文字阅读学习的大脑塑造性机制

文字阅读学习如何塑造了人脑?这是当今语言认知神经科学的热点课题。研究表明,文字阅读学习不仅会增强早期视觉加工能力和重构腹侧视觉通路,还改变了口语脑网络的加工方式和词素-音素转换脑网络的结构。文字阅读学习通过在视觉皮层与口语系统之间创建一个高效自动运作的平台,改变人脑的功能与结构组织。今后的研究需要深入探究视觉词形区(VWFA)的功能特异性及其与语音和语义加工的动态交互作用、汉字阅读学习的大脑可塑性机制和文字识别与面孔加工的竞争性发育机制等重要问题。     

空间导航的脑网络基础和调控机制

空间导航在生活中时刻发生,空间能力衰退是阿尔兹海默症的重要早期表现。早期关于空间导航神经机制的研究主要关注单个脑区的特异性功能,但这些脑区如何交互以整合不同模态的信息支持复杂导航行为尚不清楚。脑成像技术、脑网络建模方法和神经调控手段的发展,为在脑网络水平理解人类空间导航的认知神经机制提供了重要研究手段。本研究试图融合空间导航认知神经机制研究的最新进展,借助脑网络建模、大数据分析、微电流刺激等前沿研究手段,研究空间导航脑网络的关键拓扑属性特征(如模块化、核心节点等),探寻该功能特异性神经网络的重要影响因素和调控机制,并构建空间导航的脑网络理论模型。研究成果将有利于理解人类复杂导航行为的脑网络基础,为阿尔兹海默症等相关认知障碍脑疾病的筛查和诊断提供重要参考。     

情绪加工的脑时空动态机制

本文综述了罗倩博士及其同事在近年来开展的情绪研究工作。他们通过认知行为和脑成像技术(包括fMRI、MEG), 系统考察了情绪刺激的自动化、优先加工的神经机制, 具体包括三个方面的研究内容：(1)阈下情绪加工(相对于阈上水平)的神经机制; (2)参与情绪加工的脑区之间的动态时空关系及功能联结; (3)情绪与注意之间的交互作用。     

道德决策的机制及干预研究:自我相关性与风险水平的作用

现有的道德决策脑机制研究更多地关注了认知和情绪的交互作用,较少关注个体对"自我相关性"和"风险水平"信息的整合加工,更是忽视了帮助情境和伤害情境下道德决策的心理与脑机制的异同。因此,有必要通过行为、事件相关电位(ERP)和多模态脑功能成像(f MRI)等多种方法来系统考察帮助和伤害情境下自我相关性和风险水平交互影响道德决策的认知和神经机制,并进一步探讨共情训练对道德决策的干预作用。旨在揭示道德决策的时间进程和神经基础;探寻自我相关性与风险水平对道德决策的影响,及其在不同情境和共情水平下可能存在的变异;共情训练能否有效提升个体的道德决策水平。     

人际互动中社会学习的计算神经机制

人类在社会互动中通过他人的行为对他人特质、意图及特定情境下的社会规范进行学习, 是优化决策、维护积极社会互动的重要条件。近年来, 越来越多的研究通过结合计算模型与神经影像技术对社会学习的认知计算机制及其神经基础进行了深入考察。已有研究发现, 人类的社会学习过程能够较好地被强化学习模型与贝叶斯模型刻画, 主要涉及的认知计算过程包括主观期望、预期误差和不确定性的表征以及信息整合的过程。大脑对这些计算过程的执行主要涉及奖惩加工相关脑区(如腹侧纹状体与腹内侧前额叶)、社会认知加工相关脑区(如背内侧前额叶和颞顶联合区)及认知控制相关脑区(如背外侧前额叶)。需要指出的是, 计算过程与大脑区域之间并不是一一映射的关系, 提示未来研究可借助多变量分析与脑网络分析等技术从系统神经科学的角度来考察大尺度脑网络如何执行不同计算过程。此外, 将来研究应注重生态效度, 利用超扫描技术考察真实互动下的社会学习过程, 并更多地关注内隐社会学习的计算与神经机制。     

