From Low to High Level Approach to Cognitive Control

2009 ◽  
pp. 269-308
Author(s):  
P. Arena ◽  
S. De Fiore ◽  
M. Frasca ◽  
D. Lombardo ◽  
L. Patané
Keyword(s):  
Cognitive Control ◽  
High Level

scholarly journals Rational metareasoning and the plasticity of cognitive control

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Falk Lieder ◽  
Amitai Shenhav ◽  
Sebastian Musslick ◽  
Tom Griffiths
Keyword(s):  
Cognitive Control ◽  
Self Control ◽  
Neural Pathways ◽  
Interference Control ◽  
Learning Mechanisms ◽  
Control Failure ◽  
Stimulus Features ◽  
High Level ◽  
Computational Resources ◽  
And Behavior

The human brain has the impressive capacity to adapt how it processes information to high-level goals. While it is known that these cognitive control skills are malleable and can be improved through training, the underlying plasticity mechanisms are not well understood. Here, we develop and evaluate a model of how people learn when to exert cognitive control, which controlled process to use, and how much effort to exert. We derive this model from a general theory according to which the function of cognitive control is to select and configure neural pathways so as to make optimal use of finite time and limited computational resources. The central idea of our Learned Value of Control model is that people use reinforcement learning to predict the value of candidate control signals of different types and intensities based on stimulus features. This model correctly predicts the learning and transfer effects underlying the adaptive control-demanding behavior observed in an experiment on visual attention and four experiments on interference control in Stroop and Flanker paradigms. Moreover, our model explained these findings significantly better than an associative learning model and a Win-Stay Lose-Shift model. Our findings elucidate how learning and experience might shape people’s ability and propensity to adaptively control their minds and behavior. We conclude by predicting under which circumstances these learning mechanisms might lead to self-control failure.

scholarly journals Infants in Control: Prospective Motor Control and Executive Functions in Action Development

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Janna M. Gottwald
Keyword(s):  
Motor Control ◽  
Cognitive Control ◽  
Executive Functions ◽  
Visual Information ◽  
Motion Tracking ◽  
Planning Process ◽  
Action Planning ◽  
Sources Of Information ◽  
Action Sequences ◽  
High Level

This thesis assesses the link between action and cognition early in development. Thus the notion of an embodied cognition is investigated by tying together two levels of action control in the context of reaching in infancy: prospective motor control and executive functions. The ability to plan our actions is the inevitable foundation of reaching our goals. Thus actions can be stratified on different levels of control. There is the relatively low level of prospective motor control and the comparatively high level of cognitive control. Prospective motor control is concerned with goal-directed actions on the level of single movements and movement combinations of our body and ensures purposeful, coordinated movements, such as reaching for a cup of coffee. Cognitive control, in the context of this thesis more precisely referred to as executive functions, deals with goal-directed actions on the level of whole actions and action combinations and facilitates directedness towards mid- and long-term goals, such as finishing a doctoral thesis. Whereas prospective motor control and executive functions are well studied in adulthood, the early development of both is not sufficiently understood.This thesis comprises three empirical motion-tracking studies that shed light on prospective motor control and executive functions in infancy. Study I investigated the prospective motor control of current actions by having 14-month-olds lift objects of varying weights. In doing so, multi-cue integration was addressed by comparing the use of visual and non-visual information to non-visual information only. Study II examined the prospective motor control of future actions in action sequences by investigating reach-to-place actions in 14-month-olds. Thus the extent to which Fitts’ law can explain movement duration in infancy was addressed. Study III lifted prospective motor control to a higher that is cognitive level, by investigating it relative to executive functions in 18-months-olds.Main results were that 14-month-olds are able to prospectively control their manual actions based on object weight. In this action planning process, infants use different sources of information. Beyond this ability to prospectively control their current action, 14-month-olds also take future actions into account and plan their actions based on the difficulty of the subsequentaction in action sequences. In 18-month-olds, prospective motor control in manual actions, such as reaching, is related to early executive functions, as demonstrated for behavioral prohibition and working memory. These findings are consistent with the idea that executive functions derive from prospective motor control. I suggest that executive functions could be grounded in the development of motor control. In other words, early executive functions should be seen as embodied.

