#10
So much more to say - please read the paper!🙏

For example, we discuss how #TaskDemands help understand the dynamic, interconnected, and multifunctional nature of neural circuits, and why #BehavioralTracking & #OpenScience are key for achieving long-term goals in #CognitiveNeuroscience.

#9
New, unifying concepts may be derived empirically by linking data patterns that #generalize to the interaction between experimental components (#TaskDemands).

New theories can emerge and be tested through #Multitask studies unconstrained by existing taxonomies.

#7
#TaskDemands emerge from the inherent interaction btwn experimental components (i.e. stimuli, instructions, actions).

To understand their effect, we need #Multitask studies that vary multiple components and measure physiological & behavioral states in naturalistic settings.

#6
What can we do?

We suggest the first step is realizing that behavioral & physiological measures are grounded in #TaskDemands, not in mental concepts tasks are assumed to test.

Similar experiments will yield similar results (hopefully), regardless of what we think is tested.

#4
First, many psych concepts are not fully separable (e.g., Can you have mental imagery without working memory?), and empirical evidence for them overlaps (see Box 2).

Second, tasks probing distinct concepts are often extremely similar, with highly overlapping #TaskDemands.

#CognitiveNeuroscience seeks unified theories of behavioral, physiological, and mental states. To this aim, our NatureNeuro Perspective proposes a new framework centered on #TaskDemands & across-task generalization. https://www.nature.com/articles/s41593-024-01711-6

w/ @AlexandraSchmid S.Kaplan @chris_i_baker D.Kravitz🧵

Centering cognitive neuroscience on task demands and generalization - Nature Neuroscience

Task demands are a primary determiner of behavior and neurophysiology. Here the authors discuss how understanding their influence through multitask studies and tests of generalization is the key to articulating novel cognitive neuroscience concepts.

Nature