MAOA基因与环境对反社会行为的交互作用及其可能的脑机制

反社会行为具有重要的遗传学基础。MAOA基因是反社会行为的重要候选基因,该基因与环境对反社会行为具有交互作用,然而其内在作用机制尚不清楚。与情绪管理相关的脑区和神经回路,以及与工作记忆能力相关的脑区和神经回路在其中起重要作用。未来研究可从多基因-环境交互作用、理论模型验证、脑结构与功能的中介作用等方面进一步深化MAOA基因与反社会行为的关系研究。     

自我控制减少拖延行为的认知神经机制

拖延行为常常阻碍个人、企业和政府按时完成既定任务,妨害了人们的工作、学业以及疾病防治等方方面面。自我控制是自主减少拖延行为的主要能力,但却是一种相对有限的认知资源。探明自我控制的作用机制有助于更高效地减少拖延行为。然而,由于缺乏合适的认知机制理论和脑成像实验范式,国内外研究多从现象层面探索自我控制、拖延行为和神经指标之间的关系。研究团队提出的“时间决策模型”通过揭示人们如何做出拖延决策,为认知机制的研究和脑成像实验范式的设计提供了理论支持。基于时间决策模型中“现在做还是以后做”的决策机制,本项目拟:(1)结合横向和纵向研究,考察自我控制作用的认知机制及其稳定性;(2)开发拖延的脑成像实验范式,结合多模态MRI技术,揭示自我控制减少拖延决策的神经基础;(3)利用神经刺激技术,考察“基于自我控制脑区的神经干预”的效果及作用机制。研究成果有望为拖延行为提供更加综合的理论框架和新的干预方案。     

新生儿对语音的感知、辨别和学习

新生儿自娩出起便开始利用臻于成熟的听觉系统对语音的各要素进行大脑表征和学习记忆。考察新生儿语音加工特点,不仅能揭示语言功能在人类发展最初阶段的认知神经机制,还能对自闭症等神经发育性疾病的早期预警和临床诊断提供有价值的线索。我们回顾并总结了新生儿对语音的感知、辨别和学习以及语言发展对自闭症的预测作用,发现新生儿对特定语音存在感知偏好;新生儿具备独特的音素辨别能力;婴儿期语言加工的脑功能或结构指标对自闭症具有一定的预测价值。我们建议未来研究从三个方面开展工作。在基础研究方面：第一,严格控制语音材料的韵律因素,重新审查新生儿语言加工特征及大脑偏侧化问题;第二,揭示新生儿语音学习的认知神经机制以及睡眠的记忆巩固作用。在临床转化研究方面,以高风险自闭症新生儿为追踪对象,基于纵向多模态脑观测数据,建立疾病风险评估系统,揭示出生早期语言发展脑指标对自闭症的预测价值。     

第二语言学习与脑可塑性

脑可塑性指人脑会因为环境刺激、认知需求和行为经验而产生功能或结构改变。近10年来的单双语者对比和语言训练研究结果表明, 不论儿童、青年或老年人, 第二语言学习和使用都能改变其脑运行模式并带来相应结构变化, 包括灰质(GM)体积和白质(WM)密度增加, 且长期持续的双语经验还能形成认知优势, 帮助抵制由老化导致的负面认知影响。基于脑可塑性概念及其研究证据, 从双语经验与语言训练两方面, 对比分析了长期和短期第二语言学习引起脑功能或结构变化及其内在机制, 并对未来相关研究进行了展望。     

汉语作为第二语言学习的脑机制

国家兴,语言强。近年来,汉语作为第二语言学习的认知神经机制研究日渐增长,但汉语二语学习脑机制的系统归纳及相关理论模型仍处于起步阶段。基于汉语二语学习近20年的脑机制研究,以及最新二语学习脑机制的研究和理论,可以归纳主要发现为：1)汉语声调学习最初依赖右颞上回和右额下回,掌握后转而依赖左颞上回;2)汉字字形学习与双侧额下回及右梭状回有关,而汉字语音学习则与左颞顶叶区相关;3)汉语二语学习初期会依赖右脑重要脑区(额下回、梭状回等),随汉语能力的提升,这种依赖减弱。综上,汉语二语学习与右脑关系密切,经历了由右侧功能主导转向双侧化或者左侧化的动态大脑发展变化过程。汉语学习者所采取的二语学习方法及其语音听辨能力,会影响学习者的语言功能、脑结构及其脑功能网络连接方式。未来研究可以从被试语言背景、研究范式和内容、数据分析等角度出发,探寻汉语二语学习的有效方法,构建并完善汉语二语学习认知神经机制的相关理论模型。     

