Cognition is not always directed to the events in the here and now and we often self-generate thoughts and images in imagination. Important aspects of these self-generated experiences are associated with various dispositional traits. In this study, we explored whether these psychological associations relate to a common underlying neurocognitive mechanism. We acquired resting state functional magnetic resonance imaging data from a large cohort of participants and asked them to retrospectively report their experience during the scan. Participants also completed questionnaires reflecting a range of dispositional traits. We found thoughts emphasizing visual imagery at rest were associated with dispositional tendency towards internally directed attention (self-consciousness and attentional problems) and linked to a stronger correlation between a posterior parietal network and a lateral fronto-temporal network. Furthermore, decoupling between the brainstem and a lateral visual network was associated with dispositional internally directed attention. Critically, these brain–cognition associations were related: the correlation between parietal–frontal regions and reports of visual imagery was stronger for individuals with increased connectivity between brainstem and visual cortex. Our results highlight neural mechanisms linked to the dispositional basis for patterns of self-generated thought, and suggest that accounting for dispositional traits is important when exploring the neural substrates of self-generated experience (and vice versa).

This article is part of the theme issue ‘Offline perception: voluntary and spontaneous perceptual experiences without matching external stimulation’.

认知并不总是针对此时此地的事件，我们经常在想象中自我产生思想和图像。这些自我产生的经验的重要方面与各种性格特征有关。在这项研究中，我们探讨了这些心理关联是否与共同的潜在神经认知机制有关。我们从一大群参与者那里获得了静息状态功能磁共振成像数据，并要求他们回顾性地报告他们在扫描期间的经历。参与者还完成了反映一系列性格特征的问卷。我们发现强调休息时视觉意象的想法与内部定向注意力（自我意识和注意力问题）的倾向相关，并与后顶叶网络和外侧额颞叶网络之间更强的相关性有关。此外，脑干和横向视觉网络之间的解耦与性格内向的注意力有关。至关重要的是，这些大脑 - 认知关联是相关的：对于脑干和视觉皮层之间连接性增加的个体，顶叶 - 额叶区域和视觉图像报告之间的相关性更强。我们的研究结果强调了与自我生成思维模式的倾向基础相关的神经机制，反之亦然）。

这篇文章是主题问题“离线感知：没有匹配外部刺激的自愿和自发的感知体验”的一部分。