from a shared role in self or social content that is common in these conditions. In the current study, we examine the possibility that the role of the DMN in ongoing thought emerges from contributions to specific features of off-task experience such as self-relevant or social content. A group of participants described their experiences while performing a laboratory task over a period of days. In a different session, neural activity was measured while participants performed Self/Other judgements (e.g., Does the word 'Honest' apply to you (Self condition) or Barack Obama (Other condition)). Despite the prominence of social and personal content in off-task reports, there was no association with neural activity during off-task trait adjective judgements. Instead, during both Self and Other judgements we found recruitment of caudal posterior cingulate cortex-a core DMN hub-was above baseline for individuals whose laboratory experiences were characterised as detailed. These data provide little support for a role of the DMN in self or other content in the off-task state and instead suggest a role in how on-going thought is represented.
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spelling doaj.art-894176748f7d4061a1fa77219831b2ea2022-12-21T23:09:44ZengPublic Library of Science (PLoS)PLoS ONE1932-62032019-01-011411e021618210.1371/journal.pone.0216182Hello, is that me you are looking for? A re-examination of the role of the DMN in social and self relevant aspects of off-task thought.Charlotte MurphyGiulia PoerioMladen SormazHao-Ting WangDeniz VatanseverMicah AllenDaniel S MarguliesElizabeth JefferiesJonathan SmallwoodNeural activity within the default mode network (DMN) is widely assumed to relate to processing during off-task states, however it remains unclear whether this association emerges from a shared role in self or social content that is common in these conditions. In the current study, we examine the possibility that the role of the DMN in ongoing thought emerges from contributions to specific features of off-task experience such as self-relevant or social content. A group of participants described their experiences while performing a laboratory task over a period of days. In a different session, neural activity was measured while participants performed Self/Other judgements (e.g., Does the word 'Honest' apply to you (Self condition) or Barack Obama (Other condition)). Despite the prominence of social and personal content in off-task reports, there was no association with neural activity during off-task trait adjective judgements. Instead, during both Self and Other judgements we found recruitment of caudal posterior cingulate cortex-a core DMN hub-was above baseline for individuals whose laboratory experiences were characterised as detailed. These data provide little support for a role of the DMN in self or other content in the off-task state and instead suggest a role in how on-going thought is represented.https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0216182
spellingShingle Charlotte Murphy
Giulia Poerio
Mladen Sormaz
Hao-Ting Wang
Deniz Vatansever
Micah Allen
Daniel S Margulies
Elizabeth Jefferies
Jonathan Smallwood
Hello, is that me you are looking for? A re-examination of the role of the DMN in social and self relevant aspects of off-task thought.
PLoS ONE
title Hello, is that me you are looking for? A re-examination of the role of the DMN in social and self relevant aspects of off-task thought.
title_full Hello, is that me you are looking for? A re-examination of the role of the DMN in social and self relevant aspects of off-task thought.
title_fullStr Hello, is that me you are looking for? A re-examination of the role of the DMN in social and self relevant aspects of off-task thought.
title_full_unstemmed Hello, is that me you are looking for? A re-examination of the role of the DMN in social and self relevant aspects of off-task thought.
title_short Hello, is that me you are looking for? A re-examination of the role of the DMN in social and self relevant aspects of off-task thought.
title_sort hello is that me you are looking for a re examination of the role of the dmn in social and self relevant aspects of off task thought
url https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0216182
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