|
1
|
Liu S, Li R, Wegner L, Huang C, Haucke MN, Schad DJ, Zhao M, Heinzel S. High-mind wandering correlates with high risk for problematic alcohol use in China and Germany. Eur Arch Psychiatry Clin Neurosci 2024; 274:335-341. [PMID: 36745201 PMCID: PMC9901389 DOI: 10.1007/s00406-023-01555-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/26/2022] [Accepted: 01/09/2023] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
Everyone experiences the natural ebb and flow of task-unrelated thoughts. Given how common the fluctuations in these thoughts are, surprisingly, we know very little about how they shape individuals' responses to alcohol use. Here, we investigated if mind wandering is associated with a risk of developing problematic alcohol use. We undertook an online survey among the general population in China (N = 1123) and Germany (N = 1018) from December 2021 to February 2022 and examined the subjective experience of mind wandering and problematic alcohol use through the Mind Wandering Questionnaire (MWQ) and the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT). We compared mind wandering and problematic alcohol use between two countries and investigated the association between MWQ scores with AUDIT scores. We found higher scores on the MWQ and a high percentage of problematic alcohol use (i.e., AUDIT score ≥ 8) in Germany (22.5%) as compared to in China (14.5%). Higher self-reported mind wandering was associated with higher AUDIT scores. AUDIT scores were increased mostly in male, elder, and high-mind wandering people. Our findings highlight that mind wandering and problematic alcohol use enhanced in Germany as compared to in China. Our study sheds light on the relationship between mind wandering and problematic alcohol use that may help to further investigate causal effects of interventions.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Shuyan Liu
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin (Campus Charité Mitte), Berlin, Germany
| | - Ruihua Li
- Shanghai Mental Health Center, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, 600 South Wan Ping Road, Shanghai, 200030, China
| | - Luisa Wegner
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin (Campus Charité Mitte), Berlin, Germany
- Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, Department of Education and Psychology, Freie Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Chuanning Huang
- Shanghai Mental Health Center, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, 600 South Wan Ping Road, Shanghai, 200030, China
| | - Matthias N Haucke
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin (Campus Charité Mitte), Berlin, Germany
- Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, Department of Education and Psychology, Freie Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Daniel J Schad
- Psychology Department, Health and Medical University, Potsdam, Germany
| | - Min Zhao
- Shanghai Mental Health Center, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, 600 South Wan Ping Road, Shanghai, 200030, China.
- Shanghai Key Laboratory of Psychotic Disorders, Shanghai, China.
- CAS Center for Excellence in Brain Science and Intelligence Technology (CEBSIT), Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China.
| | - Stephan Heinzel
- Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, Department of Education and Psychology, Freie Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| |
Collapse
|
|
2
|
Patterns of on-task thought in older age are associated with changes in functional connectivity between temporal and prefrontal regions. Brain Cogn 2019; 132:118-128. [PMID: 30999087 DOI: 10.1016/j.bandc.2019.04.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/05/2018] [Revised: 04/01/2019] [Accepted: 04/02/2019] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
Humans spend a large proportion of their time engaged in thoughts unrelated to the task being performed, a tendency that declines with age. However, a clear neuro-cognitive account of what underlies this decrease is lacking. This study addresses the possibility that age-related changes in off-task thinking are correlated with changes in the intrinsic organisation of the brain. Laboratory measures of ongoing thought were recorded in young and older individuals, who also participated in a resting state fMRI experiment. Older individuals showed reduced connectivity between the left anterior temporal lobe with prefrontal aspects of the DMN. We found that off-task thinking did not increase when task demands were lower for older adults, which is a pattern repeatedly seen in younger individuals. Finally, we demonstrated that these neural and thought patterns were linked - for younger participants only, reductions in the strength of connectivity were related to a greater shift towards off-task thoughts when task demands decreased. Importantly, in the older individuals, lower connectivity between the same regions was linked to preserved performance on a creativity task. These data suggest that the age-related reduction of off-task thought may be related to reduced communication between temporal and prefrontal DMN regions in ageing.
Collapse
|