Stop! Graphic Health Warnings Enhance Inhibitory Control in Adolescents: An ERP Study

Introduction The majority of smokers begin consumption in adolescence and the earlier initiation of cigarette smoking is associated with a greater likelihood of cigarette dependence. Graphic health warnings (GHW) are one of the most used strategies to communicate the consequences of cigarette smoking, but little is known about their ability to increase inhibitory control and thus prevent consumption. The objective of the present study was to evaluate the effects of different sizes of GHWs on inhibitory control in adolescents. We hypothesized that GHWs promote inhibitory control, and increasing GHW size, enhance inhibitory control. Methods Fifty-nine participants completed a Go/No-Go task during electroencephalographic recording. The No-Go stimuli were pictures of cigarette packs without GHWs, and cigarette packs with GHWs that covered 30% or 60% of the front (main side) of the pack. The event-related potential N200 component and behavioral measures in the Go/No-Go task were analyzed. Results Separate mixed-model ANOVAs were used for N200 component (amplitude and latency) and for behavioral data. The GHWs increased the amplitude of the N200 potential, especially GHWs that covered 60% of the front of the pack. The behavioral data showed that GHWs that covered 60% of the front of the pack generated higher a percentage of accuracy in No-Go trials (i.e., fewer commission errors). Conclusions These results suggest that GHWs increase inhibitory control in adolescents, especially when the GHWs cover 60% of the front of the cigarette pack.

Subjective SES is associated with children’s neurophysiological response to auditory oddballs

Language and reading acquisition are strongly associated with a child’s socioeconomic environment (SES). There are a number of potential explanations for this relationship. We explore one potential explanation—a child’s SES is associated with how children discriminate word-like sounds (i.e., phonological processing), a foundational skill for reading acquisition. Magnetoencephalography data from a sample of 71 children (aged 6 years 11 months—12 years 3 months), during a passive auditory oddball task containing word and non-word deviants, were used to test where (which sensors) and when (at what time) any association may occur. We also investigated associations between cognition, education, and this neurophysiological response. We report differences in the neural processing of word and non-word deviant tones at an early N200 component (likely representing early sensory processing) and a later P300 component (likely representing attentional and/or semantic processing). More interestingly we found Parental Subjective SES (the parents rating of their own relative affluence) was convincingly associated with later responses, but there were no significant associations with equivalised income. This suggests that the socioeconomic environment as rated by their parents, is associated with underlying phonological detection skills. Furthermore, this correlation likely occurs at a later time-point in information processing, associated with semantic and attentional processes. In contrast, household income is not significantly associated with these skills. One possibility is that the subjective assessment of SES is more impactful on neural mechanisms of phonological processing than the less complex and more objective measure of household income.

Subjective SES is associated with children’s neurophysiological response to auditory oddballs

Phonological skills are important for language and reading acquisition. All three of these skills are associated across the lifespan with a child’s socioeconomic environment (i.e. SES). There are a large number of potential mechanisms that might explain SES associations with these processes. We explore one potential mechanism – that a child’s SES is associated with the discrimination of word-like sounds, i.e. phonological processing. Magnetoencephalography (MEG) data from a sample of 73 children, recorded during a passive auditory oddball task containing with word and non-word deviants, were used to test where and when any association may occur. We also investigate associations between cognition and attainment and this neurophysiological response. We identified evoked differences between word and non-word deviant tones at an early n200 component (likely representing early sensory processing) and later p300 component (likely representing attentional and/or semantic processing). Subjective SES was convincingly associated with later responses, but there were no significant associations with equivalised income. A child’s educational attainment was also significantly associated with the later component. This suggests that both the educational attainment of children, and their socioeconomic environment as rated by their parents, are significantly associated with underlying phonological detection skills, but likely at a later time-point, associated with semantic and attentional processes, rather than earlier sensory processing. Moreover, household income per se is not significantly associated with these skills.

