Lynn Margaret T, Muhle-Karbe Paul S, Brass Marcel
Department of Experimental Psychology, Ghent University, 9000 Ghent, Belgium.
Department of Experimental Psychology, Ghent University, 9000 Ghent, Belgium.
Neuropsychologia. 2014 Dec;65:247-54. doi: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2014.09.009. Epub 2014 Sep 16.
Intentional inhibition refers to the suppression of ongoing behavior on the basis of internally-generated decisions. This ability to cancel planned actions at the last moment is thought to be critical for self-control and has been related to activation in a circumscribed region of the dorsal frontomedian cortex (dFMC). Preliminary theories of intentional inhibition were based on studies that exclusively examined the cancellation of motor responses, and consequently concluded that this region serves the suppression of motor output. Yet recent evidence suggests that the dFMC is also involved in inhibitory control over more abstract internal states such as emotions or desires that have no immediate behavioral output. In this review, we therefore wish to put forth a new integrative perspective on the role of the dFMC in human self-control. We will argue that by virtue of its anatomical location and functional connections, this area may subserve the disengagement from current urges and impulses, thus facilitating successful exertions of self-control across a wide range of contexts by overcoming a self-focused perspective. We will discuss the fit of this view of the dFMC with the existing literature, identify critical experimental determinants for engaging the dFMC in intentional inhibition, and outline promising perspectives for future research.
有意抑制是指基于内部产生的决策对正在进行的行为进行抑制。这种在最后时刻取消计划行动的能力被认为对自我控制至关重要，并且与背侧额中回皮质（dFMC）的一个特定区域的激活有关。有意抑制的初步理论是基于专门研究运动反应取消的研究，因此得出结论，该区域负责抑制运动输出。然而，最近的证据表明，dFMC也参与对更抽象的内部状态（如没有即时行为输出的情绪或欲望）的抑制控制。因此，在本综述中，我们希望对dFMC在人类自我控制中的作用提出一种新的综合观点。我们将论证，凭借其解剖位置和功能连接，该区域可能有助于脱离当前的冲动和欲望，从而通过克服以自我为中心的视角，在广泛的情境中促进自我控制的成功实施。我们将讨论这种关于dFMC的观点与现有文献的契合度，确定在有意抑制中涉及dFMC的关键实验决定因素，并概述未来研究的有前景的方向。
