The use of films, written or spoken narratives, music and other complex, naturalistic conditions are providing valuable insights about how the brain functions under more ecologically valid conditions. As naturalistic paradigms have become more common, new challenges, novel analytic approaches, and innovative methodological solutions have emerged. This special issue aims to capture and advance these evolving ideas, and will focus on the use of naturalistic conditions to study:
- brain function across the lifespan
- clinical populations or symptom domains
- animal models
- social, cognitive, and sensory processing
- … using any neuroimaging modality (including all types of MRI, EEG, MEG, fNIRS, ECoG).
Additionally, work featuring methodological advances related to the use of naturalistic paradigms in neuroimaging will be considered. Potential topics include: