Mobilizing cognition for speeded action: try-harder instructions promote motivated readiness in the constant-foreperiod paradigm

Hybrid framework of fatigue: connecting motivational control and computational moderators to gamma oscillations

Introduction

There is a need to develop a comprehensive account of time-on-task fatigue effects on performance (i.e., the vigilance decrement) to increase predictive accuracy. We address this need by integrating three independent accounts into a novel hybrid framework. This framework unites (1) a motivational system balancing goal and comfort drives as described by an influential cognitive-energetic theory with (2) accumulating microlapses from a recent computational model of fatigue, and (3) frontal gamma oscillations indexing fluctuations in motivational control. Moreover, the hybrid framework formally links brief lapses (occurring over milliseconds) to the dynamics of the motivational system at a temporal scale not otherwise described in the fatigue literature.

Methods

EEG and behavioral data was collected from a brief vigilance task. High frequency gamma oscillations were assayed, indexing effortful controlled processes with motivation as a latent factor. Binned and single-trial gamma power was evaluated for changes in real- and lagged-time and correlated with behavior. Functional connectivity analyses assessed the directionality of gamma power in frontal-parietal communication across time-on-task. As a high-resolution representation of latent motivation, gamma power was scaled by fatigue moderators in two computational models. Microlapses modulated transitions from an effortful controlled state to a minimal-effort default state. The hybrid models were compared to a computational microlapse-only model for goodness-of-fit with simulated data.

Results

Findings suggested real-time high gamma power exhibited properties consistent with effortful motivational control. However, gamma power failed to correlate with increases in response times over time, indicating electrophysiology and behavior relations are insufficient in capturing the full range of fatigue effects. Directional connectivity affirmed the dominance of frontal gamma activity in controlled processes in the frontal-parietal network. Parameterizing high frontal gamma power, as an index of fluctuating relative motivational control, produced results that are as accurate or superior to a previous microlapse-only computational model.

Discussion

The hybrid framework views fatigue as a function of a energetical motivational system, managing the trade-space between controlled processes and competing wellbeing needs. Two gamma computational models provided compelling and parsimonious support for this framework, which can potentially be applied to fatigue intervention technologies and related effectiveness measures.

Individual differences in attention control: A meta-analysis and re-analysis of latent variable studies

A meta-analysis and re-analysis of prior latent variable studies was conducted in order to assess whether there is evidence for individual differences in broad attention control abilities. Data from 90 independent samples and over 23,000 participants suggested that most (84.4%) prior studies find evidence for a coherent attention control factor with average factor loadings of .51. This latent attention control factor was related to other cognitive ability factors including working memory, shifting, fluid intelligence, long-term memory, reading comprehension, and processing speed, as well as to self-reports of task-unrelated thoughts and task specific motivation. Further re-analyses and meta-analyses suggest that the results remained largely unchanged when considering various possible measurement issues. Examining the factor structure of attention control suggested evidence for sub-components of attention control (restraining, constraining and sustaining attention) which could be accounted for a by a higher-order factor. Additional re-analyses suggested that attention control represents a broad ability within models of cognitive abilities. Overall, these results provide evidence for attention control abilities as an important individual differences construct.

Side effects of monaural beat stimulation during sustained mental work on mind wandering and performance measures

Excessive mind wandering (MW) contributes to the development and maintenance of psychiatric disorders. Previous studies have suggested that auditory beat stimulation may represent a method enabling a reduction of MW. However, little is known about how different auditory stimulation conditions are subjectively perceived and whether this perception is in turn related to changes in subjective states, behavioral measures of attention and MW. In the present study, we therefore investigated MW under auditory beat stimulation and control conditions using experience sampling during a sustained attention to response task (SART). The subjective perception of the stimulation conditions, as well as changes in anxiety, stress and negative mood after versus before stimulation were assessed via visual-analog scales. Results showed that any auditory stimulation applied during the SART was perceived as more distracting, disturbing, uncomfortable and tiring than silence and was related to more pronounced increases of stress and negative mood. Importantly, the perception of the auditory conditions as disturbing was directly correlated with MW propensity. Additionally, distracting, disturbing and uncomfortable perceptions predicted negative mood. In turn, negative mood was inversely correlated with response accuracy for target stimuli, a behavioral indicator of MW. In summary, our data show that MW and attentional performance are affected by the adverse perception of auditory stimulation, and that this influence may be mediated by changes in mood.

Dissociation between temporal attention and Consciousness: Unconscious temporal cue induces temporal expectation effect

The debate over the independence of attention and consciousness is ongoing. Prior studies have established that invisible spatial cues can direct attention. However, our exploration extends beyond spatial dimensions to temporal information as a potent guide for attention. A intriguing question arises: Can unconscious temporal cues trigger attentional orienting? To investigate, we employed a modified reaction-time task in Experiments 1 and 2, using Gabor stimuli or human facial stimuli as temporal cues rendered invisible through continuous flash suppression. We aimed to uncover temporal expectation effects (TE effects) without conscious awareness. Moreover, Experiments 3 and 4 probed the boundaries of this unconscious processing, assessing whether conscious temporal cues could modulate TE effects. Our results confirm that invisible temporal cues can induce TE effects, and these effects can be overridden by conscious temporal cues. This dissociation between temporal attention and consciousness provide a new perspective on our understanding of their relationship.

