Making Sense of Boredom: Interoception and Cognitive Homeostasis

• In Event: Exploring the Role of Metamotivational Feelings in Students’ Regulation of Their Motivation

Abstract

Aims/Background
In-the-moment feelings of boredom operate as a self-regulatory signal that what we are currently engaged in is not satisfying in some way (Danckert & Elpidorou, 2023). The essential conundrum faced by those more prone to experiencing boredom frequently and intensely, is one of a failure to adaptively respond to boredom’s ‘call to action’ (Eastwood et al., 2012; Elpidorou, 2014). Our program of research explores the role played by interoception in signaling a deviation from cognitive engagement, in the context of both state and trait boredom. In the proposed talk, we focus on why the highly boredom prone fail to launch into action when in the midst of a boredom episode (i.e., why they exhibit metamotivational deficits).

Methods
In this presentation, we will synthesize findings from five studies conducted in our lab (total N = 1,219). To better understand the cognitive and neural signatures of boredom and boredom proneness, we employed converging methodologies, including self-report surveys, psychophysiological measures (such as heart rate variability and skin conductance levels; e.g., Merrifield & Danckert, 2014), and functional neuroimaging (both EEG and fMRI). For a description of key measures from these studies, see Table 1.

Results
Survey data show that those high in boredom proneness tend to focus intently on interoceptive signals, but may struggle to make sense of those same signals (Authors, 2024). Psychophysiological data demonstrate that the state of boredom is best characterized by a stress reaction, potentially in response to the failure to respond adaptively to the signal (Authors, in preparation). In several EEG studies we show that state boredom is associated with poor attentional control (Authors, 2021a) and noisy decision making (Authors, 2021b). This is indicative of the struggle to regulate cognitive mechanisms necessary for engaging with the task at hand. These studies also show that the highly boredom prone exhibit lower levels of alpha which is inversely related to underlying neural activity. Although speculative, this may reflect a particular explanation of the feeling of boredom as one of “unspent” cognitive/neural resources. Finally, fMRI data shows that when bored, activity in the anterior insular cortex is down-regulated (Authors, 2018). This brain region is critical for both representing salient information in the environment and switching between large scale neural networks which would be important for effectively responding to boredom.

Significance
Our findings suggest that boredom signals a deviation from cognitive homeostasis. That is, humans strive to maintain some optimal level of deployment of cognitive and neural resources and boredom signals a deviation from this level, prompting action to bring the individual back within a homeostatic range. Although boredom prone individuals are attuned to these signals, they appear to have difficulty responding to them. These findings have broad implications for understanding boredom and cognitive engagement writ large. For example, in educational settings, where boredom is common experience, recognizing the signals that indicate a deviation from optimal engagement (i.e., boredom) could prove useful in developing the metamotivational skills needed to re-engage effectively in-the-moment.

Authors

• Chantal Trudel, University of Waterloo

• James Danckert, University of Waterloo