Local Control Mechanisms of Implicit and Explicit Conflicts

2015 ◽  
Vol 62 (3) ◽  
pp. 153-160 ◽  
Author(s):  
Liang Zhao ◽  
Yang Bai ◽  
Jie Ma ◽  
Yonghui Wang
Keyword(s):  
Local Control ◽  
Simon Effect ◽  
Incongruent Trial ◽  
Simon Task ◽  
The Other ◽  
Snarc Effect ◽  
Control Mechanisms ◽  
Single Task ◽  
Sequence Effects ◽  
Implicit And Explicit

Congruency sequence effects are observed when the congruency effects following incongruent trials are smaller than those following congruent trials. It is typically assumed that such flexible adjustments are evidence of cognitively controlled dynamic modulations. The present study investigated whether cognitive control acts locally or globally when implicit and explicit conflicts exist simultaneously within a system. The implicit SNARC task and explicit Simon task were combined in a single task. The results showed that congruency effects of one type (e.g., SNARC effect) were only smaller following an incongruent trial of the same type (e.g., SNARC effect), but not when following an incongruent trial of the other type (e.g., Simon effect). These results indicate the operation of local control mechanisms triggered by implicit and explicit conflicts.

Mechanisms Underlying Transfer of Task-Defined Rules Across Feature Dimensions

2013 ◽  
Vol 60 (6) ◽  
pp. 410-424 ◽  
Author(s):  
Giulia Baroni ◽  
Motonori Yamaguchi ◽  
Jing Chen ◽  
Robert W. Proctor
Keyword(s):  
Simon Effect ◽  
Simon Task ◽  
Single Task ◽  
Color Dimension ◽  
Highly Active ◽  
Transfer Paradigm ◽  
Task Similarity ◽  
Feature Overlap ◽  
Determining Factor

The Simon effect can be reversed, favoring spatially noncorresponding responses, when people respond to stimulus colors (e.g., green) by pressing a key labeled with the alternative color (i.e., red). This Hedge and Marsh reversal is most often attributed to transfer of logical recoding rules from the color dimension to the location dimension. A recent study showed that this transfer of logical recoding rules can occur not only within a single task but also across two separate tasks that are intermixed. The present study investigated the conditions that determine the transfer of logical recoding rules across tasks. Experiment 1 examined whether it occurs in a transfer paradigm, that is when the two tasks are performed separately, but provided little support for this possibility. Experiment 2 investigated the role of task-set readiness, using a mixed-task paradigm with a predictable trials sequence, which indicated that there is no transfer of task-defined rules across tasks even when they are highly active during the Simon task. Finally, Experiments 3 and 4 used a mixed-task paradigm, where trials of the two tasks were mixed randomly and unpredictably, and manipulated the amount of feature overlap between tasks. Results indicated that task similarity is a determining factor for transfer of task-defined rules to occur. Overall, the study provides evidence that transfer of logical recoding rules tends to occur across two tasks when tasks are unpredictably intermixed and use stimuli that are highly similar and confusable.

A new look at the question of the bilingual advantage

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tanya Dash ◽  
Pierre Berroir ◽  
Ladan Ghazi-Saidi ◽  
Daniel Adrover-Roig ◽  
Ana Inès Ansaldo
Keyword(s):  
Simon Task ◽  
The Other ◽  
Control Mechanisms ◽  
Reactive Control ◽  
Brain Areas ◽  
Bilingual Advantage ◽  
Frequent Use ◽  
Age Related ◽  
Neural Underpinnings ◽  
Reactive Mode

Bilingualism has been associated with age-related cognitive advantage. It is important to study cognitive control mechanisms to better understand this phenomenon. We sought to examine proactive and reactive control, as measured by fast and slow responses, respectively. The neural underpinnings of these modes of control were studied in rigorously matched elderly monolinguals and bilinguals, using fMRI performance on a Simon task. The results indicate that bilinguals performed efficiently in proactive mode, as more activation and connectivity were observed in the monolinguals. On the other hand, the monolinguals functioned more efficiently in reactive mode, recruiting fewer brain areas than the bilinguals. These results suggest that bilinguals’ function effortlessly and economically in proactive mode, which is preserved through lifelong use of languages, whereas monolinguals are efficient in reactive mode, which they use more often as a consequence of aging. Thus, frequent use in daily life contributes to efficient functioning in the respective mode of control.

