Development of Error-Monitoring Event-Related Potentials in Adolescents

Performance monitoring and error detection: The role of mid frontal theta and error-related negativity (ERN) among Indian adolescents from different socioeconomic background

The aim of the study was to investigate the relationship between socioeconomic status (SES) and executive functioning, focusing specifically on performance monitoring, error detection, and their association with mid-frontal theta and error-related negativity (ERN). Employing the widely used flanker task, the research involved two phases with participants aged 10-16 years (15 individuals in the pilot phase and 35 in the second phase). Electroencephalogram (EEG) recordings from distinct brain regions were analyzed during various conditions. The study revealed a notable increase in both absolute and relative theta power at Fcz during the flanker task, with a stronger effect observed during incorrect trials. Furthermore, it underscored the influence of socioeconomic status (SES) on mid-frontal theta, highlighting interactions between SES, gender, and experimental conditions impacting both absolute and relative theta. Intriguingly, the research disclosed a positive correlation between parental occupation and error-related negativity (ERN), as well as between age and ERN. These findings underscore the significance of SES, gender, and age in shaping the neural mechanisms associated with performance monitoring and executive functions. The study contributes valuable insights into the intricate interplay between socio-demographic factors and cognitive processes, shedding light on their impact on goal-directed behaviors and brain activity.

Relational victimization prospectively predicts increases in error-related brain activity and social anxiety in children and adolescents across two years

Recent research has focused on identifying neural markers associated with risk for anxiety, including the error-related negativity (ERN). An elevated ERN amplitude has been observed in anxious individuals from middle childhood onward and has been shown to predict risk for future increases in anxiety development. The ERN is sensitive to environmental influences during development, including interpersonal stressors. Of note, one particular type of interpersonal stressor, relational victimization, has been related to increases in anxiety in adolescents. We tested whether relational victimization predicts increases in the ERN and social anxiety symptoms across two years in a sample of 152 child and adolescent females (ages 8 - 15). Results indicated that children and adolescents' baseline ERN was positively related to the ERN two years later. Furthermore, greater relational victimization at baseline predicted greater increases in the ERN two years later, controlling for baseline ERN. Moreover, relational victimization at baseline predicted increases in social anxiety, and this relationship was mediated by increases in the ERN. These results suggest that relational victimization impacts the developmental trajectory of the neural response to errors and thereby impacts increases in social anxiety among children and adolescents.

Defining brain-based OCD patient profiles using task-based fMRI and unsupervised machine learning

While much research has highlighted phenotypic heterogeneity in obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD), less work has focused on heterogeneity in neural activity. Conventional neuroimaging approaches rely on group averages that assume homogenous patient populations. If subgroups are present, these approaches can increase variability and can lead to discrepancies in the literature. They can also obscure differences between various subgroups. To address this issue, we used unsupervised machine learning to identify subgroup clusters of patients with OCD who were assessed by task-based fMRI. We predominantly focused on activation of cognitive control and performance monitoring neurocircuits, including three large-scale brain networks that have been implicated in OCD (the frontoparietal network, cingulo-opercular network, and default mode network). Participants were patients with OCD (n = 128) that included both adults (ages 24-45) and adolescents (ages 12-17), as well as unaffected controls (n = 64). Neural assessments included tests of cognitive interference and error processing. We found three patient clusters, reflecting a "normative" cluster that shared a brain activation pattern with unaffected controls (65.9% of clinical participants), as well as an "interference hyperactivity" cluster (15.2% of clinical participants) and an "error hyperactivity" cluster (18.9% of clinical participants). We also related these clusters to demographic and clinical correlates. After post-hoc correction for false discovery rates, the interference hyperactivity cluster showed significantly longer reaction times than the other patient clusters, but no other between-cluster differences in covariates were detected. These findings increase precision in patient characterization, reframe prior neurobehavioral research in OCD, and provide a starting point for neuroimaging-guided treatment selection.

