Abstract
BackgroundSelf-referential cognitions are important for self-monitoring and self-regulation. Previous studies have addressed the neural correlates of self-referential processes in response to or related to external stimuli. We here investigated brain activity associated with a short, exclusively mental process of self-reflection in the absence of external stimuli or behavioural requirements. Healthy subjects reflected either on themselves, a personally known or an unknown person during functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). The reflection period was initialized by a cue and followed by photographs of the respective persons (perception of pictures of oneself or the other person).ResultsSelf-reflection, compared with reflecting on the other persons and to a major part also compared with perceiving photographs of one-self, was associated with more prominent dorsomedial and lateral prefrontal, insular, anterior and posterior cingulate activations. Whereas some of these areas showed activity in the “other”-conditions as well, self-selective characteristics were revealed in right dorsolateral prefrontal and posterior cingulate cortex for self-reflection; in anterior cingulate cortex for self-perception and in the left inferior parietal lobe for self-reflection and -perception.ConclusionsAltogether, cingulate, medial and lateral prefrontal, insular and inferior parietal regions show relevance for self-related cognitions, with in part self-specificity in terms of comparison with the known-, unknown- and perception-conditions. Notably, the results are obtained here without behavioural response supporting the reliability of this methodological approach of applying a solely mental intervention. We suggest considering the reported structures when investigating psychopathologically affected self-related processing.
Highlights
Self-referential cognitions are important for self-monitoring and self-regulation
Recent meta-analyses of functional neuroimaging studies have confirmed the involvement of certain brain regions in self-referential processes [6,10,37]: medial prefrontal cortex (MPFC), anterior and posterior cingulate cortices (ACC, PCC) andcuneus, which reflect the concept of cortical midline areas and self-reference
The primary contrast in the reflection period (1), a conjunction of &, revealed those regions of the brain with greater activity under the self-condition compared to these for known-reflection and unknown-reflection, which were among others the bilateral insular and ventrolateral prefrontal cortex (Ins/VLPFC) areas, the ACC, the PCC and the dorsal MPFC (DMPFC; Table 1a)
Summary
Self-referential cognitions are important for self-monitoring and self-regulation. Previous studies have addressed the neural correlates of self-referential processes in response to or related to external stimuli. A growing number of studies has assessed the neural bases of self-related processes using functional neuroimaging methods [2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11] and electrical tomographic techniques [12] In these studies, brain activity was examined, for example, while viewing photographs of oneself compared to that obtained while viewing photographs of other persons, or while recognizing one’s own Recent meta-analyses of functional neuroimaging studies have confirmed the involvement of certain brain regions in self-referential processes [6,10,37]: medial prefrontal cortex (MPFC), anterior and posterior cingulate cortices (ACC, PCC) and (pre)cuneus, which reflect the concept of cortical midline areas and self-reference [38]. The lateral and ventromedial prefrontal, medial temporal, and parieto-temporal regions, the insular cortex and other regions were found to be active during self-referential processes [6,9,10,25,37]
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