Effects of goal-setting on sustained attention and attention lapses

In three experiments, we examined the effects of goal-setting on sustained attention and attention lapses. We measured both behavioral task performance and subjective attentional states during a four -choice reaction time task (Experiments 1 and 2 administered online; Experiment 3 conducted in-person). Experiment 1 compared a vague goal versus a specific goal. The specific goal reduced lapses in the form of long response times (RTs) but did not impact task-unrelated thoughts. Experiment 2 expanded on E1 by making the specific goal progressively harder. Behavioral lapses (i.e., long RTs) were reduced in the harder-over-time goal condition compared to the control condition. Additionally, while RTs increased with time-on-task in the control condition, RTs in the harder-over-time goal condition remained stable with time-on-task. Experiment 3 aimed to replicate the results of E2 in-person and adjusted the difficulty of the harder-over-time goals to be slightly harder. The results largely replicated E2. Overall, setting specific and difficult task goals led to a reduction in lapses of attention and increased sustained attention performance.

Pupillary correlates of preparatory control in the Stroop task

In three experiments, individual differences in preparatory control in the Stroop task were examined. Participants performed variants of the Stroop task while pupillary responses were examined during the preparatory interval. Variation in working memory capacity was also examined. High Stroop performers tended to demonstrate larger preparatory pupillary responses than low Stroop performers. In Experiment 2, when participants were given pre-cues indicating the congruency of the upcoming trial (MATCHING vs. CONFLICTING), high Stroop performers had larger preparatory pupillary responses for incongruent trials compared to congruent trials, whereas low Stroop performers demonstrated similar preparatory pupillary responses on both incongruent and congruent trials. These results suggest that variation in Stroop performance is partially due to individual differences in the ability to ramp up and regulate the intensity of attention allocated to preparatory control processes. Additionally, there was limited evidence that preparatory control processes partially account for the relation between working memory capacity and performance on the Stroop. Overall, these results provide evidence that individual differences in Stroop performance are partialy due to variation in preparatory control.

The effect of motivational and instructional self-talk on attentional control under noise distraction

Inhibition is the key factor of attentional control (AC). Basketball players are typically exposed to noise from the audience or opposing teams while competing. These distractions disrupt the attentional systems, ultimately compromise the athletes' inhibition ability and directly affect their performance on the court. Hence, effective AC strategies are crucial. Two studies were demonstrated to investigate the effects of noise distractions on attentional control and the moderating effect of self-talk. In Study 1, 36 participants undertook the Stroop task, showing an increased error rate with noise distraction. Thirty-nine national second-level basketball players participated in Study 2, where they engaged in the Antisaccade task under both quiet and noise-distraction conditions, employing different self-talk strategies. Results showed that instructional self-talk reduced the antisaccade error rate in quiet conditions, while motivational self-talk increased the error rate under noise distractions. These findings suggests that noise distraction reduces AC. In competition scenarios, basketball players are required to appropriately implement self-talk strategies to improve AC and prevent potential counterproductive effects.

On doing multi-act arithmetic: A multitrait-multimethod approach of performance dimensions in integrated multitasking

Here we present a systematic plan to the experimental study of test–retest reliability in the multitasking domain, adopting the multitrait-multimethod (MTMM) approach to evaluate the psychometric properties of performance in Düker-type speeded multiple-act mental arithmetic. These form of tasks capacitate the experimental analysis of integrated multi-step processing by combining multiple mental operations in flexible ways in the service of the overarching goal of completing the task. A particular focus was on scoring methodology, particularly measures of response speed variability. To this end, we present data of two experiments with regard to (a) test–retest reliability, (b) between-measures correlational structure, (c) and stability (test–retest practice effects). Finally, we compared participants with high versus low performance variability to assess ability-related differences in measurement precision (typically used as proxy to “simulate” patient populations), which is especially relevant in the applied fields of clinical neuropsychology. The participants performed two classic integrated multi-act arithmetic tasks, combining addition and verification (Exp. 1) and addition and comparison (Exp. 2). The results revealed excellent test–retest reliability for the standard and the variability measures. The analysis of between-measures correlational structure revealed the typical pattern of convergent and discriminant relationships, and also, that absolute response speed variability was highly correlated with average speed (r > 0.85), indicating that these measures mainly deliver redundant information. In contrast, speed-adjusted (relativized) variability revealed discriminant validity being correlated to a much lesser degree with average speed, indicating that this measure delivers additional information not already provided by the speed measure. Furthermore, speed-adjusted variability was virtually unaffected by test–retest practice, which makes this measure interesting in situations with repeated testing.

Restoration of Attention by Rest in a Multitasking World: Theory, Methodology, and Empirical Evidence

In this work, we evaluate the status of both theory and empirical evidence in the field of experimental rest-break research based on a framework that combines mental-chronometry and psychometric-measurement theory. To this end, we (1) provide a taxonomy of rest breaks according to which empirical studies can be classified (e.g., by differentiating between long, short, and micro-rest breaks based on context and temporal properties). Then, we (2) evaluate the theorizing in both the basic and applied fields of research and explain how popular concepts (e.g., ego depletion model, opportunity cost theory, attention restoration theory, action readiness, etc.) relate to each other in contemporary theoretical debates. Here, we highlight differences between all these models in the light of two symbolic categories, termed the resource-based and satiation-based model, including aspects related to the dynamics and the control (strategic or non-strategic) mechanisms at work. Based on a critical assessment of existing methodological and theoretical approaches, we finally (3) provide a set of guidelines for both theory building and future empirical approaches to the experimental study of rest breaks. We conclude that a psychometrically advanced and theoretically focused research of rest and recovery has the potential to finally provide a sound scientific basis to eventually mitigate the adverse effects of ever increasing task demands on performance and well-being in a multitasking world at work and leisure.