Associations between lifetime stress exposure and the error-related negativity (ERN) differ based on stressor characteristics and exposure timing in young adults

Life stress increases risk for multiple forms of psychopathology, in part by altering neural processes involved in performance monitoring. However, the ways in which these stress-cognition effects are influenced by the specific timing and types of life stressors experienced remains poorly understood. To address this gap, we examined how different social-psychological characteristics and developmental timing of stressors are related to the error-related negativity (ERN), a negative-going deflection in the event-related potential (ERP) waveform that is observed from 0 to 100 ms following error commission. A sample of 203 emerging adults performed an ERN-eliciting arrow flanker task and completed an interview-based measure of lifetime stress exposure. Adjusting for stress severity during other developmental periods, there was a small-to-medium effect of stress on performance monitoring, such that more severe total stress exposure, as well as more severe social-evaluative stress in particular, experienced during early adolescence significantly predicted an enhanced ERN. These results suggest that early adolescence may be a sensitive developmental period during which stress exposure may result in lasting adaptations to neural networks implicated in performance monitoring.

Early exposure to parent-perpetrated intimate partner violence predicts hypervigilant error monitoring

Early exposure to intimate partner violence (IPV) places children at risk for ongoing emotional difficulties, including problems with self-regulation and high levels of internalizing symptoms. However, the impact of IPV exposure on children's error monitoring remains unknown. The present study utilized electroencephalography (EEG) to examine the impact of exposure to IPV in infancy on error monitoring in middle childhood. Results indicated that parents' perpetration of IPV against their romantic partners when children were under 24 months of age predicted hypervigilant error monitoring in children at age 8 (N = 30, 16 female), as indexed by error-related neural activity (ERN and Pe difference amplitudes), above and beyond the effects of general adversity exposure and parental responsiveness. There was no association between partner perpetration of IPV and children's error monitoring. Results illustrate the harmful effects of early exposure to parent-perpetrated IPV on error monitoring and highlight the importance of targeting children's and parents' cognitive and emotional responses to error commission in psychotherapy.

Developmental changes in external and internal performance monitoring across middle childhood: An ERP study

Performance monitoring is critical for learning and behavioral adaption and is supported by both externally and internally sourced information. Cross-sectional studies indicate an increase in internal error processing across childhood, suggesting a potential developmental transition from reliance on external information to reliance on internally developed models. However, little research has examined the association between these constructs longitudinally. Data from 339 children assessed annually from kindergarten to 2nd grade were examined to determine the developmental trajectory of ERP indices of performance monitoring, and whether the association between these indices changes across time. EEG data were recorded during an incentivized Go/No-Go task and ERP component amplitudes were extracted as peak measures at Fz. Despite small increases in magnitude, no significant changes were observed in any of the ERPs. Multi-level regression analyses indicated that in kindergarten a more negative feedback-related negativity (FRN) was associated with a more negative error-related negativity (ERN) and a more negative error positivity (Pe). Further, the association between the FRN and Pe changed over time, such that in 2nd grade the FRN and Pe decoupled from one another and were no longer associated. These results suggest that the development of performance monitoring through middle childhood may be a phasic process. More specifically, matured external feedback monitoring processes may first facilitate the development of conscious error recognition, and then the development of internal error monitoring processes. Once internal models of error monitoring are well-established, children may then reduce their utilization of external feedback.

Shared and unique neural mechanisms underlying pediatric trichotillomania and obsessive compulsive disorder

BACKGROUND

Little is known about the neural underpinnings of pediatric trichotillomania (TTM). We examined error-related negativity (ERN)-amplitude and theta-EEG power differences among youth with TTM, OCD, and healthy controls (HC).

METHODS

Forty channel EEG was recorded from 63 pediatric participants (22 with TTM, 22 with OCD, and 19 HC) during the Eriksen Flanker Task. EEG data from inhibitory control were used to derive estimates of ERN amplitude and event-related spectral power associated with motor inhibition.

RESULTS

TTM and HC were similar in brain activity patterns in frontal and central regions and TTM and OCD were similar in the parietal region. Frontal ERN-amplitude was significantly larger in OCD relative to TTM and HC, who did not differ from each other. The TTM group had higher theta power compared to OCD in frontal and central regions, and higher theta than both comparison groups in right motor cortex and superior parietal regions. Within TTM, flanker task performance was correlated with EEG activity in frontal, central, and motor cortices whereas global functioning and impairment were associated with EEG power in bilateral motor and parietal cortices.

CONCLUSIONS

Findings are discussed in terms of shared and unique neural mechanisms in TTM and OCD and treatment implications.

