Behavioral and Neural Evidence for Item-specific Performance Monitoring

2010 ◽  
Vol 22 (12) ◽  
pp. 2758-2767 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chris Blais ◽  
Silvia Bunge
Keyword(s):  
Cognitive Control ◽  
Stroop Task ◽  
Performance Monitoring ◽  
Local Level ◽  
Anterior Cingulate ◽  
Major Focus ◽  
General Rules ◽  
Specific Performance ◽  
Dorsolateral Prefrontal ◽  
Behavioral Evidence

How cognitive control is recruited and implemented has become a major focus of researchers in cognitive psychology and neuroscience. Current theories posit that cognitive control operates at the level of general rules—for example, in a Stroop task, “attend to the color of the stimulus.” Here we report behavioral evidence suggesting that cognitive control is implemented much more locally, operating at the level of specific stimuli appearing in a task block. In addition, we report neural evidence that many of the regions implicated in cognitive control on the Stroop task, including anterior cingulate cortex and dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, operate at a local level.

scholarly journals Modulation of Conflict Processing by Theta-Range tACS over the Dorsolateral Prefrontal Cortex

2019 ◽  
Vol 2019 ◽  
pp. 1-13 ◽  
Author(s):  
Albert Lehr ◽  
Niklas Henneberg ◽  
Tarana Nigam ◽  
Walter Paulus ◽  
Andrea Antal
Keyword(s):  
Prefrontal Cortex ◽  
Cognitive Control ◽  
Stroop Task ◽  
Stroop Effect ◽  
Dorsolateral Prefrontal Cortex ◽  
Control Network ◽  
Control Mechanisms ◽  
Cognitive Control Network ◽  
Dorsolateral Prefrontal ◽  
Transcranial Alternating Current Stimulation

Behavioral response conflict arises in the color-word Stroop task and triggers the cognitive control network. Midfrontal theta-band oscillations correlate with adaptive control mechanisms during and after conflict resolution. In order to prove causality, in two experiments, we applied transcranial alternating current stimulation (tACS) at 6 Hz to the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) during Stroop task performance. Sham stimulation served as a control in both experiments; 9.7 Hz tACS served as a nonharmonic alpha band control in the second experiment. We employed generalized linear mixed models for analysis of behavioral data. Accuracy remained unchanged by any type of active stimulation. Over both experiments, the Stroop effect (response time difference between congruent and incongruent trials) was reduced by 6 Hz stimulation as compared to sham, mainly in trials without prior conflict adaptation. Alpha tACS did not modify the Stroop effect. Theta tACS can both reduce the Stroop effect and modulate adaptive mechanisms of the cognitive control network, suggesting midfrontal theta oscillations as causally involved in cognitive control.

Brain networks sub-serving self-referential processing in depression

2016 ◽  
Vol 33 (S1) ◽  
pp. S45-S45 ◽  
Author(s):  
G. Wagner ◽  
C. Schachtzabel ◽  
G. Peikert ◽  
K.J. Bär
Keyword(s):  
Cognitive Control ◽  
Stroop Task ◽  
Emotional Processing ◽  
Incongruent Condition ◽  
Reward Processing ◽  
Anterior Cingulate ◽  
Central Feature ◽  
Depressed Patients ◽  
Affective Stimuli ◽  
Referential Processing

IntroductionPersistent pondering over negative self-related thoughts is a central feature of depressive psychopathology.ObjectivesIn the present study, we sought to investigate the neural correlates of abnormal negative self-referential processing (SRP) in patients with major depressive disorder (MDD) and its impact on subsequent cognitive control-related neuronal activation.AimsWe hypothesized aberrant activation dynamics during the period of negative and neutral SRP in the rostral anterior cingulate cortex (rACC) and in the amygdala in patients with MDD. We assumed abnormal activation in the fronto-cingulate network during Stroop task execution.MethodsNineteen depressed patients and 20 healthy controls participated in the study. Using an event-related fMRI design, negative, positive and neutral self-referential statements were displayed for 6.5s and followed by incongruent or congruent Stroop conditions.ResultsIn contrast to controls, patients did not exhibit valence-dependent rACC activation differences during SRP. A novel finding was the significant activation of the amygdala and the reward-processing network during presentation of neutral self-referential stimuli relative to baseline and to affective stimuli in patients. The fMRI analysis of the Stroop task revealed a reduced BOLD activation in the right frontoparietal network of patients in the incongruent condition after negative SRP only.ConclusionsThus, the inflexible activation in the rACC may correspond to the inability of depressed patients to shift their attention away from negative self-related stimuli. The accompanying negative affect and task-irrelevant emotional processing may compete for neuronal resources with cognitive control processes and lead thereby to deficient cognitive performance associated with decreased frontoparietal activation.Disclosure of interestThe authors have not supplied their declaration of competing interest.