Effort Mobilization and Lapses of Sustained Attention

The current study examined whether effort mobilization would enhance sustained attention and reduce lapses of attention. Participants performed a sustained attention task and were randomly assigned to either an effort condition where they were instructed to "Try Hard" on a subset of trials or were assigned to a control condition with no "Try Hard" instructions. Pupillary responses were continuously recorded, and periodically during the task participants were presented with thought probes to determine whether they were on or off task. The results suggested within the effort condition there were no behavioral differences between Try Hard and "Standard" trials. Preparatory pupil responses were increased in Try Hard trials, but there were no differences for phasic pupillary responses to stimulus onset. In contrast, examining differences between the effort and control conditions suggested that participants who received the Try Hard instructions demonstrated faster overall performance, a reduction in very long reaction times, and reported fewer off-task thoughts compared with participants in the control condition. Participants in the effort condition also demonstrated a larger ramp-up in pupillary responses during the preparatory interval and a larger phasic response to stimulus onset compared with participants in the control condition. These results are consistent with attention allocation models suggesting that participants in the effort condition mobilized more attentional effort than participants in the control condition, resulting in enhanced sustained attention and a reduction in lapses of attention. These results also are consistent with recent theories, which suggest that the locus coeruleus norepinephrine system is associated with effort mobilization.

The effects of real-time performance feedback and performance emphasis on the sustained attention to response task (SART)

The sustained attention to response task (SART) has been used for over 20 years to assess participants' response times and inability to withhold to No-Go stimuli (commission errors). While there is debate in the literature regarding what causes commissions errors in the SART, there is agreement the SART is subject to a speed-accuracy trade-off (SATO). Researchers have demonstrated that performance on the SART can be influenced by directive instructions to participants to prioritize either speed or accuracy during the task. In the present study, we investigated whether real-time performance feedback and whether feedback emphasis (emphasizing speed or accuracy) affected participants' response times and accuracy. We found performance feedback per se had no impact on performance, but performance emphasis did affect performance, apparently shifting the SATO. This finding provides further evidence that the commission errors in the SART are not indicative of sustained attention or vigilance as those terms are commonly used in the literature, but more likely assess response strategy and motor control (or lack of motor control). These findings have implications for the psychological assessment literature, as well as applied areas where SART findings have been utilized such as shoot/no-shoot decision making.

Manipulations of the Response-Stimulus Intervals as a Factor Inducing Controlled Amount of Reaction Time Intra-Individual Variability

Aggrandized fluctuations in the series of reaction times (RTs) are a very sensitive marker of neurocognitive disorders present in neuropsychiatric populations, pathological ageing and in patients with acquired brain injury. Even though it was documented that processing inconsistency founds a background of higher-order cognitive functions disturbances, there is a vast heterogeneity regarding types of task used to compute RT-related variability, which impedes determining the relationship between elementary and more complex cognitive processes. Considering the above, our goal was to develop a relatively new assessment method based on a simple reaction time paradigm, conducive to eliciting a controlled range of intra-individual variability. It was hypothesized that performance variability might be induced by manipulation of response-stimulus interval’s length and regularity. In order to verify this hypothesis, a group of 107 healthy students was tested using a series of digitalized tasks and their results were analyzed using parametric and ex-Gaussian statistics of RTs distributional markers. In general, these analyses proved that intra-individual variability might be evoked by a given type of response-stimulus interval manipulation even when it is applied to the simple reaction time task. Collected outcomes were discussed with reference to neuroscientific concepts of attentional resources and functional neural networks.

From Global-to-Local? Uncovering the Temporal Dynamics of the Composite Face Illusion Using Distributional Analyses

It is widely believed that faces are processed holistically such that their facial features or parts are represented as global wholes rather than independent entities. But how does their holistic representation evolve in time? According to the global-to-local hypothesis, the initial representation of faces is holistic and coarse at the outset but is becoming progressively detailed and analytic. The current study set to test this global-to-local hypothesis by applying fine-grained methods of response time analyses to the composite face illusion - a traditional marker of holistic face processing. The analyses included the delta plots and conditional accuracy functions. These tools move beyond the mean RT and accuracy to provide detailed analysis of the temporal dynamics of the composite face effect. The methodologies converged on the conclusion that the composite effect is minimal for fast RTs but becomes progressively larger as RT gets slower. This pattern is inconsistent with a global-to-local dynamics. The implications of these results to the study of face perception are discussed.

Decreased psychomotor vigilance of female shift workers after working night shifts

Background

We compared psychomotor vigilance in female shift workers of the Bergmannsheil University Hospital in Bochum, Germany (N = 74, 94% nurses) after day and night shifts.