Electrophysiological and behavioral indices of cognitive conflict processing across adolescence

Cognitive control enables goal-oriented adaptation to a fast-changing environment and has a protracted development spanning into young adulthood. The neurocognitive processes underlying this development are poorly understood. In a cross-sectional sample of participants 8-19 years old (n = 108), we used blind source separation of EEG data recorded in a Flanker task to derive electrophysiological measures of attention and conflict processing, including a N2-like frontal negative component and a P3-like parietal positive component. Outside the recording session, we examined multiple behavioral measures of interference control derived from the Flanker, Stroop, and Anti-saccade tasks. We found a positive association between age and P3 amplitude, but no relationship between age and N2 amplitude. A stronger N2 was age-independently related to better performance on Stroop and Anti-saccade measures of interference control. A Gratton effect was found on the Flanker task, with slower reaction times on current congruent and better accuracy on current incongruent trials when preceded by incongruent as opposed to congruent trials. The Gratton effect on accuracy was positively associated with age. Together, the findings suggest a multifaceted developmental pattern of the neurocognitive processes involved in conflict processing across adolescence, with a more protracted development of the P3 compared to the N2.

Test-Retest Reliability of Electroencephalographic Measures of Performance Monitoring in Children and Adults

This study examined the test-retest reliability of the error-related negativity (ERN) and error positivity (Pe) amplitudes using a Flanker task in 118 neurotypical children and 53 adults before and after latency jitter adjustments. The reliability of the ERN and Pe amplitudes was moderate for children and moderate to strong for adults. The latency variability adjustment did not improve the reliability of the ERN and Pe amplitudes for either group, suggesting that latency variability may be a trait-like measure. For comparison purposes, the reliability of the stimulus-locked ERPs was strong for correct trials, yet the reliability was weak for incorrect trials.

Inhibiting errors while they are produced: Direct evidence for error monitoring and inhibitory control in children

The maturation of processes involved in performance monitoring, crucial for adaptive behavior, is a core aspect of developmental changes. Monitoring processes are often studied through the analysis of error processing. Previous developmental studies generally focused on post-error slowing and error-related EEG activities. Instead, the present study aims at collecting indicators of error monitoring processes occurring within trials that is, before the erroneous response is produced. Electromyographic (EMG) activity and force produced during responding were registered in 6 to 14-year-olds performing a choice-response task. As already reported in adults, force produced was weaker, EMG bursts were smaller, and motor times (interval between EMG onsets and responses) were longer during errors compared to correct responses. In contrast, the rising part of EMG burst, reflecting the initial motor command, was the same for both response outcomes. This suggests that error inhibition was applied online after the response was triggered but before the actual key was pressed. This error correction was already present in children as young as 6 years old. The effects of reduced EMG and force amplitudes remained stable across childhood. However, the prolonged motor times in young children suggests that they need more time to implement motor inhibition than their older peers.

Changes in event-related brain responses and habituation during child development - A systematic literature review

OBJECTIVE

This systematic review highlights the influence of developmental changes of the central nervous system on habituation assessment during child development. Therefore, studies on age dependant changes in event-related brain responses as well as studies on behavioural and neurophysiological habituation during child development are compiled and discussed.

METHODS

Two PubMed searches with terms "(development evoked brain response (fetus OR neonate OR children) (electroencephalography OR magnetoencephalography))" and with terms "(psychology habituation (fetal OR neonate OR children) (human brain))" were performed to identify studies on developmental changes in event-related brain responses as well as habituation studies during child development.

RESULTS

Both search results showed a wide diversity of subjects' ages, stimulation protocols and examined behaviour or components of event-related brain responses as well as a demand for more longitudinal study designs.

CONCLUSIONS

A conclusive statement about clear developmental trends in event-related brain responses or in neurophysiological habituation studies is difficult to draw. Future studies should implement longitudinal designs, combination of behavioural and neurophysiological habituation measurement and more complex habituation paradigms to assess several habituation criteria.

SIGNIFICANCE

This review emphasizes that event-related brain responses underlie certain changes during child development which should be more considered in the context of neurophysiological habituation studies.

