title: Sense of Accomplishment Is Modulated by a Proper Level of Instruction and Represented in the Brain Reward System.
abstract: Problem-solving can be facilitated with instructions or hints, which provide information about given problems. The proper amount of instruction that should be provided for learners is controversial. Research shows that tasks with intermediate difficulty induce the largest sense of accomplishment (SA), leading to an intrinsic motivation for learning. To investigate the effect of instructions, we prepared three instruction levels (No hint, Indirect hint, and Direct hint) for the same insight-problem types. We hypothesized that indirect instructions impose intermediate difficulty for each individual, thereby inducing the greatest SA per person. Based on previous neuroimaging studies that showed involvement of the bilateral caudate in learning and motivation, we expected SA to be processed in this reward system. We recruited twenty-one participants, and investigated neural activations during problem solving by functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). We confirmed that the Indirect hint, which imposed intermediate difficulty, induced the largest SA among the three instruction types. Using fMRI, we showed that activations in the bilateral caudate and anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) were significantly modulated by SA. In the bilateral caudate, the indirect hint induced the largest activation, while the ACC seemed to reflect the difference between correct and incorrect trials. Importantly, such activation pattern was independent of notations (number or letter). Our results indicate that SA is represented in the reward system, and that the Indirect instruction effectively induces such sensation.
authors.affiliation: Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan.|Japan Society for the Promotion of Science, Tokyo, Japan.
authors.forename: Tomoya
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Nakai
authors.affiliation: Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan.|Center for Evolutionary Cognitive Science, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan.
authors.forename: Hironori
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Nakatani
authors.affiliation: Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan.|PRESTO, Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST), Tokyo, Japan.
authors.forename: Chihiro
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Hosoda
authors.affiliation: Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan.
authors.forename: Yulri
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Nonaka
authors.affiliation: Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan.|Center for Evolutionary Cognitive Science, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan.|Riken Brain Science Institute, Saitama, Japan.
authors.forename: Kazuo
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Okanoya
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001921:Brain / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging / Q000379:methods; D008297:Male; D009474:Neurons / Q000378:metabolism; D012201:Reward; D055815:Young Adult