| 其他摘要 | Mental time travel (MTT) refers to the ability to mentally simulate to re-experience past events (autobiographical memory) or pre-experience possible future events (episodic future thinking). MTT plays a vital adaptive function in daily life, and there are the "self-advantage effect" and the "personal goal-advantage effect" in MTT. The former refers to the stronger phenomenological characteristics of self-related MTT events compared to other-related ones, while the latter refers to the stronger phenomenological characteristics of personal goal-related MTT events than non-personal goal-related ones. However, it remains uncertain whether these effects are affected in individuals with high level of schizotypal traits, and the neural mechanisms underlying MTT in these individuals have yet to be examined. Additionally, previous intervention methods on MTT did not take the "self-advantage effect" or the "personal goal-advantage effect" into consideration. Therefore, we conducted four studies to systematically investigate MTT in individuals with high level of schizotypal traits at both behavioral and neural levels and explore the effect of behavioral intervention for these individuals.
Study 1 examined the "self-advantage effect" and resting-state functional connectivity of MTT in individuals with high level of schizotypal traits. The results demonstrated that self-related MTT showed stronger phenomenological characteristics than other-related MTT in the control group, but not in the schizotypal group. Furthermore, compared with control group, the relationship between the "self-advantage effect" and the functional connectivity between the right medial temporal gyros and precuneus, between temporoparietal junction and the left postcentral gyros were altered in individuals with high level of schizotypal traits. These findings suggested that "self-advantage effect" was altered in the schizotypal group, and was closely related to abnormal functional connectivity of the core network.
Study 2 delved deeper into the "personal goal-advantage effect" of MTT and its neural mechanisms in individuals with high level of schizotypal traits. The results showed that the specificity of personal goal-related MTT events was diminished in individuals with high level of schizotypal traits, while the specificity of non-personal goal-related events was comparable to the control group. Moreover, we found an abnormal association between the "personal goal-advantage effect" and functional connectivity in the high level of schizotypal group. Compared with the control group, the relationship between the "personal goal-advantage effect" and the functional connectivity between the medial temporal gyros and right supramarginal gyros, between left hippocampus and left insula, between right medial frontal gyros and left frontal pole, between right precuneus and left postcentral gyros, between left hippocampus and right temporal fusiform gyrus, between right medial frontal gyrus and right supramarginal gyrus were altered in the schizotypal group. These findings suggested that the "personal goal-advantage effect" was altered in individuals with high level of schizotypal traits, and were closely related to the abnormal functional connectivity of the core network.
Study 3 examined the neural processing of MTT in individuals with high level of schizotypal traits using the MTT imaging paradigm. The results revealed that individuals with high level of schizotypal traits exhibited hypoactivation in bilateral anterior cingulate cortex and the right medial superior frontal gyrus during MTT, decreased activation in the left anterior cingulate gyrus during autobiographical memory, and decreased activation in the left middle frontal gyrus during episodic future thinking. Psychophysiological interaction analyses showed that individuals with high level of schizotypal traits exhibited functional connectivity between left anterior cingulate cortex and right thalamus, between medial frontal gyrus and left cerebellum during MTT, whereas the control group did not exhibit these functional connectivity. These findings suggest that decreased brain activations and altered functional connectivity pattern in individuals with high level of schizotypal traits.
In study 4, we developed an intervention protocal that using the best possible self-based episodic future thinking to enhance MTT in individuals with high level of schizotypal traits. The results showed that this intervention effectively enhanced the specificity, sense of experience, scene details, emotional valence, and vividness of MTT in individuals with high level of schizotypal traits. Additionally, the enhancement lasted for up to three months. Further analyses revealed that the enhancement in sense of experience was mainly found in approach goal-related MTT events. The results suggest that the intervention was effective in enhancing the mental time travel ability in individuals with high level of schizotypal traits.
In summary, these findings suggest that individuals with high level of schizotypal traits exhibit abnormality in MTT, and deficits in the "self-advantage effect" and "personal goal-advantage effect" were found in these individuals at both behavioral and neural levels. Furthermore, altered neural activation during MTT was identified in individuals with high level of schizotypal traits. Finally, the intervention effectively improved MTT in individuals with high level of schizotypal traits. These findings provide a theoretical and practical basis for understanding MTT in individuals with high level of schizotypal traits and guide the development of future interventions in schizophrenia spectrum disorders. |
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