Mind wandering enhances statistical learning
Summary: The human brain spends 30–50% of its waking hours engaged in mind-wandering (MW), a common phenomenon in which individuals either spontaneously or deliberately shift their attention away from external tasks to task-unrelated internal thoughts. Despite the significant amount of time dedicate...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Elsevier
2025-02-01
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| Series: | iScience |
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| Online Access: | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2589004224029304 |
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| author | Teodóra Vékony Bence C. Farkas Bianka Brezóczki Matthias Mittner Gábor Csifcsák Péter Simor Dezső Németh |
| author_facet | Teodóra Vékony Bence C. Farkas Bianka Brezóczki Matthias Mittner Gábor Csifcsák Péter Simor Dezső Németh |
| author_sort | Teodóra Vékony |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Summary: The human brain spends 30–50% of its waking hours engaged in mind-wandering (MW), a common phenomenon in which individuals either spontaneously or deliberately shift their attention away from external tasks to task-unrelated internal thoughts. Despite the significant amount of time dedicated to MW, its underlying reasons remain unexplained. Our pre-registered study investigates the potential adaptive aspects of MW, particularly its role in predictive processes measured by statistical learning. We simultaneously assessed visuomotor task performance as well as the capability to extract probabilistic information from the environment while assessing task focus (on-task vs. MW). We found that MW was associated with enhanced extraction of hidden, but predictable patterns. This finding suggests that MW may have functional relevance in human cognition by shaping behavior and predictive processes. Overall, our results highlight the importance of considering the adaptive aspects of MW, and its potential to enhance certain fundamental cognitive abilities. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-b78666cf4fe84c0b8caac841c054a9ea |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2589-0042 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-02-01 |
| publisher | Elsevier |
| record_format | Article |
| series | iScience |
| spelling | doaj-art-b78666cf4fe84c0b8caac841c054a9ea2025-01-22T05:43:06ZengElsevieriScience2589-00422025-02-01282111703Mind wandering enhances statistical learningTeodóra Vékony0Bence C. Farkas1Bianka Brezóczki2Matthias Mittner3Gábor Csifcsák4Péter Simor5Dezső Németh6Centre de Recherche en Neurosciences de Lyon CRNL U1028 UMR5292, INSERM, CRNS, Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1, 69500 Bron, France; Gran Canaria Cognitive Research Center, Department of Education and Psychology, University of Atlántico Medio, 35017 Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, SpainUVSQ, INSERM, CESP, Université Paris-Saclay, 94807 Villejuif, France; Institut du Psychotraumatisme de l’Enfant et de l’Adolescent, Conseil Départemental Yvelines et Hauts-de-Seine et Centre Hospitalier des Versailles, 78000 Versailles, France; Centre de Recherche en Épidémiologie et en Santé des Populations, INSERM U1018, Université Paris-Saclay, Université Versailles Saint-Quentin, 94807 Paris, FranceDoctoral School of Psychology, Eötvös Loránd University, 1064 Budapest, Hungary; Institute of Psychology, Eötvös Loránd University, 1064 Budapest, Hungary; Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience and Psychology, HUN-REN Research Centre for Natural Sciences, 1117 Budapest, HungaryDepartment of Psychology, UiT The Arctic University of Norway, 9037 Tromsø, NorwayDepartment of Psychology, UiT The Arctic University of Norway, 9037 Tromsø, NorwayInstitute of Psychology, Eötvös Loránd University, 1064 Budapest, Hungary; Institute of Behavioral Sciences, Semmelweis University, 1085 Budapest, Hungary; IMéRA Institute for Advanced Studies of Aix-Marseille University, 13004 Marseille, France; Corresponding authorCentre de Recherche en Neurosciences de Lyon CRNL U1028 UMR5292, INSERM, CRNS, Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1, 69500 Bron, France; Gran Canaria Cognitive Research Center, Department of Education and Psychology, University of Atlántico Medio, 35017 Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Spain; BML-NAP Research Group, Institute of Psychology, Eötvös Loránd University & Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience and Psychology, HUN-REN Research Centre for Natural Sciences, 1071 Budapest, Hungary; Corresponding authorSummary: The human brain spends 30–50% of its waking hours engaged in mind-wandering (MW), a common phenomenon in which individuals either spontaneously or deliberately shift their attention away from external tasks to task-unrelated internal thoughts. Despite the significant amount of time dedicated to MW, its underlying reasons remain unexplained. Our pre-registered study investigates the potential adaptive aspects of MW, particularly its role in predictive processes measured by statistical learning. We simultaneously assessed visuomotor task performance as well as the capability to extract probabilistic information from the environment while assessing task focus (on-task vs. MW). We found that MW was associated with enhanced extraction of hidden, but predictable patterns. This finding suggests that MW may have functional relevance in human cognition by shaping behavior and predictive processes. Overall, our results highlight the importance of considering the adaptive aspects of MW, and its potential to enhance certain fundamental cognitive abilities.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2589004224029304Psychology |
| spellingShingle | Teodóra Vékony Bence C. Farkas Bianka Brezóczki Matthias Mittner Gábor Csifcsák Péter Simor Dezső Németh Mind wandering enhances statistical learning iScience Psychology |
| title | Mind wandering enhances statistical learning |
| title_full | Mind wandering enhances statistical learning |
| title_fullStr | Mind wandering enhances statistical learning |
| title_full_unstemmed | Mind wandering enhances statistical learning |
| title_short | Mind wandering enhances statistical learning |
| title_sort | mind wandering enhances statistical learning |
| topic | Psychology |
| url | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2589004224029304 |
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