认知控制的脑机制及衰老对其脑机制的影响

Brain Mechanism of Cognitive Control and the Effects of Aging

认知控制也叫执行功能,是指选择目标并控制自身的思想和行动以达到该目标的心理过程,其相应的行为被叫作目标导向行为。这是一个复合的过程,涉及到个体的决策、工作记忆、自上而下的注意,以及元认知。认知控制对于老年人来说尤其重要,是保证老年人日常生活正常运作的重要基础,但认知控制功能总是随着衰老不断减退,这十分影响老年人的心理健康与生活质量,因此,关注认知控制的老化,并探讨导致该功能衰退的神经基础尤为重要。本文回顾了近几十年的研究,在脑激活水平和脑网络水平上综述了认知控制功能在神经水平上的基础,并总结了衰老对脑神经的影响,阐述了支撑个体认知控制功能的关键脑区与脑连接,为后续的干预研究提供了锚点。

Cognitive control, also known as executive function, refers to the psychological process of selecting a goal and controlling one’s own thoughts and actions to achieve the goal. The corresponding behavior is called goal-directed behavior. This is a compound process involving individual decision making, working memory, top-down attention, and meta-cognition. Cognitive control is especially important for the elderly, which is an important basis for ensuring the normal functioning of daily life. However, cognitive control function always decreases with aging, which greatly affects the mental health and quality of life of the elderly. Therefore, it is particularly important to pay attention to the aging of cognitive control and explore the neural basis leading to this decline. This article retrospects the research in recent decades and reviews the basis of cognitive control function at the neural level at the level of brain activation and brain network, also summarizes the impact of aging on brain nerves, and expounds the key brain regions and brain connections that support individual cognitive control function, providing an anchor for subsequent intervention research.