In Touch With the Simon Effect *The first two authors contributed equally.

2014 ◽  
Vol 61 (3) ◽  
pp. 165-179 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yael Salzer ◽  
Daniela Aisenberg ◽  
Tal Oron-Gilad ◽  
Avishai Henik
Keyword(s):  
Cognitive Control ◽  
Simon Effect ◽  
Simon Task ◽  
Control Mechanisms ◽  
Proactive Control ◽  
Reactive Control ◽  
Stimulus Response ◽  
New Information ◽  
Time Gap ◽  
Test Control

Cognitive control has been extensively studied using the auditory and visual modalities. In the current study, a tactile version of the Simon task was created in order to test control mechanisms in a modality that was less studied, to provide comparative and new information. A significant Simon effect – reaction time gap between congruent (i.e., stimulus and response in the same relative location) and incongruent (i.e., stimulus and response in opposite locations) stimuli – provided grounds to further examine both general and tactile-specific aspects of cognitive control in three experiments. By implementing a neutral condition and conducting sequential and distributional analysis, the present study: (a) supports two different independent mechanisms of cognitive control – reactive control and proactive control; (b) reveals facilitation and interference within the tactile Simon effect; and (c) proposes modality differences in activation and processing of the spatially driven stimulus-response association.

Stories and the Self

2020 ◽  
Vol 32 (2) ◽  
pp. 47-58 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stefan Krause ◽  
Markus Appel
Keyword(s):  
Meta Analysis ◽  
The Self ◽  
The Other ◽  
Lower Degree ◽  
Contrast Effects ◽  
Self Perception ◽  
Self Perceptions ◽  
Other Hand ◽  
The One ◽  
Implicit And Explicit

Abstract. Two experiments examined the influence of stories on recipients’ self-perceptions. Extending prior theory and research, our focus was on assimilation effects (i.e., changes in self-perception in line with a protagonist’s traits) as well as on contrast effects (i.e., changes in self-perception in contrast to a protagonist’s traits). In Experiment 1 ( N = 113), implicit and explicit conscientiousness were assessed after participants read a story about either a diligent or a negligent student. Moderation analyses showed that highly transported participants and participants with lower counterarguing scores assimilate the depicted traits of a story protagonist, as indicated by explicit, self-reported conscientiousness ratings. Participants, who were more critical toward a story (i.e., higher counterarguing) and with a lower degree of transportation, showed contrast effects. In Experiment 2 ( N = 103), we manipulated transportation and counterarguing, but we could not identify an effect on participants’ self-ascribed level of conscientiousness. A mini meta-analysis across both experiments revealed significant positive overall associations between transportation and counterarguing on the one hand and story-consistent self-reported conscientiousness on the other hand.

The Role of Visual Distractors in the Simon Effect

2017 ◽  
Vol 64 (6) ◽  
pp. 387-397 ◽  
Author(s):  
Luisa Lugli ◽  
Stefania D’Ascenzo ◽  
Roberto Nicoletti ◽  
Carlo Umiltà
Keyword(s):  
Simon Effect ◽  
Simon Task ◽  
Automatic Generation ◽  
Spatial Code ◽  
Attentional Model ◽  
Previous Evidence ◽  
Spatial Stimulus ◽  
Attentional Resources ◽  
Code Changes

Abstract. The Simon effect lies on the automatic generation of a stimulus spatial code, which, however, is not relevant for performing the task. Results typically show faster performance when stimulus and response locations correspond, rather than when they do not. Considering reaction time distributions, two types of Simon effect have been individuated, which are thought to depend on different mechanisms: visuomotor activation versus cognitive translation of spatial codes. The present study aimed to investigate whether the presence of a distractor, which affects the allocation of attentional resources and, thus, the time needed to generate the spatial code, changes the nature of the Simon effect. In four experiments, we manipulated the presence and the characteristics of the distractor. Findings extend previous evidence regarding the distinction between visuomotor activation and cognitive translation of spatial stimulus codes in a Simon task. They are discussed with reference to the attentional model of the Simon effect.

scholarly journals Handedness results from complementary hemispheric dominance, not global hemispheric dominance: evidence from mechanically coupled bilateral movements