Resituating cognitive mechanisms within heterarchical networks controlling physiology and behavior

2019 ◽  
Vol 29 (5) ◽  
pp. 620-639 ◽  
Author(s):  
William Bechtel
Keyword(s):  
Cognitive Control ◽  
Cognitive Science ◽  
Neural Control ◽  
Science Research ◽  
Control Mechanisms ◽  
Cognitive Mechanisms ◽  
Physiological Processes ◽  
High Level ◽  
And Behavior ◽  
Production Mechanisms

Cognitive science has traditionally focused on mechanisms involved in high-level reasoning and problem-solving processes. Such mechanisms are often treated as autonomous from but controlling underlying physiological processes. I offer a different perspective on cognition which starts with the basic production mechanisms through which organisms construct and repair themselves and navigate their environments and then I develop a framework for conceptualizing how cognitive control mechanisms form a heterarchical network that regulates production mechanisms. Many of these control mechanisms perform cognitive tasks such as evaluating circumstances and making decisions. Cognitive control mechanisms are present in individual cells, but in metazoans, intracellular control is supplemented by a nervous system in which a multitude of neural control mechanisms are organized heterarchically. On this perspective, high-level cognitive mechanisms are not autonomous, but are elements in larger heterarchical networks. This has implications for future directions in cognitive science research.

scholarly journals Development of Hippocampal–Prefrontal Cortex Interactions through Adolescence

2019 ◽  
Vol 30 (3) ◽  
pp. 1548-1558 ◽  
Author(s):  
Finnegan J Calabro ◽  
Vishnu P Murty ◽  
Maria Jalbrzikowski ◽  
Brenden Tervo-Clemmens ◽  
Beatriz Luna
Keyword(s):  
Prefrontal Cortex ◽  
Functional Connectivity ◽  
Cognitive Control ◽  
Longitudinal Design ◽  
Functional Integration ◽  
Developmental Changes ◽  
Neural Basis ◽  
Future Planning ◽  
Neural Maturation ◽  
High Level

Abstract Significant improvements in cognitive control occur from childhood through adolescence, supported by the maturation of prefrontal systems. However, less is known about the neural basis of refinements in cognitive control proceeding from adolescence to adulthood. Accumulating evidence indicates that integration between hippocampus (HPC) and prefrontal cortex (PFC) supports flexible cognition and has a protracted neural maturation. Using a longitudinal design (487 scans), we characterized developmental changes from 8 to 32 years of age in HPC-PFC functional connectivity at rest and its associations with cognitive development. Results indicated significant increases in functional connectivity between HPC and ventromedial PFC (vmPFC), but not dorsolateral PFC. Importantly, HPC-vmPFC connectivity exclusively predicted performance on the Stockings of Cambridge task, which probes problem solving and future planning. These data provide evidence that maturation of high-level cognition into adulthood is supported by increased functional integration across the HPC and vmPFC through adolescence.

Fine-Grain Episodic Memory Processes in Cognitive Control

2013 ◽  
Vol 221 (1) ◽  
pp. 23-32 ◽  
Author(s):  
Erik M. Altmann
Keyword(s):  
Cognitive Control ◽  
Episodic Memory ◽  
Proactive Interference ◽  
Task Switching ◽  
The Other ◽  
Memory Processes ◽  
Fine Grain ◽  
Integral Role ◽  
High Level

Previous task-switching research raises a question concerning the role of episodic memory processes in cognitive control. The question is framed by the contrast between two procedures, explicit cuing and randomized runs, one of which presents a task cue perceptually on every trial and the other of which involves uncued trials. The present study compares performance across these procedures. Performance errors sensitive to errors in focusing on the correct task were higher under explicit-cuing conditions than under randomized-runs conditions, consistent with a high level of proactive interference from old task information. The results support an account in which control codes stored in episodic memory play an integral role in cognitive control, even under conditions in which all information needed for performance is perceptually available.

A PARALLEL DISTRIBUTED COGNITIVE CONTROL SYSTEM FOR A HUMANOID ROBOT

2004 ◽  
Vol 01 (01) ◽  
pp. 65-93 ◽  
Author(s):  
KAZUHIKO KAWAMURA ◽  
R. ALAN PETERS II ◽  
ROBERT E. BODENHEIMER ◽  
NILANJAN SARKAR ◽  
JUYI PARK ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Control System ◽  
Cognitive Control ◽  
Humanoid Robot ◽  
Motor Coordination ◽  
Physical Interaction ◽  
Application Development ◽  
Design Philosophy ◽  
System Health Monitoring ◽  
Heterogeneous Robots ◽  
High Level

During the last decade, researchers at Vanderbilt have been developing a humanoid robot called the Intelligent Soft Arm Control (ISAC). This paper describes ISAC in terms of its software components and with respect to the design philosophy that has evolved over the course of its development. Central to the control system is a parallel, distributed software architecture, comprising a set of independent software objects or agents that execute as needed on standard PCs linked via Ethernet. Fundamental to the design philosophy is the direct physical interaction of the robot with people. Initially, this philosophy guided application development. Yet over time it became apparent that such interaction may be necessary for the acquisition of intelligent behaviors by an agent in a human-centered environment. Concurrent to that evolution was a shift from a programmer's high-level specification of action toward the robot's own motion acquisition of primitive behaviors through sensory-motor coordination (SMC) and task learning through cognitive control and working memory. Described is the parallel distributed cognitive control architecture and the advantages and limitations that have guided its development. Primary structures for sensing, memory, and cognition are described. Motion learning through teleoperation and fault diagnosis through system health monitoring are also covered. The generality of the control system is discussed in terms of its applicability to physically heterogeneous robots and multi-robot systems.

