East-West differences and implications for

cognitive neuroscience

Stan Gielen

Radboud University Nijmegen, The Netherlands

Singapore, September 16 2015

Cognition - Cultural patterns of cognition - Good lifeEvil and Happiness in past and modern thought

Human nature wants to “understand” and “explain” events in the world

• Bad and good demons/gods

• Monotheism: there is a good, allmighty god. An allmighty god who allows

crimes is a criminal himself devil

• Why does shit happen ?

Leibniz (1646-1716): the universe is the best possible God could create !

• The Lisbon earthquake in 1755 Kant, Voltaire, Rousseau, Goethe

• If God is dead (Spinoza, Nietzsche), human subjects have to act properly

The distinction between natural evils (e.g. the Lisbon earthquake, disease)

and moral evils (e.g. 9/11, Auschwitz) is relatively recent.

What is happiness ?

• For the Greek: a gift, depending on the whims of the Gods

• For the Romans: prosperity and divine favor

• For Christians: the promise of an end to all suffering in the eternal bliss

at the end of the world to come and entrance to Heaven

• Enlightment: happy in this life !

• Thomas Jefferson’s Declaration of Independence

• Rights of Man in the French revolution

• In 19-th and 20-th century: pursuit of happiness (“the American

dream”)

What to do to make people feel happy ?

• Adequate basic (living) conditions

• Stable and reliable (living) conditions

• Trust, confidence

• Respect diversity and use it

• People believe that they are in control

How do people act to be in control ?

How do they make decisions ?

How do people respond to unexpected events and

uncertainty in the external world ?

Planning/Anticipation/Decision making

• Behavioral aspects of planning and decision making

• Neuronal mechanisms involved in top-down control

• Effect of attention on neuronal processing and brain

connectivity

• Shaping your brain and making you happy ?

Anatomical connectivity

Functional connectivity

Functional connectivity

Neuronal plasticity and communication

Brain Function

• Hearing, Vision

• Playing soccer

• Memory

• Intelligence

• personality

• Cultural pattern

nature-nurture

Neuronal mechanisms involved in top-down control

Overt and covert attention

P4P3O2O1FzCzPz

1 s

70 V

Brain rhythmsEyes closed

Alpha-rhythm (about 10 Hz)

Oscillatory gamma activity in the brain related to attention to visual stimuli

Attention to tactile stimuli

M.Bauer, J. Neurosci. 2006

Role of alpha-rhythms in selective attention

Optimal task

performance

requires alpha

activity in brain

areas not involved

in a task.

When visual stimuli are presented simultaneously in the left and right

hemifields and subjects attend to the left hemifield, posterior alpha

activity decreases in the contralateral right hemisphere. At the same

time, alpha activity remains strong in the left hemisphere.

Jensen et al., TINS 2012

Human Brain Mapping 30:1791-1800 (2009)

Larger alpha-activity just before

stimulus: more false alarms !

Human Brain Mapping 30:1791-1800 (2009)

Larger alpha-activity: more false alarms !

Alpha activity reduces

neuronal sensitivity

We can predict false alarms !

alpha (10 Hz)

Theta (4-6 Hz)

OOHPS !

Theta activity from frontal cortex is anti-correlated

with alpha posterior

Event-related potential (ERP)

Errors were followed by increase in θ-activity in

frontal cortex, followed by a decrease in occipital α

and sensorimotor β activity.

Human Brain Mapping 30:1791-1800 (2009)

alpha (10 Hz)

Theta (4-6 Hz)

Strategies for planning and anticipation

Planning and control

How to control an unknown system?

Time delays should be incorporated for tracking a moving

target !

Δt1

Δt2

Eye and hand tracking in 3D

Eye and hand in 3D

tracking tracing

Eye-Hand Tracing

azimuth elevation

1

12

2

3

34

4

1

2

3

4

Tracking/tracing in version/vergence directions

Eye-hand coordination for tracking/tracing in 3D

Hypotheses:

• Gaze leads finger position by a constant time ΔT- If the frequency of saccades is constant, we should see more fixations at high

path curvatures (where arm velocity is small)

1

2

3

4

Gaze leads hand position ?

Gaze position – hand position = hand velocity * lead time

slope

Gaze leads hand position both in time and

distance

0.02 0.04 0.06 0.08 0.1 0.12 0.14 0.16 0.180

0.02

0.04

0.06

0.08

0.1

0.12

0.14

Finger velocity at saccade endpoint in m/s

Dis

tance b

etw

een g

aze a

nd f

inger

in m

SG 2009-02-12 Cassini - oblique - slow r = 0.421, p = 5.03e-006

y = 0.29*x + 0.02

data 1

linear

0.0 0.1

Finger velocity (m/s) at saccade offset

0.0

0.1

Y=0.29x+0.02

Gaze position – hand position = hand velocity * lead time

Dis

tan

ce

be

twe

en

ga

ze

an

d fin

ge

r (m

)

• Gaze lead hand position by constant time to “explore” future trajectory and to guide the hand

• And by a constant distance, to control position of the hand on target !