scholarly journals Macaque anterior cingulate cortex deactivation impairs performance and alters lateral prefrontal oscillatory activities in a rule-switching task

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Liya Ma ◽  
Jason L. Chan ◽  
Kevin Johnston ◽  
Stephen G. Lomber ◽  
Stefan Everling
Keyword(s):  
Cognitive Control ◽  
Anterior Cingulate Cortex ◽  
Critical Role ◽  
Cingulate Cortex ◽  
Anterior Cingulate ◽  
Dorsal Anterior Cingulate Cortex ◽  
Stimulus Response ◽  
Dorsolateral Prefrontal ◽  
Phase Amplitude ◽  
Switching Task

SUMMARYIn primates, both the dorsal anterior cingulate cortex (dACC) and the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (dlPFC) are key regions of the frontoparietal cognitive control network. To study the role of the dACC and its communication with the dlPFC in cognitive control, we recorded the local field potentials from the dlPFC before and during the reversible deactivation of the dACC, in macaque monkeys engaging in uncued switches between two stimulus-response rules. Cryogenic dACC deactivation impaired response accuracy during rule-maintenance, but not rule-switching, which coincided with a reduction in the correct-error difference in dlPFC beta activities specifically during maintenance of the more challenging rule. During both rule switching and maintenance, dACC deactivation prolonged the animals’ reaction time and reduced task-related theta/alpha activities in the dlPFC; it also weakened dlPFC theta-gamma phase-amplitude modulation. Thus, the dACC and its interaction with the dlPFC plays a critical role in the maintenance of a new, challenging rule.

scholarly journals Cascade of neural processing orchestrates cognitive control in human frontal cortex

eLife ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 5 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hanlin Tang ◽  
Hsiang-Yu Yu ◽  
Chien-Chen Chou ◽  
Nathan E Crone ◽  
Joseph R Madsen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Cognitive Control ◽  
Frontal Cortex ◽  
Color Word ◽  
Reaction Times ◽  
Anterior Cingulate ◽  
Spatiotemporal Resolution ◽  
Human Cortex ◽  
Dorsolateral Prefrontal ◽  
Human Frontal Cortex ◽  
Intracranial Recordings

Rapid and flexible interpretation of conflicting sensory inputs in the context of current goals is a critical component of cognitive control that is orchestrated by frontal cortex. The relative roles of distinct subregions within frontal cortex are poorly understood. To examine the dynamics underlying cognitive control across frontal regions, we took advantage of the spatiotemporal resolution of intracranial recordings in epilepsy patients while subjects resolved color-word conflict. We observed differential activity preceding the behavioral responses to conflict trials throughout frontal cortex; this activity was correlated with behavioral reaction times. These signals emerged first in anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) before dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (dlPFC), followed by medial frontal cortex (mFC) and then by orbitofrontal cortex (OFC). These results disassociate the frontal subregions based on their dynamics, and suggest a temporal hierarchy for cognitive control in human cortex.

scholarly journals Rewards Enhance Proactive and Reactive Control in Adolescence and Adulthood

2019 ◽  
Vol 14 (11) ◽  
pp. 1219-1232 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lucía Magis-Weinberg ◽  
Ruud Custers ◽  
Iroise Dumontheil
Keyword(s):  
Cognitive Control ◽  
Posterior Parietal Cortex ◽  
Anterior Cingulate ◽  
Mixed Block ◽  
Proactive Control ◽  
Reactive Control ◽  
Transient Activation ◽  
Letter Array ◽  
Dorsolateral Prefrontal ◽  
Adolescents And Adults

Abstract Cognitive control allows the coordination of cognitive processes to achieve goals. Control may be sustained in anticipation of goal-relevant cues (proactive control) or transient in response to the cues themselves (reactive control). Adolescents typically exhibit a more reactive pattern than adults in the absence of incentives. We investigated how reward modulates cognitive control engagement in a letter-array working memory (WM) task in 30 adolescents (12–17 years) and 20 adults (23–30 years) using a mixed block- and event-related functional magnetic resonance imaging design. After a Baseline run without rewards, participants performed a Reward run where 50% trials were monetarily rewarded. Accuracy and reaction time (RT) differences between Reward and Baseline runs indicated engagement of proactive control, which was associated with increased sustained activity in the bilateral anterior insula (AI), right dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (PFC) and right posterior parietal cortex (PPC). RT differences between Reward and No reward trials of the Reward run suggested additional reactive engagement of cognitive control, accompanied with transient activation in bilateral AI, lateral PFC, PPC, supplementary motor area, anterior cingulate cortex, putamen and caudate. Despite behavioural and neural differences during Baseline WM task performance, adolescents and adults showed similar modulations of proactive and reactive control by reward.

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