Subscribe
The latest psychology and neuroscience discoveries.
My Account
  • Mental Health
  • Social Psychology
  • Cognitive Science
  • Psychopharmacology
No Result
View All Result
PsyPost
PsyPost
No Result
View All Result
Home Exclusive Cognitive Science

Brain imaging study shows defining traits are forged the moment we’re born

Functional brain connectivity networks with behavioral relevance are already present in young infants

by Suzanna Burgelman
June 14, 2021
in Cognitive Science

Enhance your understanding of the human mind and mental health trends by following PsyPost on MSN.
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

There are still many unsolved mysteries about the human brain and its development. Now, a novel study published in Frontiers in Psychiatry sheds new light on the neurobiological origins of our individual traits.

Functional connectivity is the coordinated activity – activation or deactivation – through time between separate brain regions, regardless of their physical closeness or the type of neural connections between them. Changes in functional connectivity can be a sign of mental health disorders such as depression, eating disorders, and schizophrenia, and are thought to have developmental origins.

We know that mental health is characterized by three functional brain networks. The first is hypoconnectivity within the frontoparietal network (FPN), which is involved in the cognitive control of emotion and attention. The second is hyperconnectivity within the default mode network (DMN), which is involved in social cognition and mind wandering. And finally, hypoconnectivity within the homologous-interhemispheric network (HIN), which is implicated in the regulation of emotions.

Researching infant brains

The researchers focused on two questions. First, to identify and map individual variability in the three defined functional brain networks (FPN, DMN, and HIN) in newborn and one-month-old infants. For this, the researchers used functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS), which utilizes a headcap to measure brain activity.

They then looked at how variability in functional connectivity can predict individual differences in infant temperament. Infant temperament refers to their innate personality, which is present from birth. The researchers focused on three important dimensions of infant temperament: regulation or orienting (measured by cuddliness, soothability, and low intensity pleasure), negative emotionality (fear, sadness, and distress to limitations), positive emotionality (laughing/smiling, activity level, and vocal reactivity). The researchers asked the parents to fill in a questionnaire about the temperament of their children.

The findings show, for the first time, that functional brain networks that impact our behavior develop within the first month of a person’s life. More specifically, the researchers could determine functional connectivity in the three studied cortical brain networks in young infants and found that these networks differed noticeably among each child.

A first-of-its-kind study

This means that the neural connections in our brains that determine human behavioral traits are already present from birth and are unique to each individual. “Our main findings show that soon after birth, greater connectivity between frontal and parietal brain regions is linked to improved behavioral regulation in human infants. To our knowledge, this is the first study, to demonstrate that connectivity for this specific brain network develops early in human infancy and plays a role in accounting for individual differences in emerging self-regulation and control skills among infants,” says co-author Dr Toby Grossmann, of the University of Virginia, and the Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences.

These findings call for further research to develop a deeper understanding of the role of functional brain connectivity in early human cognitive, emotional, and social development, and specifically, research into psychiatric disorders. “There is a whole host of psychiatric disorders that have been associated with differences in functional connectivity in the brain networks examined in young infants in our study. Previous research implicates more extreme individual differences in these networks studied here in a group of typically developing infants to adults suffering from major depression. But it remains an open question whether the demonstrated link between brain and behavior in early infancy is predictive of long-term developmental outcomes including psychiatric diseases. It is important to carry out large-scale longitudinal neurodevelopmental studies to address the question of whether the demonstrated brain-behavior correlation is of psychiatric relevance and clinical significance.”

ShareTweetSendScanShareSharePin35Send

Thanks for reading! Click here to support PsyPost by becoming a paid subscriber. In an age where information is abundant but quality knowledge is scarce, PsyPost ensures that you stay updated on the most recent and relevant discoveries made in psychology and neuroscience.