Methods

Participants performed a 3-minute Psychomotor Vigilance Task (PVT) test bout at the end of two consecutive day and three consecutive night shifts, respectively. Psychomotor vigilance was analyzed with respect to mean reaction time, percentage of lapses and false starts, and throughput as an overall performance score, combining reaction time and error frequencies. We also determined the reaction time coefficient of variation (RTCV) to assess relative reaction time variability after day and night shifts. Further, we examined the influence of shift type (night vs. day) by mixed linear models with associated 95% confidence intervals (CI), adjusted for age, chronotype, study day, season, and the presence of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA).

Results

At the end of a night shift, reaction times were increased (β = 7.64; 95% CI 0.94; 14.35) and the number of lapses higher compared to day shifts (exp(β) = 1.55; 95% CI 1.16–2.08). By contrast, we did not observe differences in the number of false starts between day and night shifts. Throughput was reduced after night shifts (β = -15.52; 95% CI -27.49; -3.46). Reaction times improved across consecutive day and night shifts, whereas the frequency of lapses decreased after the third night. RTCV remained unaffected by both, night shifts and consecutive shift blocks.

Discussion

Our results add to the growing body of literature demonstrating that night-shift work is associated with decreased psychomotor vigilance. As the analysis of RTCV suggests, performance deficits may selectively be driven by few slow reactions at the lower end of the reaction time distribution function. Comparing intra-individual PVT-performances over three consecutive night and two consecutive day shifts, we observed performance improvements after the third night shift. Although a training effect cannot be ruled out, this finding may suggest better adaptation to the night schedule if avoiding fast-changing shift schedules.

Does Depleting Self-Control Result in Poorer Vigilance Performance?

OBJECTIVE

To investigate whether depleting self-control prior to vigilance results in a steeper vigilance decrement.

BACKGROUND

The resource-control theory of vigilance asserts that an inherent bias toward self-generated mind-wandering draws attentional resources away from the primary task. This study seeks to test whether depleting self-control, the potential mechanism of self-generated mind-wandering, results in poorer vigilance performance.

METHOD

This study featured a between-subjects design where participants either completed a typing task that depleted self-control resources or a standard typing task that did not require self-control before performing a vigilance task. In the self-control depletion condition, participants typed a passage while omitting any "e" and "space" keys. In the standard typing task, participants typed the same passage without skipping any keys. Following both typing tasks, participants in both conditions completed an identical 12-min vigilance task.

RESULTS

Results demonstrated decreased accuracy and increased reaction times over time for both groups. Depleting self-control did not result in significant differences in accuracy, reaction time, nor a steeper vigilance decrement.

CONCLUSION

These results provide evidence against resource-control theory and self-control as an explanation for vigilance, and provide further support for cognitive resource theory as the predominant explanation for vigilance impairments.

APPLICATION

It is still unclear exactly what constitutes a "resource." A better understanding of the nature of these resources can help researchers and practitioners identify how they can be replenished, which could enhance human performance in situations requiring vigilance such as baggage screening.

Visual processing is diminished during movement execution

Recent research has suggested that visual discrimination and detection may be enhanced during movement preparation and execution, respectively. The current study examined if visual perceptual processing is augmented prior to or during a movement through the use of an Inspection Time (IT) task. The IT task involved briefly presenting (e.g., 15-105 ms) a "pi" figure with differing leg lengths, which was then immediately masked for 400 ms to prevent retinal afterimages. Participants were subsequently required to choose which of the two legs was longer. In Experiment 1, participants (n = 28) completed the IT task under three movement conditions: no-movement (NM), foreperiod (FP), and peak velocity (PV). In the NM condition, participants solely engaged in the IT paradigm. In the FP condition, the IT stimulus was presented prior to movement execution when response planning was expected to occur. Finally, in the PV condition, participants made a rapid movement to a target, and the IT stimulus was presented when their limb reached peak velocity. In Experiment 2, participants (n = 18) also performed the IT task in the PV and NM condition; however, vision of the limb's motion was made available during the PV trials (PV-FV) to investigate the potential influence of visual feedback on IT performance. Results showed no significant differences in performance in the IT task between the NM and FP conditions, suggesting no enhancement of visual processing occurred due to response preparation (Experiment 1). However, IT performance was significantly poorer in the PV condition in comparison to both the NM and FP conditions (Experiment 1), and was even worse when visual feedback was provided (Experiment 2). Together, these findings suggest that visual perceptual processing is degraded during execution of a fast, goal-directed movement.

Humans derive task expectancies from sub-second and supra-second interval durations

Recent studies in the field of task switching have shown that humans can base expectancies for tasks on temporal cues. When tasks are predictable based on the duration of the preceding pre-target interval, humans implicitly adapt to this predictability, indicated by better performance in trials with validly compared to invalidly predicted tasks. Yet, it is not clear which internal timing mechanisms are involved. Previous research has suggested that intervals from the sub- and supra-second range are processed by distinct cognitive timing systems. As earlier studies on temporally predictable task switching have used predictive intervals stemming from both ranges, it was not yet clear if the time-based expectancy effect was driven by just one of the two internal timing systems. The present study used clearly sub-second intervals (10 ms and 500 ms) in Experiment 1, while clearly supra-second intervals (1500 ms and 3000 ms) were used in Experiment 2. Substantial adaptation effects were observed in both experiments, showing that sub- as well as supra-second timing systems are involved in time-based expectancies for tasks. The present findings offer important implications for our theoretical understanding of the internal timing mechanisms involved in time-based task expectancy.

