Trait self-control mediates the association between resting-state neural correlates and emotional well-being in late adolescence

Abstract

Trait self-control (TSC), defined as the capacity to alter predominant response to promote desirable long-term goals, has been found to facilitate emotional well-being (EWB). However, the neural correlates underlying this association remain unclear. The present study estimated resting-state brain activity and connectivity with amplitude of low-frequency fluctuations (ALFF) and functional connectivity (rsFC) among late adolescents. Whole-brain correlation analysis showed that higher TSC was associated with increased ALFF in regions within the executive control network (inferior frontal gyrus, IFG) and the salience network (anterior insula, AI) and decreased ALFF in regions (e.g., medial frontal gyrus, MFG; posterior cingulate, PC) within the default-mode network (DMN). TSC was also linked with the integration (e.g., increased IFG-PC connectivity) and segregation (e.g., decreased AI-MFG connectivity) among brain networks. Mediation analysis indicated that TSC totally mediated the links from the IFG and the precuneus, FC of the AI and regions of the DMN (e.g., bilateral PC, MFG), to EWB. Additionally, ALFF in the IFG and the MFG could predict negative affect in the pandemic through TSC. These findings suggest that TSC is involved in several regions and functional organizations within and between brain networks and mediated the association between neural correlates and emotional wellness in adolescence.

Trait self-control and disinhibited eating in COVID-19: The mediating role of perceived mortality threat and negative affect

“…Studies have also shown that individuals possessing high TSC can avoid intrusive and distracting thoughts that affects their pursuit of goals, focus on meaningful activities ( Bertrams, Baumeister, & Englert, 2016 ; Massar, Bělostíková, & Sui, 2020 ), and think rationally when problem-solving and decision-making ( Ballard et al, 2017 ; Peters & Desposito, 2016 ). On the other hand, people with high TSC tend to adopt effective emotion regulation ( Paschke et al, 2016 ) and experience less negative and more positive affects ( Hofmann, Luhmann, Fisher, Vohs, & Baumeister, 2014 ; Li, Xiang, Song, Huang, Chen, 2021 ; Wiese et al, 2017 ). Based on the existing empirical and theoretical evidence, possessing high TSC is associated with better psychological adjustment, which may alleviate disinhibited eating in the pandemic.…”

Abnormalities of Gray Matter Volume and Its Correlation with Clinical Symptoms in Adolescents with High-Functioning Autism Spectrum Disorder

“…Our results also suggest GMV abnormalities in several brain regions in ASD that may be connected with altered self-referential processing 88 , 89 and autobiographical memory 90 , 91 in the disease. The neural basis of self-referential processing has been explored in typically developing samples 92 and point to a network of cortical midline structures including MFG, anterior cingulate cortex, posterior cingulate cortex, middle cingulate cortex and precuneus, 89 , 92 , 93 and it’s worth noting that the MFG is regarded as an important hub of the network. 94 Koush et al 95 revealed that the SFG play a crucial role in the modulation of self-referential processing in the temporal parietal junction.…”

The inferior frontal gyrus spontaneous activity mediates the association of early life adversity with self‐control ability in late adolescents

“…It is believed that these slow neuronal oscillations reflect excitatory neuron activity, and that greater and more synchronized neural activity increases BOLD fluctuation amplitude (Ma et al, 2022;Magri et al, 2012). The ALFF measure has been reported to have satisfactory reliability and sensitivity throughout the brain (Zuo et al, 2010), and has also been widely applied to the detection of neural markers underlying the clinical patients (e.g., major depressive disorder, schizophrenia) (Liu et al, 2014;Lui et al, 2015) and neural correlates of personality characteristics in healthy people (Biswal et al, 2010;Li et al, 2021;Wang et al, 2020). Therefore, the present study was designed to investigate the resting-state brain activity indexed by amplitude of low-frequency fluctuations (ALFF) from the link of early life adversity to self-control ability.…”