Increasing breadth of semantic associations with left frontopolar direct current brain stimulation

Abstract

The aim of this study was to evaluate the influence of left frontopolar versus auditory (control) cortex transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) on the breadth of semantic associations produced in a cued free association task. A within-participants design administered anodal tDCS over the left frontopolar or auditory cortex, centered at electrode site AFZ or T7 using a 4×1 targeted stimulation montage. During stimulation, participants produced free associates in response to cues designed to promote narrow, moderate, or broad semantic associations. We measured the latent semantic associative strength of generated words relative to cues. The cue manipulation produced expected effects on the associative breadth of generated words, but there was no main effect of stimulation site, and calculated Bayes factors showed strong support for the null hypothesis. However, individual differences in creative potential, as assessed by the remote associates test, reliably and positively predicted increases in associative breadth under the frontopolar versus the auditory control condition, but only in response to narrow cues. In conclusion, the present data support neuroimaging studies demonstrating the involvement of left frontopolar cortical regions in generating relatively broad semantic associations. They also provide novel evidence that individual differences in creative potential may modulate the influence of brain stimulation on the breadth of generated semantic associations.

Using Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation to Enhance Creative Cognition: Interactions between Task, Polarity, and Stimulation Site

“…With this greater focus on idea selection, potentiating left frontopolar cortex produced greater enhancements compared to the uncued—and less selective—conditions. Our study showed that, without a cue to think creatively, anodal tDCS to left frontopolar cortex was not associated with enhanced performance on the otherwise non-selective verb generation task (see also Brunye et al, 2015). Thus, only after emphasizing selectivity explicitly did potentiating left frontopolar cortex boost performance, suggesting support for the region’s contributions to creative idea selection.…”

Direct current stimulation of the left temporoparietal junction modulates dynamic humor appreciation

“…Although the latter is speculative, future research may find value in examining whether neuromodulation of the left TPJ indeed carries implications for mental processes critical to real-world social functioning. The present findings also converge with a growing body of literature suggesting that individual differences may play an important moderating role in tDCS influences on cognitive function [22,24,25]. Indeed, tDCS may influence real-world cognitive processes in unexpected ways for individuals with varied knowledge, skills, and propensities.…”

“…During tDCS sessions, as in our previous work [17,21,22], we asked participants to report perceived cutaneous sensation on a scale from 0 (Cold) to 9 (Hurts a Lot); ratings were requested immediately before tDCS onset, after reaching target intensity, after 10 min, and at the end of the session (after tDCS cessation). Ratings were collected to ensure similar perceived sensation across conditions and ensure participant comfort in accordance with human use approvals.…”

General and specialized brain correlates for analogical reasoning: A meta‐analysis of functional imaging studies

“…]. Rostromedial frontal clusters have been suggested to be part of the semantic memory network [Buckner et al, ] and might play a role in relational integration across semantic distance, as has been proposed by Green et al [] and Brunyé et al [].…”