Reliability and validity of the Conners' Continuous Performance Test

The Conners' Continuous Performance Test-Second Edition (CCPT-2) is a widely used measure of attention and impulsivity, however, only a minimal amount is known about its reliability. To clarify the psychometric properties of the CCPT-2, we assessed its performance stability and related it to criterion measures. A total of 91 undergraduate students completed the CCPT-2, the State-Trait Personality Inventory (STPI), and reported on sleep during two sessions approximately one week apart. They completed the Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Function-Adult Version (BRIEF-A) at session one and the Stroop Color and Word Test at session two. Findings indicated that the CCPT-2 had strong internal consistency, adequate test-retest reliability for commission errors and response time, poor test-retest reliability for omission errors, and practice effects for omission and commission errors. The CCPT-2 was largely unrelated to the BRIEF-A, Stroop Color and Word Test, and the STPI. More sleep was related to a quicker response time and more commission errors on the CCPT-2, and the BRIEF-A's Behavior Regulation Index was positively related to commission errors. Relative to the omission error component of the CCPT-2, commission errors and response time may be useful and stable measures of sustained attention and impulsivity.

Children with autism spectrum disorder show increased sensitivity to time-based predictability

Objectives: We studied timed-based expectancy as well as general perceptual-motor speed in children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Methods: In Experiment 1, 11 children with ASD and 11 typically developing children (TD) (6-13 years) completed a binary choice response task in which foreperiod duration predicted the response target's location with a probability of 0.8. In Experiment 2, we compared performance between 10 children with ASD (6-11 years) and 10 TD children by using a simple reaction time test. Results: Employing a binary forced choice task where the duration of a pre-target interval (800 or 1400 ms) probabilistically predicted the target, we found that children with ASD were sensitive to the temporal regularity, whereas TD children were not. Children with ASD were faster for expected combinations of interval and target location but they were also less accurate for those combinations. Results from an additional simple reaction time test indicate that the development of general perceptual-motor processes was delayed in children with ASD. However, the ability for children with ASD to form time-based expectancies was not correlated with their performance in the simple reaction time test. Conclusion: Children with ASD show significantly greater sensitivity towards time-based predictability than TD children. However, the development of general perceptual-motor processes was impaired in children with ASD.

Socially alerted cognition evoked by a confederate's mere presence: analysis of reaction-time distributions and delta plots

We examined aspects of social alerting as induced through the presence of an attentive but non-evaluative confederate on mental efficiency. To this end, individuals were administered with a chained mental-arithmetic task (levels: low vs. high demand) in two contextual conditions (levels: alone vs. presence). In addition, we examined self-report measures of subjective state for purposes of control. As a result, the presence (vs. alone) condition improved (not hampered) processing speed (while error rate remained low overall), and this effect was differentially more pronounced for high (vs. low) demand. Reaction-time distributional analyses revealed that improvements in average performance actually originated from a selective speeding-up in the slower percentiles, indicating that social alerting promotes stability of information-processing throughput. These results challenge prevalent theoretical notions of mere-presence effects as individuals became consistently faster and less vulnerable to commit attention failure. Our findings indicate that social presence promotes not only processing speed but volitional steadiness.

Can sustained attention adapt to prior cognitive effort? An evidence from experimental study

According to the limited resources paradigm, prior cognitive effort should result in a temporary depletion of available cognitive resources (Kahneman, 1973). Some recent evidence however has proved an opposite effect of increment in the availability of cognitive resources as a function of prior cognitive effort. In the current study the follow-up effect of cognitive effort on sustained attention was examined. Eighty-nine participants took part in the experiment. The cognitive load was manipulated between subjects using three versions of the DIVA Task (intensive warming-up condition, moderate warming-up condition and the control one). Following the experimental manipulation, the availability of cognitive resources during vigilance task was checked. Some significant effects of experimental manipulation were observed. First, in the context of overall task performance, subjects from the intensive warming-up condition obtained lower total errors rate than subjects from the control one. Some moderate effect of cognitive warming-up on time-on-task performance was also observed, although it was isolated to false alarms rate. Those results, tentatively suggesting the occurrence of the cognitive warming-up effect in vigilance performance, are then discussed. PSYCINFO CLASSIFICATION CATEGORIES AND CODES: 2300 Human Experimental Psychology: 2346 Attention.

Is the d2 Test of Attention Rasch Scalable? Analysis With the Rasch Poisson Counts Model

The d2 test is a cancellation test to measure attention, visual scanning, and processing speed. It is the most frequently used test of attention in Europe. Although it has been validated using factor analytic techniques and correlational analyses, its fit to item response theory models has not been examined. We evaluated the fit of the d2 test to the Rasch Poisson Counts Model (RPCM) by examining the fit of six different scoring techniques. Only two scoring techniques-concentration performance scores and total number of characters canceled-fit the RPCM. The individual items fit the RPCM, with negligible differential item functioning across sex. Graphical model check and likelihood ratio test confirmed the overall fit of the two scoring techniques to RPCM.