The Role of Mental Processes in Elite Sports Performance

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joan N. Vickers ◽  
A. Mark Williams
Keyword(s):  
Cognitive Control ◽  
Brain Activity ◽  
Neural System ◽  
Anterior Cingulate ◽  
Quiet Eye ◽  
Long Duration ◽  
Neural Efficiency ◽  
High Level ◽  
Elite Sports

Considerable debate has arisen about whether brain activity in elite athletes is characterized by an overall quieting, or neural efficiency in brain processes, or whether elite performance is characterized by activation of two simultaneous networks. One network exercises cognitive control using increased theta activation of premotor and cingulate gyrus, whereas the second reduces alpha activation in an inhibitory network that prevents the intrusion of debilitating thoughts emanating from the temporal lobe and other areas. Also, there is controversy about how a long-duration “quiet eye” (QE) can fit within a single efficient neural system, or whether a dual system where both increased cognitive control and reduced inhibitory processes has advantages. The literature on neural efficiency, the QE, and theta cognitive control, suggest that a long-duration QE promotes both an increase in theta band activation of the medial prefrontal cortex and anterior cingulate and reduced activation and inhibition of the temporal regions during high-pressure situations when a high level of focused, cognitive control is essential.

scholarly journals Are simultaneous interpreters expert bilinguals, unique bilinguals, or both?

2015 ◽  
Vol 20 (2) ◽  
pp. 403-417 ◽  
Author(s):  
LAURA BABCOCK ◽  
ANTONINO VALLESI
Keyword(s):  
Cognitive Control ◽  
Spatial Memory ◽  
Task Switching ◽  
Stroop Task ◽  
Color Word ◽  
Attention Network Test ◽  
Language Management ◽  
Simultaneous Interpretation ◽  
High Level ◽  
Extensive Practice

Simultaneous interpretation is a cognitively demanding process that requires a high level of language management. Previous studies on bilinguals have suggested that extensive practice managing two languages leads to enhancements in cognitive control. Thus, interpreters may be expected to show benefits beyond those seen in bilinguals, either as an extension of previously-seen benefits or in areas specific to interpretation. The present study examined professional interpreters (N = 23) and matched multilinguals (N = 21) on memory tests, the color-word Stroop task, the Attention Network Test, and a non-linguistic task-switching paradigm. The interpreters did not show advantages in conflict resolution or switching cost where bilingual benefits have been noted. However, an interpretation-specific advantage emerged on the mixing cost in the task-switching paradigm. Additionally, the interpreters had larger verbal and spatial memory spans. Interpreters do not continue to garner benefits from bilingualism, but they do appear to possess benefits specific to their experience with simultaneous interpretation.

The nature of first and second language processing: The role of cognitive control and L2 proficiency during text-level comprehension

2018 ◽  
Vol 22 (5) ◽  
pp. 930-948 ◽  
Author(s):  
ANA PÉREZ ◽  
LAURA HANSEN ◽  
TERESA BAJO
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Cognitive Control ◽  
Language Processing ◽  
Text Comprehension ◽  
Reactive Control ◽  
Reactive Processing ◽  
L2 Proficiency ◽  
Second Language Processing ◽  
High Level ◽  
L1 English

Text comprehension relies on high-level cognitive processes as it is the ability to revise an erroneous inference. Recent models of language processing hold that native language processing is proactive in nature (highly predictive), whereas processing seems to be weaker in the second language. However, if a prediction fails because unexpected information is encountered, reactive processing is needed to revise previous information. Twenty-four highly proficient late bilinguals were presented with narratives in L1-English and L2-Spanish. Each text demanded the revision of an initial predictive inference. Reading times and N400 amplitude suggested inferential revision is less efficient in the L2 compared to the L1. Importantly, these effects were modulated by individual differences in cognitive control and L2 proficiency. More efficient L1 comprehension was related to a balance between proactive and reactive control and lower L2 proficiency, whereas more native-like L2 comprehension was associated with a strong proactive control and higher L2 proficiency.

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