2018 ◽  
Vol 120 (2) ◽  
pp. 729-740 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elizabeth J. Woytowicz ◽  
Kelly P. Westlake ◽  
Jill Whitall ◽  
Robert L. Sainburg
Keyword(s):  
Motor Control ◽  
Dynamic Control ◽  
The Other ◽  
Hemispheric Dominance ◽  
Control Mechanisms ◽  
Left Hand ◽  
Right Hand ◽  
Other Hand ◽  
Task Component ◽  
The Right

Two contrasting views of handedness can be described as 1) complementary dominance, in which each hemisphere is specialized for different aspects of motor control, and 2) global dominance, in which the hemisphere contralateral to the dominant arm is specialized for all aspects of motor control. The present study sought to determine which motor lateralization hypothesis best predicts motor performance during common bilateral task of stabilizing an object (e.g., bread) with one hand while applying forces to the object (e.g., slicing) using the other hand. We designed an experimental equivalent of this task, performed in a virtual environment with the unseen arms supported by frictionless air-sleds. The hands were connected by a spring, and the task was to maintain the position of one hand while moving the other hand to a target. Thus the reaching hand was required to take account of the spring load to make smooth and accurate trajectories, while the stabilizer hand was required to impede the spring load to keep a constant position. Right-handed subjects performed two task sessions (right-hand reach and left-hand stabilize; left-hand reach and right-hand stabilize) with the order of the sessions counterbalanced between groups. Our results indicate a hand by task-component interaction such that the right hand showed straighter reaching performance whereas the left hand showed more stable holding performance. These findings provide support for the complementary dominance hypothesis and suggest that the specializations of each cerebral hemisphere for impedance and dynamic control mechanisms are expressed during bilateral interactive tasks. NEW & NOTEWORTHY We provide evidence for interlimb differences in bilateral coordination of reaching and stabilizing functions, demonstrating an advantage for the dominant and nondominant arms for distinct features of control. These results provide the first evidence for complementary specializations of each limb-hemisphere system for different aspects of control within the context of a complementary bilateral task.

Analysis of the Perception of Students about Biometric Identification

2015 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. 1-18 ◽  
Author(s):  
Francisco D. Guillén-Gámez ◽  
Iván García-Magariño ◽  
Sonia J. Romero
Keyword(s):  
Experimental Study ◽  
The Other ◽  
Biometric Identification ◽  
Control Mechanisms ◽  
Biometric Authentication ◽  
Ethical Aspects ◽  
Virtual Classrooms ◽  
Quasi Experimental ◽  
Teaching Learning ◽  
The Impact

Currently, there is a demand within distance education of control mechanisms for verifying the identity of students when conducting activities within virtual classrooms. Biometric authentication is one of the tools to meet this demand and prevent fraud. In this line of research, the present work is aimed at analyzing the perceptions of a group of distance students on the impact on the teaching-learning process of a technology of biometric authentication called Smowl. To meet this objective the authors design a quasi-experimental study with two groups of 50 students, one using Smowl technology and the other not. The results show a comparison of the perceptions of both groups, finding that students who have used Smowl are more favorable towards the use of such tools, except in matters relating to the impact on academic performance and ethical aspects of its use, in which no significant differences were found.

Differences in intersaccadic adaptation transfer between inward and outward adaptation

2011 ◽  
Vol 106 (3) ◽  
pp. 1399-1410 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fabian Schnier ◽  
Markus Lappe
Keyword(s):  
Peak Velocity ◽  
The Other ◽  
Saccade Target ◽  
Control Mechanisms ◽  
Saccadic Adaptation ◽  
Saccade Onset ◽  
Independent Parameters ◽  
Saccade Duration ◽  
Velocity Decrease