Different effects of spatial and temporal attention on the integration and segregation of stimuli in time

Having expectations about when and where relevant stimuli will appear engenders endogenous temporal and spatial orienting and can provide vital benefits to visual processing. Although more is known about how each of these forms of orienting affects spatial processing, comparatively little is understood about their influences on the temporal integration and segregation of rapid sequential stimuli. A critical question is whether the influence of spatial cueing on temporal processing involves independent spatial and temporal orienting effects or a synergistic spatiotemporal impact. Here we delineated between the temporal and spatial orienting engendered by endogenous cues by using a paradigm with identical visual stimulation when the goal was to integrate or segregate the stimuli, in separate blocks of trials. We found strong effects of spatial orienting on both integration and segregation performance. In contrast, temporal orienting engendered only an invalid cueing cost, and for integration trials only. This clear differentiation between spatial and temporal cueing effects provides constraints to inform arbitration between theories of how attention biases the visual processing stream and influences the organization of visual perception in time.

Stimulus, response and feedback processing in burnout - An EEG study

Professional burnout is a syndrome that is characterized by psychophysical or emotional exhaustion, depersonalization and diminished professional efficacy. Research on burnout often indicates deficits in cognitive functioning, such as memory problems or impaired voluntary control over attention. Many studies focus on behavioral and self-reported measures of burnout consequences; however, a limited number have focused on its consequences on a neural level. In our EEG study (N = 88; 42 with burnout), we analyzed the event-related potentials (ERP) associated with stimulus, response and feedback processing using two experimental procedures - the Go/NoGo Task and the Doors Task. Our results show that while there is no difference in performance between burnout and control group, on the neural level there are significant differences in all analyzed aspects of information processing: stimulus, response and feedback processing, indicated by the N200 and P300, Pe, and P200 event-related potentials, respectively.

On the representational nature of value-driven spatial attentional biases

Reward learning biases attention toward both reward-associated objects and reward-associated regions of space. The relationship between objects and space in the value-based control of attention, as well as the contextual specificity of space-reward pairings, remains unclear. In the present study, using a free-viewing task, we provide evidence of overt attentional biases toward previously rewarded regions of texture scenes that lack objects. When scrutinizing a texture scene, participants look more frequently toward, and spend a longer amount of time looking at, regions that they have repeatedly oriented to in the past as a result of performance feedback. These biases were scene specific, such that different spatial contexts produced different patterns of habitual spatial orienting. Our findings indicate that reinforcement learning can modify looking behavior via a representation that is purely spatial in nature in a context-specific manner. NEW & NOTEWORTHY The representational nature of space in the value-driven control of attention remains unclear. Here, we provide evidence for scene-specific overt spatial attentional biases following reinforcement learning, even though the scenes contained no objects. Our findings indicate that reinforcement learning can modify looking behavior via a representation that is purely spatial in nature in a context-specific manner.

Reward-associated distractors can harm cognitive performance

When people carry out cognitive tasks, they sometimes suffer from distractions, that is, drops in performance that occur close in time to task-irrelevant stimuli. In this research, we examine how the pursuit of rewards contributes to distractions. In two experiments, participants performed a math task (in which they could earn monetary rewards vs. not) while they were exposed to task-irrelevant stimuli (that were previously associated with monetary rewards vs. not). In Experiment 1, irrelevant cues that were previously associated with rewards (vs. not) impaired performance. In Experiment 2, this effect was only replicated when these reward-associated distractors appeared relatively early during task performance. While the results were thus somewhat mixed, they generally support the idea that reward associations can augment the negative effect of distractors on performance.

Eye behavior does not adapt to expected visual distraction during internally directed cognition

When focused on a specific internal task like calculating a multiplication in mind we are able to ignore sensory distraction. This may be achieved by effective perceptual decoupling during internally directed cognition. The present study investigated whether decoupling from external events during internally directed cognition represents an active shielding mechanism that adapts to expected external distraction or a passive/automatic shielding mechanism that is independent of external distraction. Participants performed multiplications in mind (e.g. 26 x 7), a task that required to turn attention inward as soon as the problem was encoded. At the beginning of a block of trials, participants were informed whether or not distractors could appear during the calculation period, thereby potentially allowing them to prepare for the distractors. We tracked their eye behavior as markers of perceptual decoupling and workload. Turning attention inward to calculate the multiplication elicited evidence of perceptual decoupling for five of six eye parameters: blink rate, saccade and microsaccade rate increased, gaze was less constricted to the center, and pupils dilated. Although participants perceived blocks with distractors as more challenging, performance and eye behavior markers of both perceptual decoupling and workload were unaffected. This result supports the notion of perceptual decoupling as an automatic mechanism: focusing inward induces desensitization to external events independent of external distraction.

Hearing own or other's name has different effects on monotonous task performance

We examined the effect of hearing two types of self-relevant words, one’s own name and the name of others, on vigilant attention, arousal, and subjective sleepiness during performing the Psychomotor Vigilance Test (PVT). Participants performed the PVT under three experimental conditions, (a) hearing own full name (high self-relevant condition), (b) hearing other’s name (low self- relevant condition) and (c) the control condition with no stimuli. Participants heard the names every 20 sec. Self-relevance was assessed before the experiment using the self-relevance scale. The results of the behavioral effects are relatively small and not consistently supported by all of the performance indicators. A tentative conclusion, based on the overall pattern of results, is that (1) arousal increased by hearing a name, regardless of its self-relevance, and (2) hearing less self-relevant stimuli such as other’s name had a distractive effect on ongoing task performance, although it increased arousal, being aware that further experiments are urgently necessary.

Effects of schooling on aspects of attention in rural Burkina Faso, West Africa

Background

We aimed to study the effects of schooling on aspects of attention using the Test of Variables of Attention (TOVA) among children in rural Burkina Faso.