Single-session and training effects of focused-attention meditation on neurophysiological and behavioural correlates of cognitive control during motor sequence learning

Recent theoretical models outline that motor sequence learning involves cognitive control processes that affects stimulus- or plan-based control, although clear contributions from the have not been delineated. Previously, we found that single-session focused attention meditation (FAM) enhanced stimulus-based control through increased top-down activation. In the present experiment, we aimed to understand if single-session FAM effects could be enhanced with short-term FAM training in behavioural reaction time, and neurophysiological indices in the form event-related potentials (ERP). We investigated the N200 component that is closely related to top-down activation, and the error-related negatively (ERN) component that is closely related to error processing for plan development. 29 participants were randomised to one of three conditions reflecting the level of FAM experienced prior to a serial reaction time task (SRTT): 21 sessions of FAM (FAM21, N= 12), a single FAM session (FAM1, N= 9) or no preceding FAM control (Control, N= 8). Continuous 64-channel EEG were recorded during SRTT whereby N200 amplitudes for correct trials, and ERN using mean difference in amplitudes for correct and error trials, were extracted. Component amplitudes, topography and behavioural outcomes were compared using linear mixed effects regression models between groups. Firstly, FAM21 exhibited faster reaction time performances in majority of the learning blocks compared to FAM1 and Control. FAM21 also demonstrated a significantly more pronounced N200 component over all anterior and the central regions during SRTT compared to FAM1 and Control. When N200 amplitudes were modelled against general learning performance, FAM21 also showed the greatest rate of decline over all anterior and the central regions during SRTT compared to FAM1 and Control. No robust differences in the ERN component were found that supported our predictions. The N200 is associated with top-down cognitive control processes, and hence may index stimulus-based learning effects; whilst the ERN is associated with error and updating of an internalised plan that may index plan-based learning effects. Firstly, our results show that after FAM training, top-down activation is increased for better block-on-block RT performances compared to the other groups. More importantly, FAM training facilitates more efficient and dynamic modulation of top-down activation such that at high levels of general learning performance, less top-down control is needed to maintain the performance.

Event-Related Potentials Related to Anxiety in Emotion-Attention Interaction

To identify neurological characteristics in accordance with anxiety under the interaction between emotion and attention, this study examines major ERP components when participants identify a target number by inhibiting task-irrelevant emotional face distractors. Experiments were conducted once per day at the same time for two days with 19 healthy adult men and women as required to study emotion-attention interaction. In this study, a variety of ERP components such as P100, N200, and P300 during experiment are significant. The amplitude and latency of the N200 component reflect both state and trait anxiety at all positions. This characteristic specially is prominently featured at Cz. Also, the latency of the late P300 component reflects the trait anxiety rather than state anxiety. The result of this study can help our understanding of the neurological responses related to anxiety during attentional control.

Who's in Control? Proficiency and L1 Influence on L2 Processing

We report three reaction time (RT)/event-related brain potential (ERP) semantic priming lexical decision experiments that explore the following in relation to L1 activation during L2 processing: (1) the role of L2 proficiency, (2) the role of sentence context, and (3) the locus of L1 activations (ortho-graphic vs. semantic). All experiments used German (L1) homonyms translated into English (L2) to form prime-target pairs (pine-jaw for Kiefer) to test whether the L1 caused interference in an all-L2 experiment. Both RTs and ERPs were measured on targets. Experiment 1 revealed reversed priming in the N200 component and RTs for low-proficiency learners, but only RT interference for high-proficiency participants. Experiment 2 showed that once the words were processed in sentence context, the low-proficiency participants still showed reversed N200 and RT priming, whereas the high-proficiency group showed no effects. Experiment 3 tested native English speakers with the words in sentence context and showed a null result comparable to the high-proficiency group. Based on these results, we argue that cognitive control relating to translational activation is modulated by (1) L2 proficiency, as the early interference in the N200 was observed only for low-proficiency learners, and (2) sentence context, as it helps high-proficiency learners control L1 activation. As reversed priming was observed in the N200 and not the N400 component, we argue that (3) the locus of the L1 activations was orthographic. Implications in terms of bilingual word recognition and the functional role of the N200 ERP component are discussed.