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Phasic and repetitive self-touch differ in hemodynamic response in the prefrontal cortex-An fNIRS study.
- Source :
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Frontiers in neuroergonomics [Front Neurogenom] 2023 Nov 29; Vol. 4, pp. 1266439. Date of Electronic Publication: 2023 Nov 29 (Print Publication: 2023). - Publication Year :
- 2023
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Abstract
- Introduction: Each individual touches the own body several 100 times a day. While some researchers propose a self-regulatory function of self-touch, others report that self-touching increases nervousness. This controversy appears to be caused by the fact that researchers did not define the kind of self-touch they examined and actually, referred to different types of self-touch. Thus, kinematically defining different types of self-touch, such as phasic (discrete), repetitive , and irregular , and exploring the neural correlates of the different types will provide insight into the neuropsychological function of self-touching behavior.<br />Methods: To this aim, we assessed hemodynamic responses in prefrontal brain areas using functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) and behavioral responses with NEUROGES®. Fifty-two participants were recorded during three specific kinematically types of self-touch ( phasic, irregular, repetitive ) that were to be performed on command. The recently developed toolbox Satori was used for the visualization of neuronal processes.<br />Results: Behaviorally, the participants did not perform irregular self-touch reliably. Neurally, the comparison of phasic, irregular and repetitive self-touch revealed different activation patterns. Repetitive self-touch is associated with stronger hemodynamic responses in the left Orbitofrontal Cortex and the Dorsolateral Prefrontal Cortex than phasic self-touch.<br />Discussion: These brain areas have been reported to be associated with self-regulatory processes. Furthermore, irregular self-touch appears to be primarily generated by implicit neural control. Thus, by distinguishing kinematically different types of self-touch, our findings shed light on the controverse discussion on the neuropsychological function of self-touch.<br />Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.<br /> (Copyright © 2023 von Au, Helmich, Kieffer and Lausberg.)
Details
- Language :
- English
- ISSN :
- 2673-6195
- Volume :
- 4
- Database :
- MEDLINE
- Journal :
- Frontiers in neuroergonomics
- Publication Type :
- Academic Journal
- Accession number :
- 38234502
- Full Text :
- https://doi.org/10.3389/fnrgo.2023.1266439