Methods

We re-enrolled children of a previously community-based cluster randomized exclusive breastfeeding trial in rural Burkina Faso. A total of 534 children (280 boys and 254 girls) aged 6 to 8 years were assessed using the TOVA. We examined the effect size difference using Cohen’s d, ANOVA and conducted regression analyses.

Results

Forty nine percent of the children were in school. Children not in school performed poorly with a small effect size difference for ‘Response Time’, ‘Errors of omission’, and ‘Errors of commission’ compared to children in school. The effect size difference was moderate for ‘Response Time Variability’, and ‘D prime score’.

Conclusion

Schooling affects different aspects of attention in rural Burkina Faso. In settings where literacy and schooling rate is low, public sensitizations of the benefits of schooling need to be reinforced and advice on sending children to school need to be provided continuously.

Pupillary Correlates of Fluctuations in Sustained Attention

The current study examined pupillary correlates of fluctuations and lapses of sustained attention. Participants performed a sustained attention task with either a varied ISI or a fixed ISI (fixed at 2 or 8 sec) while pupil responses were continuously recorded. The results indicated that performance was worse when the ISI was varied or fixed at 8 sec compared with when the ISI was fixed at 2 sec, suggesting that varied or long ISI conditions require greater intrinsic alertness compared with constant short ISIs. In terms of pupillary responses, the results demonstrated that slow responses (indicative of lapses) were associated with greater variability in tonic pupil diameter, smaller dilation responses during the ISI, and subsequently smaller dilation responses to stimulus onset. These results suggest that lapses of attention are associated with lower intrinsic alertness, resulting in a lowered intensity of attention to task-relevant stimuli. Following a lapse of attention, performance, tonic pupil diameter, and phasic pupillary responses, all increased, suggesting that attention was reoriented to the task. These results are consistent with the notion that pupillary responses track fluctuations in sustained attention.

Motivation alters implicit temporal attention through sustained and transient mechanisms: A behavioral and pupillometric study

Temporal expectations aid performance by allowing the optimization of attentional readiness at moment of highest target probability. Reward enhances cognitive performance through its action on preparatory and reactive attentional processes. To elucidate how motivation interacts with mechanisms of implicit temporal attention, we studied healthy young adult participants (N = 73) performing a sustained attention task with simultaneous pupillometric recording, under different reward conditions (baseline: 0 c; reward: 10 c/fast response). Target timing was temporally unpredictable (variable foreperiod: 2-10 s, uniformly distributed), in which case implicitly formed timing expectations. Trials were binned according to current foreperiod (FP_n ; short: 2-6 s; long: 6-10 s) and preceding foreperiod (FP_n-1 ; short: 2-6 s; long: 6-10 s). Overall, performance data showed the expected temporal attention effects, with slower responses after shorter FP_n s, particularly when they followed longer FP_n-1 s. Moreover, these temporal effects were significantly reduced in the reward condition. While performance improved in all trial types, the largest benefit appeared in trials that were normally most disadvantaged by invalid temporal expectation. Furthermore, reward motivation was accompanied by an increase in sustained (prestimulus) and transient (poststimulus response) pupil diameter. The latter effect was particularly evident following short FP_n s. The current findings suggest that reward motivation can improve overall attentional performance and reduce implicit temporal bias, both through preparatory and reactive attentional mechanisms.

Regulation of dynamic postural control to attend manual steadiness constraints

In daily living activities, performance of spatially accurate manual movements in upright stance depends on postural stability. In the present investigation, we aimed to evaluate the effect of the required manual steadiness (task constraint) on the regulation of dynamic postural control. A single group of young participants ( n = 20) were evaluated in the performance of a dual posturo-manual task of balancing on a platform oscillating in sinusoidal translations at 0.4-Hz (low) or 1-Hz (high) frequencies while stabilizing a cylinder on a handheld tray. Manual task constraint was manipulated by comparing the conditions of keeping the cylinder stationary on its flat or round side, corresponding to low and high manual task constraints, respectively. Results showed that in the low oscillation frequency the high manual task constraint led to lower oscillation amplitudes of the head, center of mass, and tray, in addition to higher relative phase values between ankle/hip-shoulder oscillatory rotations and between center of mass/center of pressure-feet oscillations as compared with values observed in the low manual task constraint. Further analyses showed that the high manual task constraint also affected variables related to both postural (increased amplitudes of center of pressure oscillation) and manual (increased amplitude of shoulder rotations) task components in the high oscillation frequency. These results suggest that control of a dynamic posturo-manual task is modulated in distinct parameters to attend the required manual steadiness in a complex and flexible way.

NEW & NOTEWORTHY We evaluated dynamic postural control on a platform oscillating in sinusoidal translations at different frequencies while performing a manual task with low or high steadiness constraints. Results showed that high manual task constraint led to modulation of metric and coordination variables associated with greater postural stability. Our findings suggest that motor control is regulated in an integrative mode at the posturo-manual task level, with reciprocal interplay between the postural and manual components.

