Lower Rate of Default Mode Network Functional State Changes are Associated with Greater Psychological Resilience

Poster Session B - Sunday, April 14, 2024, 8:00 – 10:00 am EDT, Sheraton Hall ABC

Chun-Wei Hsu^1,2 (cwhsu617@gmail.com), Joshua Goh^1,2, Wan-Rue Lin^1,2, Ya-Ting Chang^1,2, Shulan Hsieh Hsieh³, Cheng-Ta Yang³, Yun-Hsuan Chang³, Sheng-Hsiang Lin³; ¹National Taiwan University, ²Graduate Institute of Brain and Mind Sciences, ³National Cheng Kung University

Globalization and modernization amplify psychological challenges, posing a substantial mental health obstacle. Understanding how to maintain resilience in human brain processes is crucial in this context. This study evaluates a biomarker of psychological resilience using brain functional state changes measured with resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rs-fMRI). 336 healthy subjects (165 females) completed a rs-fMRI scan, the Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale (CD-RISC), Brief Resilience Scale (BRS), and Resilience Scale for Adults (RSA). We define psychological resilience as a dynamic state of mind maintaining stable neurocomputational functioning despite external fluctuations. Moreover, we expected stability in overall mental states to particularly manifest within the Default Mode Network (DMN). Thus, to quantify DMN stability, activities of all DMN voxels for each time point were projected onto a 2-D space using multidimensional scaling (MDS) to represent mental state transitions over time. Individual indices of DMN stability (DMNmV) were then derived from the average distances between state coordinates at consecutive time points. Behaviorally, principal components analysis (PCA) was applied to the resilience scales across participants, such that PC1 captured fundamental resilience features common to all three scales, while PC2 captured resilience derived more from personal abilities than interpersonal resources. Across many analyses of reliability, validity, and head-motion concerns, we found that DMNmV negatively correlated with PC2 (r = -0.18**), suggesting that individuals relying on personal abilities for resilience have higher DMN functional stability. This approach holds promise as a reliable objective biomarker of mental health that might contribute to development of targeted interventions for mental well-being.

Topic Area: EMOTION & SOCIAL: Other