Error processing in the adolescent brain: Age-related differences in electrophysiology, behavioral adaptation, and brain morphology

Detecting errors and adjusting behaviour appropriately are fundamental cognitive abilities that are known to improve through adolescence. The cognitive and neural processes underlying this development, however, are still poorly understood. To address this knowledge gap, we performed a thorough investigation of error processing in a Flanker task in a cross-sectional sample of participants 8 to 19 years of age (n = 98). We examined age-related differences in event-related potentials known to be associated with error processing, namely the error-related negativity (ERN) and the error positivity (Pe), as well as their relationships with task performance, post-error adjustments and regional cingulate cortex thickness and surface area. We found that ERN amplitude increased with age, while Pe amplitude remained constant. A more negative ERN was associated with higher task accuracy and faster reaction times, while a more positive Pe was associated with higher accuracy, independently of age. When estimating post-error adjustments from trials following both incongruent and congruent trials, post-error slowing and post-error improvement in accuracy both increased with age, but this was only found for post-error slowing when analysing trials following incongruent trials. There were no age-independent associations between either ERN or Pe amplitude and cingulate cortex thickness or area measures.

Error-related negativity predicts failure in competitive dual-player video games

Along with improvement in electroencephalogram (EEG)-measurement technology, limitations on the situations in which data can be recorded are gradually being overcome. EEG measurement in real environments has become increasingly important as a means to monitor brain activity in our daily lives, such as while playing consumer games in the living room. The present study measured brain EEG activity while two players engaged in a competitive consumer baseball game in conditions that closely resembled daily life. The recorded brain activity was thus likely related to natural mental reactions and cognitive function that occur in similar daily life activities. To measure the EEG from participants who freely moved while playing the game, we developed EEG devices that incorporated a wireless time synchronization system using Global Positioning Satellite (GPS) signals. These devices stamped the time obtained from the GPS signals onto each data sample, which was then used to synchronize the data that were recorded by different devices. When the batter in the game swung and missed, the error-related negativity component of the event-related EEG potential was strongly evoked in frontal electrodes of the participant controlling the batter. Furthermore, the error-related negativity was modulated according to who was winning and by how much. Thus, here we have demonstrated "real-world" brain activity using a competitive consumer game, which increases intrinsic participant motivation.

Depressive symptoms and error-related brain activity in CPS-referred children

Early adversity such as maltreatment is associated with increased risk for psychopathology and atypical neurological development in children. The present study examined associations between depressive symptoms and error-related brain activity (the error-related negativity, or ERN) among children involved with Child Protective Services (CPS) and among comparison children. Results indicate that the relation between depressive symptoms and ERN amplitude depends on CPS involvement, such that depressive symptoms were associated with blunted ERNs only for CPS-referred children. The present study can inform future research investigating the mechanisms by which experiences of adversity affect the association between symptoms and error-related brain activity.

Variation in reward- and error-related neural measures attributable to age, gender, race, and ethnicity

Event-related potentials (ERPs) have been widely applied to the study of individual differences in reward and error processing, including recent proposals of several ERPs as possible biomarkers of mental illness. A criterion for all biomarkers, however, is that they be generalizable across the relevant populations, something which has yet to be demonstrated for many commonly studied reward- and error-related ERPs. The aim of this study was to examine variation in reward and error-related ERPs across core demographic variables: age, gender, race, and ethnicity. Data was drawn from three studies with relatively large samples (N range 207-527). Results demonstrated that ERPs varied across the demographic variables of interest. Several examples include attenuated reward-related ERPs with increasing age, larger error-related ERPs for men than women, and larger ERPs to feedback after losses for individuals who identified as Hispanic/Latino. Overall, these analyses suggest systematic variation in ERPs that is attributable to core demographic variables, which could give rise to seemingly inconsistent results across studies to the extent that these sample characteristics differ. Future psychophysiological studies should include these analyses as standard practice and assess how these differences might exacerbate, mask, or confound relationships of interest.

Post-Error Slowing in Patients With ADHD: A Meta-Analysis

OBJECTIVE

Post-error slowing (PES) is a cognitive mechanism for adaptive responses to reduce the probability of error in subsequent trials after error. To date, no meta-analytic summary of individual studies has been conducted to assess whether ADHD patients differ from controls in PES.

METHOD

We identified 15 relevant publications, reporting 26 pairs of comparisons (ADHD, n = 1,053; healthy control, n = 614). Random-effect meta-analysis was used to determine the statistical effect size (ES) for PES.

