PLoS ONE (Jan 2015)

Regional gray matter density associated with cognitive reflectivity-impulsivity: evidence from voxel-based morphometry.

  • Ryoichi Yokoyama,
  • Takayuki Nozawa,
  • Hikaru Takeuchi,
  • Yasuyuki Taki,
  • Atsushi Sekiguchi,
  • Rui Nouchi,
  • Yuka Kotozaki,
  • Seishu Nakagawa,
  • Carlos Makoto Miyauchi,
  • Kunio Iizuka,
  • Takamitsu Shinada,
  • Yuki Yamamoto,
  • Sugiko Hanawa,
  • Tsuyoshi Araki,
  • Hiroshi Hashizume,
  • Keiko Kunitoki,
  • Mayu Hanihara,
  • Yuko Sassa,
  • Ryuta Kawashima

DOI
https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0122666
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 10, no. 3
p. e0122666

Abstract

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When faced with a problem or choice, humans can use two different strategies: "cognitive reflectivity," which involves slow responses and fewer mistakes, or "cognitive impulsivity," which comprises of quick responses and more mistakes. Different individuals use these two strategies differently. To our knowledge, no study has directly investigated the brain regions involved in reflectivity-impulsivity; therefore, this study focused on associations between these cognitive strategies and the gray matter structure of several brain regions. In order to accomplish this, we enrolled 776 healthy, right-handed individuals (432 men and 344 women; 20.7 ± 1.8 years) and used voxel-based morphometry with administration of a cognitive reflectivity-impulsivity questionnaire. We found that high cognitive reflectivity was associated with greater regional gray matter density in the ventral medial prefrontal cortex. Our finding suggests that this area plays an important role in defining an individual's trait associated with reflectivity and impulsivity.