Task instructions modulate unit-decade binding in two-digit number representation

Previous studies have found decomposed processes, as well as holistic processes, in the representation of two-digit numbers. The present study investigated the influence of task instruction on such processes. Participants completed both magnitude and parity tasks in one of three instructional conditions, where they were asked to either consider two-digit numbers as a whole or to focus on one specific digit. In two experiments, we found that when participants were asked to consider the two digits as an integrated number, they always exhibited a unit-decade compatibility effect, indicating a failure of selective attention on the digit relevant to the given task. However, the mere presence of the neighboring digit is not a sufficient condition for the compatibility effect: when participants were explicitly asked to process a specific digit, their success/failure to selectively ignore the irrelevant digit depended on task requirements. Further, computer mouse tracking indicated that the locus of the compatibility effect was related to late response-related processing. The results signify the deep involvement of top-down processes in unit-decade binding for two-digit number representation.

Cognitive Reflection Effects on Time Discounting

Abstract. In this work, we investigated individual differences in cognitive reflection effects on delay discounting – a preference for smaller sooner over larger later payoff. People are claimed to prefer more these alternatives they considered first – so-called reference point – over the alternatives they considered later. Cognitive reflection affects the way individuals process information, with less reflective individuals relying predominantly on the first information they consider, thus, being more susceptible to reference points as compared to more reflective individuals. In Experiment 1, we confirmed that individuals who scored high on the Cognitive Reflection Test discount less strongly than less reflective individuals, but we also show that such individuals are less susceptible to imposed reference points. Experiment 2 replicated these findings additionally providing evidence that cognitive reflection predicts discounting strength and (in)dependency to reference points over and above individual difference in numeracy.

Reducing the time needed to administer a sustained attention test in patients with stroke

Administering a sustained attention test often takes a lengthy time, which can hamper routine assessments in clinical settings. Therefore, we first proposed a method to reduce the time needed for administering a sustained attention test (the Computerized Digit Vigilance Test, C-DVT). The method was to retrieve 5 segments from different trial positions of the original C-DVT testing. Then we compared the concurrent validity, convergent validity, and random measurement error of the examinees’ performance on these segments to find the segment with better psychometric properties. The 5 segments were as follows: the first 50% of testing, the 21st~50th percentile of testing, the first 60% of testing, the 31st~60th percentile of testing, and the 36th~65th percentile of testing. Then we compared the validities and random measurement error of the examinees’ performance on these segments. Ninety patients with stroke participated in the validity study, and 44 of them participated in the random measurement error study. The patients’ scores on the 5 segments were highly correlated with those of the C-DVT (Pearson’s r ≥ 0.98), indicating excellent concurrent validity. The patients’ scores on the 5 segments were moderately correlated with those of the Tablet-based Symbol Digit Modalities Test (Pearson’s r = -0.51~-0.48), indicating sufficient convergent validity. The amounts of random measurement error (percent standard error of measurement) were all limited: 5.1% for the C-DVT, 6.6% for the first 50% of testing, 6.0% for the 21st~50th percentile of testing, 6.1% for the first 60% of testing, 6.0% for the 31st~60th percentile of testing, and 6.1% for the 36th~65th percentile of testing. The patients needed on average 3~4 minutes to complete all the aforementioned testing. The patients’ scores on the 5 segments showed excellent concurrent validity, sufficient convergent validity, and limited amounts of random measurement error in patients with stroke. We suggest the 31st~60th percentile of testing segment for users because it had the lowest amount of random measurement error and can reduce the time needed for formal testing by about 40%.

Phone Conversation while Processing Information: Chronometric Analysis of Load Effects in Everyday-media Multitasking

This is a pilot study that examined the effect of cell-phone conversation on cognition using a continuous multitasking paradigm. Current theorizing argues that phone conversation affects behavior (e.g., driving) by interfering at a level of cognitive processes (not peripheral activity) and by implying an attentional-failure account. Within the framework of an intermittent spare–utilized capacity threading model, we examined the effect of aspects of (secondary-task) phone conversation on (primary-task) continuous arithmetic performance, asking whether phone use makes components of automatic and controlled information-processing (i.e., easy vs. hard mental arithmetic) run more slowly, or alternatively, makes processing run less reliably albeit with the same processing speed. The results can be summarized as follows: While neither expecting a text message nor expecting an impending phone call had any detrimental effects on performance, active phone conversation was clearly detrimental to primary-task performance. Crucially, the decrement imposed by secondary-task (conversation) was not due to a constant slowdown but is better be characterized by an occasional breakdown of information processing, which differentially affected automatic and controlled components of primary-task processing. In conclusion, these findings support the notion that phone conversation makes individuals not constantly slower but more vulnerable to commit attention failure, and in this way, hampers stability of (primary-task) information processing.

Mobilizing cognition for speeded action: try-harder instructions promote motivated readiness in the constant-foreperiod paradigm

We examined the effect of motivational readiness on cognitive performance. An important but still not sufficiently elaborated question is whether individuals can voluntarily increase cognitive efficiency for an impending target event, given sufficient preparation time. Within the framework of the constant-foreperiod design (comparing reaction time performance in blocks of short and long foreperiod intervals, FPs), we examined the effect of an instruction to try harder (instructional cue: standard vs. effort) in a choice-reaction task on performance speed and variability. Proceeding from previous theoretical considerations, we expected the instruction to speed-up processing irrespective of FP length, while error rate should be increased in the short-FP but decreased in the long-FP condition. Overall, the results confirmed this prediction. Importantly, the distributional (ex-Gaussian and delta plot) analysis revealed that the instruction to try harder decreased distributional skewness (i.e., longer percentiles were more affected), indicating that mobilization ensured temporal performance stability (persistence).