Abstract
Flow is characterized by a high level of intrinsic reward that results from a balance between task difficulty and individual ability. The Synchronization Theory of Flow offers an explanation for the neural basis of this process. It predicts an energetically-optimized, brain-network organization between cognitive control and reward regions when task difficulty and individual ability are balanced. While initial results provide support for structural predictions, the many-to-many connectivity and energetic optimality hypotheses remain untested. Our study addresses this gap. Subjects played a video game while undergoing functional magnetic resonance imaging. We experimentally manipulated task difficulty and individual ability. Using graph theoretical analyses, we show that the balanced-difficulty condition (compared to low- or high-difficulty) was associated with the highest average network degree in the fronto-parietal control network (implicated in cognitive control) and had the lowest global efficiency value, indicating low metabolic cost, and thereby testing Synchronization Theory’s core predictions.
Original language | English |
---|---|
Pages (from-to) | 872-895 |
Number of pages | 24 |
Journal | Journal of Communication |
Volume | 68 |
Issue number | 5 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - 1 Oct 2018 |
Keywords
- Communication science
- Flow theory
- Functional magnetic resonance imaging
- Graph theory
- Media neuroscience
- Open science
- Synchronization theory