Ward Jamie
School of Psychology, University of Sussex, Brighton, UK.
Cogn Neuropsychol. 2021 May-Jun;38(4):259-278. doi: 10.1080/02643294.2021.1950133. Epub 2021 Jul 16.
The aim of this article is to reposition synaesthesia as model system for understanding variation in the construction of the human mind and brain. People with synaesthesia inhabit a remarkable mental world in which numbers can be coloured, words can have tastes, and music is a visual spectacle. Key questions remain unanswered about why it exists, and how the study of synaesthesia might inform theories of the human mind. This article argues we need to rethink synaesthesia as not just representing exceptional experiences, but as a product of an unusual neurodevelopmental cascade from genes to brain to cognition of which synaesthesia is only one outcome. Specifically, differences in the brains of synaesthetes support a distinctive way of thinking (enhanced memory, imagery etc.) and may also predispose towards particular clinical vulnerabilities. In effect, synaesthesia can act as a paradigmatic example of a neuropsychological approach to individual differences.
本文旨在将联觉重新定位为理解人类思维和大脑构建差异的模型系统。患有联觉的人生活在一个非凡的精神世界中，在这个世界里数字可以有颜色，单词可以有味道，音乐是一场视觉盛宴。关于联觉为何存在以及对联觉的研究如何为人类思维理论提供信息等关键问题仍未得到解答。本文认为，我们需要重新思考联觉，它不仅仅代表特殊的体验，更是一种从基因到大脑再到认知的不寻常神经发育级联的产物，而联觉只是其中一个结果。具体而言，联觉者大脑的差异支持一种独特的思维方式（增强的记忆力、想象力等），也可能使他们更容易出现特定的临床易感性。实际上，联觉可以作为一种神经心理学方法研究个体差异的典型例子。