RESULTS

PES was diminished in the ADHD group as compared with controls, with an ES in the medium range (Cohen's d = 0.42). Significant group difference was observed in relation to the inter-stimulus interval (ISI): While healthy participants slowed down after an error during long (3,500 ms) compared with short ISIs (1,500 ms), ADHD participants sustained or even increased their speed.

CONCLUSION

The pronounced group difference suggests that PES may be considered as a behavioral indicator for differentiating ADHD patients from healthy participants.

Error-related brain activity in youth and young adults before and after treatment for generalized or social anxiety disorder

Increased error monitoring, as measured by the error-related negativity (ERN), has been shown to persist after treatment for obsessive-compulsive disorder in youth and adults; however, no previous studies have examined the ERN following treatment for related anxiety disorders. We used a flanker task to elicit the ERN in 28 youth and young adults (8-26years old) with primary diagnoses of generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) or social anxiety disorder (SAD) and 35 healthy controls. Patients were assessed before and after treatment with cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) or selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRI), and healthy controls were assessed at a comparable interval. The ERN increased across assessments in the combined sample. Patients with SAD exhibited an enhanced ERN relative to healthy controls prior to and following treatment, even when analyses were limited to SAD patients who responded to treatment. Patients with GAD did not significantly differ from healthy controls at either assessment. Results provide preliminary evidence that enhanced error monitoring persists following treatment for SAD in youth and young adults, and support conceptualizations of increased error monitoring as a trait-like vulnerability that may contribute to risk for recurrence and impaired functioning later in life. Future work is needed to further evaluate the ERN in GAD across development, including whether an enhanced ERN develops in adulthood or is most apparent when worries focus on internal sources of threat.

Neural Systems for Error Monitoring

Complex behavior requires a flexible system that maintains task performance in the context of specific goals, evaluating behavioral progress, adjusting behavior as needed, and adapting to changing contingencies. Generically referred to as performance monitoring, a key component concerns the identification and correction of differences between an intended and an executed response (i.e., an error). Brain mapping experiments have now identified the temporal and spatial components of a putative error-processing system in the large-scale networks of the human brain. Most of this work has focused on the medial frontal cortex and an associated electrophysiological component known as the error-related negativity (or error negativity). Although the precise role, or roles, of this region still remain unknown, investigations of error processing have identified a cluster of modules in the medial frontal cortex involved in monitoring/maintaining ongoing behavior and motivating task sets. Other regions include bilateral anterior insula/inferior operculum and lateral prefrontal cortex. Recent work has begun to uncover how individual differences might affect the modules recruited for a task, in addition to the identification of associations between pathological states and aberrant error signals, leading to insights about possible mechanisms of neuropsychiatric illness. NEUROSCIENTIST 13(2):160—172, 2007.

Emotional Processing and Attention Control Impairments in Children with Anxiety: An Integrative Review of Event-Related Potentials Findings

Anxiety disorders in adults have been associated with biased processing of emotional information which may be due to a deficit in attentional control. This deficit leads to an hypervigilance and a selective attention toward threatening information. Event-related potentials (ERPs) have been used to study this topic in anxious adults. Similar biases have been reported in children with anxiety but researches investigating the ERPs components underpinning these biases are more scarce. However, the understanding of the neural correlates of attentional biases in anxious children seem quite important since they could play a role in the etiology and the maintenance of this disorder. This review summarizes the results of researches having used ERPs to index emotional processing and attention control in children suffering from anxiety. We will focus on the P1, indexing basic visual perceptual processing, the N2, thought to reflect cognitive control process, the P3 typically associated with response inhibition, and the late positive potential (LPP) that indicates sustained attention toward motivationally salient stimuli. We will also examine the error-related negativity (ERN) that indexes monitoring system for detecting errors. Electro-physiological studies generally reported increased amplitudes of these components in anxious children, even when they did not differ from typically developing children at a behavioral level. These results suggest diminished cognitive control that influences children's selective attention mechanisms toward threatening information. Theoretical perspectives and implications for future researches will be discussed in the framework of current models of childhood anxiety.

Neural correlates of error monitoring in adolescents prospectively predict initiation of tobacco use

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Error-related brain activity increases during adolescence.

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Weaker response to errors predicts future initiation of tobacco use.