STAY CONNECTED

TRENDING

Female cat and dog owners tend to be slightly more involved with their families, potentially leading to better well-being, study finds

Autism and stress: A pivotal study highlights unique emotional challenges

Scientists raise the alarm about the growing trend of “soft” censorship of research

Income boosts self-esteem more than vice versa, new study reveals

New study on Prince Harry and Meghan Markle sheds light on public attitudes towards interracial relationships

Owners of sex dolls are less prone to sexual aggression, but also have lower sexual self-esteem

RECENT

New neuroscience research upends traditional theories of early language learning in babies

Liberal media outlets display a higher aversion to artificial intelligence than conservative media, study finds

Birth control pills and depression: Large study reveals new insights

Income boosts self-esteem more than vice versa, new study reveals

Autism and stress: A pivotal study highlights unique emotional challenges

Female cat and dog owners tend to be slightly more involved with their families, potentially leading to better well-being, study finds

Harmony in heartbeats: Berlin concert study reveals synchrony in classical music listeners

New octopus-inspired robot arm enhances human-machine interaction

  • Cognitive Science
  • COVID-19
  • Mental Health
  • Social Psychology
  • Drug Research
  • Conspiracy Theories
  • Meditation
  • Psychology of Religion
  • Aviation Psychology and Human Factors
  • Relationships and Sexual Health
  • Evolutionary Psychology
  • Neuroimaging
  • Psychedelic Drugs
  • Dark Triad
  • Political Psychology
  • Contact us
  • Disclaimer
  • Privacy policy
  • Terms and Conditions
Subscribe
  • My Account
  • Cognitive Science Research
  • Mental Health Research
  • Social Psychology Research
  • Drug Research
  • Relationship Research
  • About PsyPost
  • Contact
  • Privacy Policy

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In

Add New Playlist

Manage your privacy
To provide the best experiences, we use technologies like cookies to store and/or access device information. Consenting to these technologies will allow us to process data such as browsing behavior or unique IDs on this site. Not consenting or withdrawing consent, may adversely affect certain features and functions.
Functional Always active
The technical storage or access is strictly necessary for the legitimate purpose of enabling the use of a specific service explicitly requested by the subscriber or user, or for the sole purpose of carrying out the transmission of a communication over an electronic communications network.
Preferences
The technical storage or access is necessary for the legitimate purpose of storing preferences that are not requested by the subscriber or user.
Statistics
The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for statistical purposes. The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for anonymous statistical purposes. Without a subpoena, voluntary compliance on the part of your Internet Service Provider, or additional records from a third party, information stored or retrieved for this purpose alone cannot usually be used to identify you.
Marketing
The technical storage or access is required to create user profiles to send advertising, or to track the user on a website or across several websites for similar marketing purposes.
Statistics

Marketing

Features
Always active

Always active
Manage options Manage services Manage {vendor_count} vendors Read more about these purposes
Manage options
{title} {title} {title}
Manage your privacy

To provide the best experiences, we and our partners use technologies like cookies to store and/or access device information. Consenting to these technologies will allow us and our partners to process personal data such as browsing behavior or unique IDs on this site and show (non-) personalized ads. Not consenting or withdrawing consent, may adversely affect certain features and functions.

Click below to consent to the above or make granular choices. Your choices will be applied to this site only. You can change your settings at any time, including withdrawing your consent, by using the toggles on the Cookie Policy, or by clicking on the manage consent button at the bottom of the screen.

Functional Always active
The technical storage or access is strictly necessary for the legitimate purpose of enabling the use of a specific service explicitly requested by the subscriber or user, or for the sole purpose of carrying out the transmission of a communication over an electronic communications network.
Preferences
The technical storage or access is necessary for the legitimate purpose of storing preferences that are not requested by the subscriber or user.
Statistics
The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for statistical purposes. The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for anonymous statistical purposes. Without a subpoena, voluntary compliance on the part of your Internet Service Provider, or additional records from a third party, information stored or retrieved for this purpose alone cannot usually be used to identify you.
Marketing
The technical storage or access is required to create user profiles to send advertising, or to track the user on a website or across several websites for similar marketing purposes.
Statistics

Marketing

Features
Always active

Always active
Manage options Manage services Manage {vendor_count} vendors Read more about these purposes
Manage options
{title} {title} {title}