Distinct patterns of functional brain connectivity correlate with objective performance and subjective beliefs

Abstract

The degree of correspondence between objective performance and subjective beliefs varies widely across individuals. Here we demonstrate that functional brain network connectivity measured before exposure to a perceptual decision task covaries with individual objective (type-I performance) and subjective (type-II performance) accuracy. Increases in connectivity with type-II performance were observed in networks measured while participants directed attention inward (focus on respiration), but not in networks measured during states of neutral (resting state) or exogenous attention. Measures of type-I performance were less sensitive to the subjects' specific attentional states from which the networks were derived. These results suggest the existence of functional brain networks indexing objective performance and accuracy of subjective beliefs distinctively expressed in a set of stable mental states.D ecisions often bear upon other decisions, as when we seek a second medical opinion before undergoing a risky surgical intervention. These "metadecisions" are mediated by confidence judgments, the degree to which decision makers consider that their choices are likely to be correct. Confidence judgments can be severely distorted: People may lack confidence when responding correctly and reciprocally, be very confident of incorrect responses (1-6). In classic perceptual tasks followed by a confidence report, one can distinguish between (i) the ability to correctly discriminate between stimulus alternatives, referred to as type-I performance, and (ii) the ability of confidence judgments to discriminate between correct and incorrect responses, referred to as type-II performance (2, 7). The objective of this work is to investigate whether functional brain networks distinctively covary with type-I and type-II performance.Network organization of resting state functional brain activity can account for individual differences in several cognitive functions (8-13). These studies rely on networks derived from the "resting state" (14, 15). Recently, Tang et al. (16) showed the formation of distinct brain networks in the maintenance of three welldefined mental states that vary the focus of attention: resting, alert, and meditation states (16). Here we capitalize on this idea, deriving functional brain networks for each individual, varying the focus of attention toward internal states (interoception, focus on respiration), external stimulus (exteroception), or remaining in a resting state of free thought.Interoception (generically defined as the ability to detect subtle changes in bodily systems, including muscles, skin, joints, and viscera) (17), is closely related to metacognition of agency (18,19). We reasoned that this may more generally reflect a partially overlapping system regulating attention to internal states, including interoception (focus on body systems) and metacognitive ability (focus on internal thoughts and feelings). Hence, our working hypothesis is that increases in functional connectivity with the quality of subject...

Feeling, learning from and being aware of inner states: interoceptive dimensions in neurodegeneration and stroke

“…On the other hand, interoceptive awareness and metacognition are intimately related. Focus on internal visceral signals and constant monitoring and feedback updating of internal predictions are important for the construction of subjective feeling states, and their disruption could explain the patients' behavioural failures [11,70,71]. In this sense, previous reports show that BA10 (i) supports emotional processing of internal states [72], (ii) is related to information retrieval and prospective memory [72] and (iii) could contribute to anosognosia, a typical symptom of dementias [30].…”

Confidence as Bayesian Probability: From Neural Origins to Behavior

“…It has been proposed that the anterior prefrontal cortex (corresponding to the OFC, the fronto-polar cortex, and dorso-medial PFC) could be involved in this process (Barttfeld et al, 2013;Kepecs et al, 2008;Lak et al, 2014;Middlebrooks and Sommer, 2012;Yokoyama et al, 2010). De Martino and colleagues (De Martino et al, 2013) showed that in value-based decisions in humans, the ventromedial prefrontal cortex (vmPFC) conveys mixed information about value and confidence, hence providing an implicit code of confidence.…”

Post-decisional accounts of biases in confidence

“…Previous research showed that healthy adults differ in their metacognitive accuracy [40], in their tendency to be under or overconfident, and in the shape of their distribution of confidence ratings [41]. These features were linked to individual differences in brain structure [40], function [42], and personality trait [41]. For example, scoring high in optimism correlates with the tendency to be overconfident [41].…”