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Faster development of error monitoring function can be a protective factor.

Deficits in self-regulation of behavior can play an important role in the initiation of substance use and progression to regular use and dependence. One of the distinct component processes of self-regulation is error monitoring, i.e. detection of a conflict between the intended and actually executed action. Here we examined whether a neural marker of error monitoring, Error-Related Negativity (ERN), predicts future initiation of tobacco use. ERN was assessed in a prospective longitudinal sample at ages 12, 14, and 16 using a flanker task. ERN amplitude showed a significant increase with age during adolescence. Reduced ERN amplitude at ages 14 and 16, as well as slower rate of its developmental changes significantly predicted initiation of tobacco use by age 18 but not transition to regular tobacco use or initiation of marijuana and alcohol use. The present results suggest that attenuated development of the neural mechanisms of error monitoring during adolescence can increase the risk for initiation of tobacco use. The present results also suggest that the role of distinct neurocognitive component processes involved in behavioral regulation may be limited to specific stages of addiction.

Error-related brain activity in the age of RDoC: A review of the literature

The ability to detect and respond to errors is critical to successful adaptation to a changing environment. The error-related negativity (ERN), an event-related potential (ERP) component, is a well-validated neural response to errors and reflects the error monitoring activity of the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC). Additionally, the ERN is implicated in several processes key to adaptive functioning. Abnormalities in error-related brain activity have been linked to multiple forms of psychopathology and individual differences. As such, the component is likely to be useful in NIMH's Research Domain Criteria (RDoC) initiative to establish biologically-meaningful dimensions of psychological dysfunction, and currently appears as a unit of measurement in three RDoC domains: Positive Valence Systems, Negative Valence Systems, and Cognitive Systems. In this review paper, we introduce the ERN and discuss evidence related to its psychometric properties, as well as important task differences. Following this, we discuss evidence linking the ERN to clinically diverse forms of psychopathology, as well as the implications of one unit of measurement appearing in multiple RDoC dimensions. And finally, we discuss important future directions, as well as research pathways by which the ERN might be leveraged to track the ways in which dysfunctions in multiple neural systems interact to influence psychological well-being.

Conflict Monitoring Across the Life Span

Errors can play a major role for optimizing subsequent performance: Response conflict associated with (near) errors signals the need to recruit additional control resources to minimize future conflict. However, so far it remains open whether children and older adults also adjust their performance as a function of preceding response conflict. To examine the life span development of conflict detection and resolution, response conflict was elicited during a task-switching paradigm. Electrophysiological correlates of conflict detection for correct and incorrect responses and behavioral indices of post-error adjustments were assessed while participants in four age groups were asked to focus on either speed or accuracy. Despite difficulties in resolving response conflict, the ability to detect response conflict as indexed by the Ne/ERN component was expected to mature early and be preserved in older adults. As predicted, reliable Ne/ERN peaks were detected across age groups. However, only for adults Ne/ERN amplitudes associated with errors were larger compared to Nc/CRN amplitudes for correct trials under accuracy instructions, suggesting an ongoing maturation in the ability to differentiate levels of response conflict. Behavioral interference costs were considerable in both children and older adults. Performance for children and older adults deteriorated rather than improved following errors, in line with intact conflict detection, but impaired conflict resolution. Thus, participants in all age groups were able to detect response conflict, but only young adults successfully avoided subsequent conflict by up-regulating control.

Errare machinale est: the use of error-related potentials in brain-machine interfaces

The ability to recognize errors is crucial for efficient behavior. Numerous studies have identified electrophysiological correlates of error recognition in the human brain (error-related potentials, ErrPs). Consequently, it has been proposed to use these signals to improve human-computer interaction (HCI) or brain-machine interfacing (BMI). Here, we present a review of over a decade of developments toward this goal. This body of work provides consistent evidence that ErrPs can be successfully detected on a single-trial basis, and that they can be effectively used in both HCI and BMI applications. We first describe the ErrP phenomenon and follow up with an analysis of different strategies to increase the robustness of a system by incorporating single-trial ErrP recognition, either by correcting the machine's actions or by providing means for its error-based adaptation. These approaches can be applied both when the user employs traditional HCI input devices or in combination with another BMI channel. Finally, we discuss the current challenges that have to be overcome in order to fully integrate ErrPs into practical applications. This includes, in particular, the characterization of such signals during real(istic) applications, as well as the possibility of extracting richer information from them, going beyond the time-locked decoding that dominates current approaches.

