Beyond simple laboratory studies: Developing sophisticated models to study rich behavior

Physics of Life Reviews, Journal Year: 2023, Volume and Issue: 46, P. 220 - 244

Published: July 13, 2023

Psychology and neuroscience are concerned with the study of behavior, internal cognitive processes, their neural foundations. However, most laboratory studies use constrained experimental settings that greatly limit range behaviors can be expressed. While focusing on restricted ensures methodological control, it risks impoverishing object study: by restricting we might miss key aspects function. In this article, argue psychology should increasingly adopt innovative designs, measurement methods, analysis techniques sophisticated computational models to probe rich, ecologically valid forms including social behavior. We discuss challenges studying rich behavior as well novel opportunities offered state-of-the-art methodologies new sensing technologies, highlight importance developing formal models. exemplify our arguments reviewing some recent streams research in psychology, other fields (e.g., sports analytics, ethology robotics) have addressed a model-based manner. hope these "success cases" will encourage psychologists neuroscientists extend toolbox behavioral – them processes they engage.

Language: Английский

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Toward a neuroscience of natural behavior

Current Opinion in Neurobiology, Journal Year: 2024, Volume and Issue: 86, P. 102859 - 102859

Published: April 6, 2024

One of the most exciting new developments in systems neuroscience is progress being made toward neurophysiological experiments that move beyond simplified laboratory settings and address richness natural behavior. This enabled by technological advances such as wireless recording freely moving animals, automated quantification behavior, methods for analyzing large data sets. Beyond empirical data, however, there also a need theories concepts to interpret data. Such particular challenges which often differ significantly from scenarios studied traditional settings. Here, we discuss some strategies developing novel example hypotheses proposed.

Language: Английский

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Concepts at the Interface

Oxford University Press eBooks, Journal Year: 2024, Volume and Issue: unknown

Published: Aug. 9, 2024

Abstract Research on concepts has concentrated the way people apply online, when presented with a stimulus. Just as important, however, is use of offline, planning what to do or thinking about case. There strong evidence that inferences driven by conceptual thought draw heavily special-purpose resources: sensory, motoric, affective, and evaluative. At same time, afford general-purpose recombination support domain-general reasoning processes—phenomena have long been focus philosophers. growing consensus theory must encompass both kinds process. This book shows how are able act an interface between systems. Concept-driven can take advantage complementary costs benefits each. The lays out empirically-based account different ways in which takes us new conclusions underpins planning, decision-making, action. It also spells three useful implications account. First, it allows reconstruct commonplace idea draws meaning concept. Second, offers insight into human cognition avoids frame problem complementary, less discussed, ‘if-then problem’ for nested processing dispositions. Third, metacognition concept-driven various ways. framework developed elucidates makes especially powerful cognitive resource.

Language: Английский

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Under Pressure in the Eriksen Flanker Task

Biological Psychology, Journal Year: 2025, Volume and Issue: unknown, P. 108986 - 108986

Published: Jan. 1, 2025

Language: Английский

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Beyond Mechanism—Extending Our Concepts of Causation in Neuroscience

European Journal of Neuroscience, Journal Year: 2025, Volume and Issue: 61(5)

Published: March 1, 2025

ABSTRACT In neuroscience, the search for causes of behaviour is often just taken to be neural mechanisms. This view typically involves three forms causal reduction: first, from ontological level cognitive processes that mechanisms; second, activity whole brain isolated parts; and third, a consideration temporally extended, historical focus on synchronic states. While modern neuroscience has made impressive progress in identifying mechanisms, providing unprecedented real‐time control behaviour, we contend this does not amount full explanation. particular, there an attendant danger eliminating our explanatory framework, even organism itself. To fully understand need what happens when different neurons are activated, but why those things happen . paper, introduce range well‐developed, non‐reductive, extended notions causality philosophy, which neuroscientists may able draw order build more complete explanations behaviour. These include concepts criterial causation, triggering versus structuring causes, constraints, macroscopic historicity, semantic causation—all which, argue, can used undergird naturalistic understanding mental causation agent causation. can, collectively, help bring cognition itself back into picture, as unto itself, while still grounding respectable scientific terms.

