Ward Jamie, Filiz Gözde
School of Psychology, University of Sussex, Brighton, UK.
School of Psychology, University of Sussex, Brighton, UK.
Cortex. 2020 May;126:134-140. doi: 10.1016/j.cortex.2020.01.002. Epub 2020 Jan 22.
This study argues that there exists, in the general population, a distinctive profile of cognitive traits that predisposes people to develop synaesthesia (termed a 'synaesthetic disposition'). This consists of more vivid mental imagery, better episodic memory, and greater attention-to-detail (amongst others things). Using a machine-learning classifier, we show that it is possible to distinguish synaesthetes from others using only standard cognitive and personality measures. Importantly, people with multiple forms of synaesthesia have a more distinctive profile (i.e., they can be more accurately classified). This suggests that whilst the presence/absence of synaesthesia is dichotomous, the underlying causal mechanisms are continuous. Moreover, we provide evidence that the cognitive profile constitutes a heritable endophenotype. Non-synaesthetic relatives of synaesthetes are cognitively similar to synaesthetes. This provides new insights into why synaesthesia might have evolved (i.e., it is possible to have the cognitive benefits of synaesthesia in the absence of the anomalous experiences). The notion of a synaesthetic disposition represents a novel, quantifiable individual difference in cognition/personality. This paves the way for determining if this is linked to a distinctive pattern of clinical vulnerabilities.
本研究认为，在普通人群中存在一种独特的认知特征组合，使人们易于发展为联觉（称为“联觉倾向”）。这包括更生动的心理意象、更好的情景记忆以及更强的细节关注度（等等）。使用机器学习分类器，我们表明仅通过标准的认知和人格测量就有可能将联觉者与其他人区分开来。重要的是，具有多种联觉形式的人有更独特的特征组合（即，他们可以被更准确地分类）。这表明虽然联觉的存在与否是二分的，但其潜在的因果机制是连续的。此外，我们提供证据表明这种认知特征组合构成一种可遗传的内表型。联觉者的非联觉亲属在认知上与联觉者相似。这为联觉可能进化的原因提供了新的见解（即，在没有异常体验的情况下也有可能拥有联觉的认知益处）。联觉倾向的概念代表了认知/人格方面一种新的、可量化的个体差异。这为确定这是否与独特的临床易感性模式相关铺平了道路。