The developmental trajectory of children's auditory and visual statistical learning abilities: modality‐based differences in the effect of age

Infants, children and adults are capable of extracting recurring patterns from their environment through statistical learning (SL), an implicit learning mechanism that is considered to have an important role in language acquisition. Research over the past 20 years has shown that SL is present from very early infancy and found in a variety of tasks and across modalities (e.g., auditory, visual), raising questions on the domain generality of SL. However, while SL is well established for infants and adults, only little is known about its developmental trajectory during childhood, leaving two important questions unanswered: (1) Is SL an early‐maturing capacity that is fully developed in infancy, or does it improve with age like other cognitive capacities (e.g., memory)? and (2) Will SL have similar developmental trajectories across modalities? Only few studies have looked at SL across development, with conflicting results: some find age‐related improvements while others do not. Importantly, no study to date has examined auditory SL across childhood, nor compared it to visual SL to see if there are modality‐based differences in the developmental trajectory of SL abilities. We addressed these issues by conducting a large‐scale study of children's performance on matching auditory and visual SL tasks across a wide age range (5–12y). Results show modality‐based differences in the development of SL abilities: while children's learning in the visual domain improved with age, learning in the auditory domain did not change in the tested age range. We examine these findings in light of previous studies and discuss their implications for modality‐based differences in SL and for the role of auditory SL in language acquisition. A video abstract of this article can be viewed at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3kg35hoF0pw .     

身体活动与学业成绩:来自具身认知的启示

具身认知理论认为身体、认知和环境是和谐的统一体。以该理论为基础的具身学习认为,身体不是学习过程的无关因素或障碍因素,身体是学习的主体,身体活动的参与在塑造学习者的思维、判断及记忆等心智活动中具有重要作用。当前已有一定数量的实证研究发现,身体活动能够显著提供语言习得、数学学习等学业成绩,提供学生在同伴中的社会地位。将来,可基于具身认知的角度,采用认知神经科学、心理学和教育学等跨学科合作的方式,进一步探讨具身学习影响学业成绩的因素及其机制。     

Color and intensity discrimination in <Emphasis Type="Italic">Xenopus laevis</Emphasis> tadpoles

Investigations into the physiology of Xenopus laevis have the potential to greatly accelerate biomedical research, especially concerning neural plasticity and sensory systems, but are limited by the lack of available information on behavioral learning in this species. Here, we attempt to lay the foundations for a behavioral assay in Xenopus that can be used in conjunction with biological manipulations. We tested cohorts of Xenopus tadpoles across four light-mediated active-avoidance experiments, using either wavelength or intensity as the salient discriminative cue. In the wavelength task, we determine a baseline learning rate and characterize retention of learning, identifying active extinction effects as far more potent than the passage of time in the loss of behavior. In the intensity task, we examine the effects of varying differences between the discriminative stimuli on acquisition and extinction and identify a critical range of intensity differences where learning changes. The results of our experiments demonstrate that Xenopus is a tractable model organism for cognitive research and can learn a variety of associative tasks in the laboratory settings. These data reveal new aspects of the Xenopus larval visual processing system and facilitate future research between cognitive methods and biological/chemical manipulations to study mechanisms of brain structure and function.     

Plasticity of brain and cognition in older adults

Aging is typically related to changes in brain and cognition, but the aging process is heterogeneous and differs between individuals. Recent research has started investigating the influence of cognitive and physical training on cognitive performance, functional brain activity, and brain structure in old age. The functional relevance of neural changes and the interactions among these changes following interventions is still a matter of debate. Here we selectively review research on structural and functional brain correlates of training-induced performance changes in healthy older adults and present exemplary longitudinal intervention studies sorted by the type of training applied (i.e., strategy-based training, process-specific training, and physical exercise). Although many training studies have been conducted recently, within each task domain, the number of studies that used comparable methods and techniques to assess behavioral and neural changes is limited. We suggest that future studies should include a multimodal approach to enhance the understanding of the relation between different levels of brain changes in aging and those changes that result from training. Investigating inter-individual differences in intervention-induced behavioral and neuronal changes would provide more information about who would benefit from a specific intervention and why. In addition, a more systematic examination of the time course of training-related structural and functional changes would improve the current level of knowledge about how learning is implemented in the brain and facilitate our understanding of contradictory results.     

