The effects of positive or negative self-talk on the alteration of brain functional connectivity by performing cognitive tasks

• Published in: Scientific reports Vol. 11; no. 1; p. 14873
• Main Authors: Kim, Junhyung, Kwon, Joon Hee, Kim, Joohan, Kim, Eun Joo, Kim, Hesun Erin, Kyeong, Sunghyon, Kim, Jae-Jin
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: London Nature Publishing Group UK 21.07.2021; Nature Publishing Group; Nature Portfolio
• Subjects: 631/378; 631/477; Adult; Attention; Brain - diagnostic imaging; Brain - physiology; Brain mapping; Cognition; Cognitive ability; Executive Function; Female; Functional magnetic resonance imaging; Humanities and Social Sciences; Humans; Magnetic Resonance Imaging; Male; Motivation; multidisciplinary; Neural networks; Neuroimaging; Neuropsychological Tests; Nucleus accumbens; Reinforcement; Reward; Science; Science (multidisciplinary); Self Concept; Self esteem; Self-Assessment; Task Performance and Analysis; Young Adult
• ISSN: 2045-2322; 2045-2322
• DOI: 10.1038/s41598-021-94328-9

Self-talk can improve cognitive performance, but the underlying mechanism of such improvement has not been investigated. This study aimed to elucidate the effects of self-talks on functional connectivity associated with cognitive performance. We used the short form of Progressive Matrices Test (sRPM) to measure differences in performance improvements between self-respect and self-criticism. Participants were scanned using functional magnetic resonance imaging in the following order: baseline, during-sRPM1, post-sRPM1, self-respect or self-criticism, during-sRPM2, and post-sRPM2. Analysis was conducted to identify the self-talks' modulatory effects on the reward-motivation, default mode, and central-executive networks. Increase in sRPM2 score compared to sRPM1 score was observed only after self-criticism. The self-talk-by-repetition interaction effect was not found for during-sRPM, but found for post-sRPM; decreased nucleus accumbens-based connectivity was shown after self-criticism compared with self-respect. However, the significant correlations between the connectivity change and performance change appeared only in the self-respect group. Our findings showed that positive self-talk and negative self-talk differently modulate brain states concerning cognitive performance. Self-respect may have both positive and negative effects due to enhanced executive functions and inaccurate confidence, respectively, whereas self-criticism may positively affect cognitive performance by inducing a less confident state that increases internal motivation and attention.