Saccadic adaptation is a mechanism to increase or decrease the amplitude gain of subsequent saccades, if a saccade is not on target. Recent research has shown that the mechanism of gain increasing, or outward adaptation, and the mechanism of gain decreasing, or inward adaptation, rely on partly different processes. We investigate how outward and inward adaptation of reactive saccades transfer to other types of saccades, namely scanning, overlap, memory-guided, and gap saccades. Previous research has shown that inward adaptation of reactive saccades transfers only partially to these other saccade types, suggesting differences in the control mechanisms between these saccade categories. We show that outward adaptation transfers stronger to scanning and overlap saccades than inward adaptation, and that the strength of transfer depends on the duration for which the saccade target is visible before saccade onset. Furthermore, we show that this transfer is mainly driven by an increase in saccade duration, which is apparent for all saccade categories. Inward adaptation, in contrast, is accompanied by a decrease in duration and in peak velocity, but only the peak velocity decrease transfers from reactive saccades to other saccade categories, i.e., saccadic duration remains constant or even increases for test saccades of the other categories. Our results, therefore, show that duration and peak velocity are independent parameters of saccadic adaptation and that they are differently involved in the transfer of adaptation between saccade categories. Furthermore, our results add evidence that inward and outward adaptation are different processes.

Performance on Auditory and Visual Tasks of Inhibition in English Monolingual and Spanish–English Bilingual Adults: Do Bilinguals Have a Cognitive Advantage?

2018 ◽  
Vol 61 (2) ◽  
pp. 410-419 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jamie L. Desjardins ◽  
Francisco Fernandez
Keyword(s):  
Incongruent Trial ◽  
Dichotic Listening ◽  
Simon Task ◽  
Congruent Trial ◽  
Irrelevant Information ◽  
Visual Test ◽  
English Bilingual ◽  
Visual Tasks ◽  
Listening Task ◽  
English Monolingual

Purpose Bilingual individuals have been shown to be more proficient on visual tasks of inhibition compared with their monolingual counterparts. However, the bilingual advantage has not been evidenced in all studies, and very little is known regarding how bilingualism influences inhibitory control in the perception of auditory information. The purpose of the current study was to examine inhibition of irrelevant information using auditory and visual tasks in English monolingual and Spanish–English bilingual adults. Method Twenty English monolinguals and 19 early balanced Spanish–English bilinguals participated in this study. All participants were 18–30 years of age, had hearing thresholds < 25 dB HL from 250 to 8000 Hz, bilaterally (American National Standards Institute, 2003), and were right handed. Inhibition was measured using a forced-attention dichotic consonant–vowel listening task and the Simon task, a nonverbal visual test. Results Both groups of participants demonstrated a significant right ear advantage on the dichotic listening task; however, no significant differences in performance were evidenced between the monolingual and bilingual groups in any of the dichotic listening conditions. Both groups performed better on the congruent trial than on the incongruent trial of the Simon task and had significantly faster response times on the congruent trial than on the incongruent trial. However, there were no significant differences in performance between the monolingual and bilingual groups on the visual test of inhibition. Conclusions No significant differences in performance on auditory and visual tests of inhibition of irrelevant information were evidenced between the monolingual and bilingual participants in this study. These findings suggest that bilinguals may not exhibit an advantage in the inhibition of irrelevant information compared with monolinguals.

Binding of Event Files in a (go/no-go) Simon Task With an Accessory Peripheral Signal

2009 ◽  
Vol 56 (2) ◽  
pp. 100-111 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kathleen Maetens ◽  
David Henderickx ◽  
Eric Soetens
Keyword(s):  
Simon Effect ◽  
Time Course ◽  
Simon Task ◽  
Reaction Times ◽  
Response Signal ◽  
Event File ◽  
Response Information ◽  
Event Files ◽  
Accessory Stimulus ◽  
Accessory Signal

To understand the relation between the Simon effect and the time course of relevant and irrelevant code activations, we presented the response signal before or simultaneously with a go/no-go signal in an accessory Simon task. A peripheral accessory signal could appear before, simultaneously with or after the go/no-go signal. We observed a Simon effect when the accessory signal was presented just before or simultaneously with the go signal, irrespective of the delay between response and go/no-go signal. The Simon effect reversed when the accessory signal was presented 150 ms after the go signal when response information was presented first and the participants had to make a go/no-go decision afterwards or when they had to select a response when the go signal appeared. The reversal did not occur when both decisions were required at the same time. Our data suggest that the integration and release of event files are involved in the occurrence of the reversal. Response activation induced by the accessory stimulus facilitates/interferes with the response when it is presented before the event file is integrated. When the accessory stimulus is presented after integration, the automatically activated response is inhibited, causing a delay in the corresponding reaction times.

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