Planning and uncertainty

Introduction

When do you make a boat reservation if you want to take your

girl friend out for sailing ?

time

26

24

22

20

80

76

72

68

F Co

sunday monday tuesday wednesday

And when if the weather is highly variable and unpredictable ?

26

24

22

20

80

76

72

68

time

26

24

22

20

80

76

72

68

F Co

sunday monday tuesday wednesday

Human subjects are extremely good in optimizing predictive

behavior

)()(

)(

ttudt

dy

vttx

Cursor position (x(t),y(t))

y

x

T1

T2

with22 )( t

Instruction to the subject:

make sure that the cursor hits one of the two targets T1 or T2

Theoretical predictions for stochastic optimal control

Small noise Large noise

))()(

(tanh1

),(2

tyT

ty

Ttyu

NB: for deterministic optimal control T

tyytyu

)())((

*

Tramper, Gielen et al., PLoS One, 2012

Movement trajectories

Small noise Large noise

Time to go (s)

Cognition and East-West cultural differences

Mindfullness meditation

• key element of several Buddhist meditations including Vipassana and

Zen meditation

• paying attention to the present moment characterized by a receptive and

non-judgemental attitude (Kabat-Zinn, 1994)

• meditation includes

• focus attention

• observe the world “as is”

• self observation

• negative feelings : accept pain, fear, greed, anger, hate

• positive feelings : perceive wisdom, love, compassion, joy,

equinimity

Mindfullness meditation

•mindfulness training is reported to have

- reduced blood pressure

- decreased anxiety,

- depressive symptoms and relapses

- benefits for patients suffering from various types of chronic pain

- dealing with stress problems (Chiesa & Serretti, 2009)

- cognitive functions, including attention and memory

Focused attention meditations involves the development

- sustained attention to a target object,

- monitoring faculty (so as to detect mind wandering),

- the ability to disengage from a distracting object without further involvement (attention switching),

- the ability to redirect focus promptly to the chosen object (selective attention)

Overt and covert attention

Attention:• alerting (sustained attention or

vigilance),

• orienting (selective attention or

concentration)

• executive attention (divided attention

or conflict monitoring)

Greater efficiency in attentional processing

related to mindfulness meditation

attention consists of three functionally distinct neural

networks:

• alerting (sustained attention or vigilance),

• orienting (selective attention or concentration)

• executive attention (divided attention or conflict

monitoring)

Greater efficiency in attentional processing

related to mindfulness meditation

van den Hurk, Gielen et al.Quart. J. Exp. Psychol., 2009

Explanation:•Effect of attentional

training

•concentrative attention

should be mastered

before receptive

attention is cultivated

Results

• higher levels of selective attention in long-term meditators as compared with

controls

• meditators disengaged more quickly from incorrectly cued visual information

and more flexibly re-directed attention to new information

Impact of mindfulness-based stress reduction

training on intrinsic brain connectivity

Kilpatrick et al., NeuroImage 2011

Asking whether function is determined by brain

activity/connectivity or the other way around is a silly question!

Brain Function

• Hearing, Vision

• Playing soccer

• Memory

• Intelligence

• personality

• Cultural pattern

nature-nurture

Summary

1. The brain selects inputs and sensory processing and thereby

shapes itself

2. Training/practice shapes brain activity brain connectivity

3. Human subjects are able to control sensory perception and the

perception of pain, stress (and happiness ?)

4. Brain research requires a holistic approach to the brain and it’s

activity:

• Activity in one part of the brain does not tell you anything !

• “More is different”

• Complexity is an issue !

• Understanding the brain requires reductionism and holism

5. Presumably different cultural backgrounds lead to different brains,

different cognitive behavior, and different personalities .

Thank you for your attention

Universal Declaration of Human Rights

Article 1. All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights.

Article 3. Everyone has the right to life, liberty and security of person.

Article 4. No one shall be held in slavery or servitude; slavery and the slave trade shall be

prohibited in all their forms.

Article 7. All are equal before the law …..

Article 10. Everyone is entitled in full equality to a fair and public hearing by an independent and

impartial tribunal, in the determination of his rights and obligations and of any criminal charge

against him.

Article 13. Everyone has the right to freedom of movement …..

Article 17. Everyone has the right to own property …..

Article 18. Everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion;

Article 19. Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression;

Article 23. Everyone has the right to work, ……..

Article 25. Everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being

of himself and of his family, ……

Article 26. Everyone has the right to education …..

Article 27. Everyone has the right freely to participate in the cultural life of the community, to

enjoy the arts and to share in scientific advancement and its benefits.

Hercules at the cross roadsHercules deciding between Virtue and Pleasure

Albrecht Dürer, 1498

engraving

Typical generally accepted differences between

East and West

East West

Honour/shame guilt/penitence/responsibility

group/family Individual and personal

development

respect for elderly and

traditional way of living

dynamic change, taking risks,

aiming for improvement,

“disruptive” concepts

holistic approach Reductionism/ abstract

concepts