Latency correction of event-related potentials between different experimental protocols

OBJECTIVE

A fundamental issue in EEG event-related potentials (ERPs) studies is the amount of data required to have an accurate ERP model. This also impacts the time required to train a classifier for a brain-computer interface (BCI). This issue is mainly due to the poor signal-to-noise ratio and the large fluctuations of the EEG caused by several sources of variability. One of these sources is directly related to the experimental protocol or application designed, and may affect the amplitude or latency of ERPs. This usually prevents BCI classifiers from generalizing among different experimental protocols. In this paper, we analyze the effect of the amplitude and the latency variations among different experimental protocols based on the same type of ERP.

APPROACH

We present a method to analyze and compensate for the latency variations in BCI applications. The algorithm has been tested on two widely used ERPs (P300 and observation error potentials), in three experimental protocols in each case. We report the ERP analysis and single-trial classification.

MAIN RESULTS

The results obtained show that the designed experimental protocols significantly affect the latency of the recorded potentials but not the amplitudes.

SIGNIFICANCE

These results show how the use of latency-corrected data can be used to generalize the BCIs, reducing the calibration time when facing a new experimental protocol.

Development of neural mechanisms of conflict and error processing during childhood: implications for self-regulation

Regulation of thoughts and behavior requires attention, particularly when there is conflict between alternative responses or when errors are to be prevented or corrected. Conflict monitoring and error processing are functions of the executive attention network, a neurocognitive system that greatly matures during childhood. In this study, we examined the development of brain mechanisms underlying conflict and error processing with event-related potentials (ERPs), and explored the relationship between brain function and individual differences in the ability to self-regulate behavior. Three groups of children aged 4-6, 7-9, and 10-13 years, and a group of adults performed a child-friendly version of the flanker task while ERPs were registered. Marked developmental changes were observed in both conflict processing and brain reactions to errors. After controlling by age, higher self-regulation skills are associated with smaller amplitude of the conflict effect but greater amplitude of the error-related negativity. Additionally, we found that electrophysiological measures of conflict and error monitoring predict individual differences in impulsivity and the capacity to delay gratification. These findings inform of brain mechanisms underlying the development of cognitive control and self-regulation.

Toddler fearfulness is linked to individual differences in error-related negativity during preschool

We investigated associations between early fearfulness and error-related negativity (ERN) in preschoolers. Children were classified as low, moderate, or high in fearfulness based on observations at age 2 years. ERN was measured at age 4.5 years. ERN was visible in preschoolers who were moderate or high in fear during toddlerhood, but was characterized differently in children based on associations with fearfulness during toddlerhood. A non-localized ERN was visible across midline electrodes in high-fear children and an adult like ERN distribution was visible in moderately fearful children. In contrast, low-fear children showed no evidence of ERN at 4.5 years of age.

Can reading rate acceleration improve error monitoring and cognitive abilities underlying reading in adolescents with reading difficulties and in typical readers?

Dyslexia is characterized by slow, inaccurate reading and by deficits in executive functions. The deficit in reading is exemplified by impaired error monitoring, which can be specifically shown through neuroimaging, in changes in Error-/Correct-related negativities (ERN/CRN). The current study aimed to investigate whether a reading intervention program (Reading Acceleration Program, or RAP) could improve overall reading, as well as error monitoring and other cognitive abilities underlying reading, in adolescents with reading difficulties. Participants with reading difficulties and typical readers were trained with the RAP for 8 weeks. Their reading and error monitoring were characterized both behaviorally and electrophysiologically through a lexical decision task. Behaviorally, the reading training improved "contextual reading speed" and decreased reading errors in both groups. Improvements were also seen in speed of processing, memory and visual screening. Electrophysiologically, ERN increased in both groups following training, but the increase was significantly greater in the participants with reading difficulties. Furthermore, an association between the improvement in reading speed and the change in difference between ERN and CRN amplitudes following training was seen in participants with reading difficulties. These results indicate that improving deficits in error monitoring and speed of processing are possible underlying mechanisms of the RAP intervention. We suggest that ERN is a good candidate for use as a measurement in evaluating the effect of reading training in typical and disabled readers.