统计学习与双语认知的关系

统计学习是提取环境输入潜在规则的一种认知机制,其与语言的关联已得到证实。双语认知是学界关注的热点之一。统计学习与双语认知的关系如何?文章先介绍统计学习认知机制及其与语言的关系,然后从“统计学习能力可否预测二语学习表现”、“统计学习训练能否促进二语学习”和“双语经验能否提高统计学习能力”三个维度述评相关文献,并指出未来可从输入特征、个体差异和神经科学角度进一步探讨统计学习与双语认知的关系。     

Direct and indirect effects of multilingualism on novel language learning: An integrative review

Accumulated recent research suggests that prior knowledge of multiple languages leads to advantages in learning additional languages. In the current article, we review studies examining potential differences between monolingual and multilingual speakers in novel language learning in an effort to uncover the cognitive mechanisms that underlie such differences. We examine the multilingual advantage in children and adults, across a wide array of languages and learner populations. The majority of this literature focused on vocabulary learning, but studies that address phonology, grammar, and literacy learning are also discussed to provide a comprehensive picture of the way in which multilingualism affects novel language learning. Our synthesis indicates two avenues to the multilingual advantage including direct transfer of prior knowledge and prior skills as well as indirect influences that result from multilingual background and include more general changes to the cognitive-linguistic system. Finally, we highlight topics that are in need of future systematic research.     

Neurobehavioral evidence for individual differences in canine cognitive control: an awake fMRI study

Based on behavioral evidence, the domestic dog has emerged as a promising comparative model of human self-control. However, while research on human inhibition has probed heterogeneity and neuropathology through an integration of neural and behavioral evidence, there are no parallel data exploring the brain mechanisms involved in canine inhibition. Here, using a combination of cognitive testing and awake neuroimaging in domestic dogs, we provide evidence precisely localizing frontal brain regions underpinning response inhibition in this species and demonstrate the dynamic relationship between these regions and behavioral measures of control. Thirteen dogs took part in an in-scanner go/no-go task and an out-of-scanner A-not-B test. A frontal brain region was identified showing elevated neural activity for all subjects during successful inhibition in the scanner, and dogs showing greater mean brain activation in this region produced fewer false alarms. Better performance in the go/no-go task was also correlated with fewer errors in the out-of-scanner A-not-B test, suggesting that dogs show consistent neurobehavioral individual differences in cognitive control, as is seen in humans. These findings help establish parity between human and canine mechanisms of self-control and pave the way for future comparative studies examining their function and dysfunction.     

How does it feel to become a teacher? Emotions in teacher education

Academic emotions are central ingredients in student teachers’ learning. They have been shown to affect cognitive performance, motivation and achievement (e.g. Linnenbrink-Garcia et al. in Contemp Educ Psychol 36(1):13–24, 2011). However, until recently the role of emotions in student teachers’ learning has largely been neglected (e.g. Ketonen and Lonka in Proc Soc Behav Sci 69(24):1901–1910, 2012). The study focused on exploring the spectrum of academic emotions experienced by 19 student teachers in different academic activities. The results showed that student teachers experience a wide variety of emotions during their studies. A total of 18 different positive emotions and 20 different negative emotions were reported. They explicated more positive than negative emotions. Further investigations showed that student teachers reported more emotional experiences embedded in individual activities than in social activities. The results implied that the spectrum of academic emotions experienced by student teachers is wider than previous literature suggests, and that student teachers experience a wide range of academic emotions in various academic activities provided by teacher education.     

无意识信息引发的认知控制及其神经机制

对无意识信息引发的认知控制的研究是揭示意识的功能与局限的重要方法和步骤.在无意识认知控制研究中主要采用模式掩蔽和偏对比掩蔽创设无意识条件,使用客观测量方法对意识状态进行测量.作者从无意识抑制控制、无意识冲突控制和无意识错误加工三个方面回顾了近年对无意识认知控制及其神经机制的研究.已有研究从行为和认知神经研究两个方面强有力地证明了无意识认知控制的存在,揭示了其神经机制.这些研究拓展了人们对意识信息广度和深度的认识,也为未来进一步揭示意识的起源等问题奠定了一定的基础.未来的研究可以从无意识认知控制和有意识认知控制的相互转化等方面进行进一步研究.