Paradoxical Reasoning: An fMRI Study

Antigoni Belekou; Antigoni Belekou; Charalabos Papageorgiou; Efstratios Karavasilis; Eleftheria Tsaltas; Nikolaos Kelekis; Christoph Klein; Christoph Klein; Christoph Klein; Nikolaos Smyrnis; Nikolaos Smyrnis

doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2022.850491

Frontiers in Psychology (May 2022)

Paradoxical Reasoning: An fMRI Study

Antigoni Belekou,
Antigoni Belekou,
Charalabos Papageorgiou,
Efstratios Karavasilis,
Eleftheria Tsaltas,
Nikolaos Kelekis,
Christoph Klein,
Christoph Klein,
Christoph Klein,
Nikolaos Smyrnis,
Nikolaos Smyrnis

Affiliations

Antigoni Belekou: Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Sensorimotor Control, University Mental Health, Neurosciences and Precision Medicine Research Institute “COSTAS STEFANIS”, Athens, Greece
Antigoni Belekou: First Department of Psychiatry, Eginition Hospital, Medical School, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Athens, Greece
Charalabos Papageorgiou: First Department of Psychiatry, Eginition Hospital, Medical School, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Athens, Greece
Efstratios Karavasilis: Second Department of Radiology, General University Hospital “ATTIKON”, Medical School, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Athens, Greece
Eleftheria Tsaltas: First Department of Psychiatry, Eginition Hospital, Medical School, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Athens, Greece
Nikolaos Kelekis: Second Department of Radiology, General University Hospital “ATTIKON”, Medical School, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Athens, Greece
Christoph Klein: Second Department of Psychiatry, General University Hospital “ATTIKON”, Medical School, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Athens, Greece
Christoph Klein: Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Medical Faculty, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
Christoph Klein: Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Medical Faculty, University of Cologne, Cologne, Germany
Nikolaos Smyrnis: Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Sensorimotor Control, University Mental Health, Neurosciences and Precision Medicine Research Institute “COSTAS STEFANIS”, Athens, Greece
Nikolaos Smyrnis: Second Department of Psychiatry, General University Hospital “ATTIKON”, Medical School, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Athens, Greece

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.850491
Journal volume & issue: Vol. 13

Abstract

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Paradoxes are a special form of reasoning leading to absurd inferences in contrast to logical reasoning that is used to reach valid conclusions. A functional MRI (fMRI) study was conducted to investigate the neural substrates of paradoxical and deductive reasoning. Twenty-four healthy participants were scanned using fMRI, while they engaged in reasoning tasks based on arguments, which were either Zeno’s like paradoxes (paradoxical reasoning) or Aristotelian arguments (deductive reasoning). Clusters of significant activation for paradoxical reasoning were located in bilateral inferior frontal and middle temporal gyrus. Clusters of significant activation for deductive reasoning were located in bilateral superior and inferior parietal lobe, precuneus, and inferior frontal gyrus. These results confirmed that different brain activation patterns are engaged for paradoxical vs. deductive reasoning providing a basis for future studies on human physiological as well as pathological reasoning.

Published in Frontiers in Psychology

ISSN: 1664-1078 (Online)
Publisher: Frontiers Media S.A.
Country of publisher: Switzerland
LCC subjects: Philosophy. Psychology. Religion: Psychology
Website: https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/psychology

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