The Neural Correlates Of Insight In Chinese Puzzles: An Event Related-potential Study

Insight is senior and complex cognitive processes completed with multiple cognitive component together, and played a very important role of important inventions and discoveries of human. However, the brain mechanism of insight process is still unclear. Most previous experiments on insight are to help subjects insight through showed solutions,which often criticized may be a comprehend, but not true insight. Meanwhile, other studies about insight need to learn the similar prototye to induce insight. To these questions our research with the puzzles as the experimental tasks employed ERP technology to explore further insight in problem solving in response to neural mechanisms.Experiment 1 is to explorer insight in natural situation without any indications or prototype learning. We use event-related potentials (ERP) technology and the puzzles as experimental materials to investigate the brain processes dynamic changes when solved the puzzles. Results showed that "insight" reaction elicited a more negative ERP deflection (N900-1500) than "no insight" reaction in the time window from 900-1500ms. Dipole source analysis localized the generators of the difference wave between 900 and 1500ms in the left parahippocampal gyrus and right Claustrum. We speculated that the LNC might be related to conflict detection and sense of novel stimulus; subsequently, "insight" reaction did a more negative ERP deflection than "no-insight" reaction between 2700 and 3200ms. Dipole source analysis localized the generators of the difference wave between 2700 and 3200ms in the bilateral Cingulate Gyrus, we guessed it might to be concerned with breaking the mind set, forming novel connection, and having excitedly emotional state.In the innate stage to resolve the problem, the phenomenon of functional fixation hindered the search the right solutions in problem space. To change the subjects to solve a problem, they thought things confined to a certain domain.We did experiment 2 to test what has changed functional turn to induce insight. We collected the concepts participants thought first and the concepts participants thought when the problem to be solved soon after participants saw the puzzles, to explore whether these concepts can affect functional turn. In experiment 2, we still use puzzles as experimental tasks, and showed the subjects the two concepts we collected in pre-experiment. Behavioral results showed, the average response time of insight under the influence of the concepts participants thought when the problem to be solved soon was significantly longer than the average response time of insight under the influence of the concepts participants thought first. So, we thought the concepts participants thought when the problem to be solved soon played a role of transfer of fixation, and the concepts participants thought first have the fixation function.ERP results showed, insight under the concepts participants thought when the problem to be solved soon, elicited a more negative ERP deflection (N350-650) than insight under the concepts participants thought first. The dipole analysis localized the N350-650 generator to left Posterior Cingulate Gyrus. We argued that might applied less cognitive resources left more concentrations in the information process of relevant target, and to achieve a "trend of processing"; Subsequently, the former insight did a more negative ERP deflection than latter insight between 850and 950ms, the dipole analysis localized show that generator to in the left Cingulate Gyrus and right Precuneus. The result showed that might to be involved with greater integration of information processing.