Language: Английский

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Visual target and task-critical feedback uncertainty impair different stages of reach planning in motor cortex

Nature Communications, Journal Year: 2025, Volume and Issue: 16(1)

Published: April 9, 2025

Sensory uncertainty jeopardizes accurate movement. During reaching, visual can affect the estimation of hand position (feedback) and desired movement endpoint (target). While impairing motor learning, it is unclear how either form affects cortical reach goal encoding. We show that trajectories vary more with higher target, but not feedback. Accordingly, activities in male rhesus monkeys are less during planning initiation under target feedback uncertainty. Yet, when critically depend on to conduct reaches via a brain-computer interface, then impairs accuracy neural encoding around initiation. Neural state space analyses reveal dimension separates population activity by level all tested conditions. Our findings demonstrate while both always reflect activity, uncertain only deteriorates information behavior task-critical, i.e., having rely sensory no other reliable modalities available. Further, impair time-dependent manner, suggesting they integrated different stages planning.

Language: Английский

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The Computational Bottleneck of Basal Ganglia Output (and What to Do About it)

eNeuro, Journal Year: 2025, Volume and Issue: 12(4), P. ENEURO.0431 - 23.2024

Published: April 1, 2025

What the basal ganglia do is an oft-asked question; answers range from selection of actions to specification movement estimation time. Here, I argue that how what they a less-asked but equally important question. show output regions create stringent computational bottleneck, both structurally, because have far fewer neurons than their target regions, and dynamically, tonic, inhibitory output. My proposed solution this bottleneck activity neuron setting weight basis function, function defined by neuron’s synaptic contacts. illustrate may work in practice, allowing shift cortical dynamics control eye movements via superior colliculus. This can account for troubling issues our understanding ganglia: why we see increasing during behavior, rather only decreasing as predicted theories based on disinhibition, seems so many codes squashed into such tiny region brain.

Language: Английский

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Initial conditions combine with sensory evidence to induce decision-related dynamics in premotor cortex

Nature Communications, Journal Year: 2023, Volume and Issue: 14(1)

Published: Oct. 16, 2023

Abstract We used a dynamical systems perspective to understand decision-related neural activity, fundamentally unresolved problem. This posits that time-varying activity is described by state equation with an initial condition and evolves in time combining at each step, recurrent inputs. hypothesized various mechanisms of decisions, simulated them models derive predictions, evaluated these predictions examining firing rates neurons the dorsal premotor cortex (PMd) monkeys performing perceptual decision-making task. Prestimulus (i.e., condition) predicted poststimulus trajectories, covaried RT outcome previous trial, but not choice. Poststimulus dynamics depended on both sensory evidence condition, easier stimuli fast conditions leading fastest choice-related dynamics. Together, results suggest combine induce PMd.

Language: Английский

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Sensorimotor environment but not task rule reconfigures population dynamics in rhesus monkey posterior parietal cortex

Nature Communications, Journal Year: 2025, Volume and Issue: 16(1)

Published: Feb. 3, 2025

Primates excel at mapping sensory inputs flexibly onto motor outcomes. We asked if the neural dynamics to support context-sensitive sensorimotor generalizes or differs between different behavioral contexts that demand such flexibility. compared reaching under mirror-reversed vision, a case of adaptation modified environment (SE), with anti reaching, applying an abstract task rule (TR). While in monkey posterior parietal cortex show shifted initial states and non-aligned low-dimensional subspaces SE task, remapping is achieved overlapping TR task. A recurrent network model demonstrates how output constraints mimicking tasks are sufficient generate two fundamentally computational dynamics. conclude implement happens within existing repertoire dynamics, while compensation perturbed feedback requires exploration independent cortex. Context-dependent input key for goal-directed behavior. Here, authors brain achieves this without reconfiguring networks, depending on type context.

Language: Английский

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Approach-avoidance conflict recruits lateral frontoparietal and cinguloinsular networks in a predator-prey game setting

Cognitive Affective & Behavioral Neuroscience, Journal Year: 2025, Volume and Issue: unknown

Published: Feb. 26, 2025

Language: Английский

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