Dissociation of preparatory attention and response monitoring maturation during adolescence

OBJECTIVE

Substantial brain development occurs during adolescence providing the foundation for functional advancement from stimulus-bound "bottom-up" to more mature executive-driven "top-down" processing strategies. The objective was to assess development of EEG markers of these strategies and their role in both preparatory attention (contingent negative variation, CNV) and response monitoring (Error Related Negativity, ERN, and Correct Related Negativity, CRN).

METHODS

CNV, ERN and CRN were assessed in 38 adolescents (18 girls), age 11-18 years, using a variation of a letter discrimination task.

RESULTS

Accuracy increased with age and developmental stage. Younger adolescents used a posterior attention network involved in inhibiting irrelevant information. Activity in this juvenile network, as indexed by a posteriorly-biased CNV and CRN decreased with age and advancing pubertal development. Although enhanced frontal CNV, known to be predictive of accuracy in adults, was not detected even in the older adolescents, top-down medial frontal response monitoring processes (ERN) showed evidence of development within the age-range studied.

CONCLUSIONS

The data revealed a dissociation of developmental progress, marked by relatively delayed onset of frontal preparatory attention relative to error monitoring.

SIGNIFICANCE

This dissociation may render adolescents vulnerable to excessive risk-taking and disinhibited behavior imposed by asynchronous development of component cognitive control processes.

A matched filter hypothesis for cognitive control

The prefrontal cortex exerts top-down influences on several aspects of higher-order cognition by functioning as a filtering mechanism that biases bottom-up sensory information toward a response that is optimal in context. However, research also indicates that not all aspects of complex cognition benefit from prefrontal regulation. Here we review and synthesize this research with an emphasis on the domains of learning and creative cognition, and outline how the appropriate level of cognitive control in a given situation can vary depending on the organism's goals and the characteristics of the given task. We offer a matched filter hypothesis for cognitive control, which proposes that the optimal level of cognitive control is task-dependent, with high levels of cognitive control best suited to tasks that are explicit, rule-based, verbal or abstract, and can be accomplished given the capacity limits of working memory and with low levels of cognitive control best suited to tasks that are implicit, reward-based, non-verbal or intuitive, and which can be accomplished irrespective of working memory limitations. Our approach promotes a view of cognitive control as a tool adapted to a subset of common challenges, rather than an all-purpose optimization system suited to every problem the organism might encounter.

Performance monitoring in children and adolescents: a review of developmental changes in the error-related negativity and brain maturation

To realize our goals we continuously adapt our behavior according to internal or external feedback. Errors provide an important source for such feedback and elicit a scalp electrical potential referred to as the error-related negativity (ERN), which is a useful marker for studying typical and atypical development of cognitive control mechanisms involved in performance monitoring. In this review, we survey the available studies on age-related differences in the ERN in children and adolescents. The majority of the studies show that the ERN increases in strength throughout childhood and adolescence, suggesting continued maturation of the neural systems for performance monitoring, but there are still many unresolved questions. We further review recent research in adults that has provided important insights into the neural underpinnings of the ERN and performance monitoring, implicating distributed neural systems than include the dorsal anterior and posterior cingulate cortex, the lateral prefrontal cortex, insula, basal ganglia, thalamus and white matter connections between these regions. Finally, we discuss the possible roles of structural and functional maturation of these brain regions in the development of the ERN. Overall, we argue that future work should use multimodal approaches to give a better understanding of the neurocognitive development of performance monitoring.

The contribution of inhibitory deficits to dangerous driving among young people

A recent theory of adolescent risk taking that may be applicable to young drivers proposed that young people engage in more risks because they are more impulsive. While past research has found that problematic drivers do tend to score higher on measures of impulsivity, most of this research has relied on self-reported behaviours and attitudes. The present study investigates the role of impulsivity using computer-based measures of inhibitory functioning. Young drivers who had been caught speeding by the police were compared with non-offenders on two inhibitory measures: the Stop-signal task and the Go/no-go task. While the two groups did not differ in their performance on the Stop-signal task, there were significant differences between the groups on the Go/no-go task with the offender group displaying lower inhibitory skills. The results of the Go/no-go task were not entirely unambiguous as offenders were also found to have responded to go trials with a faster reaction-time. The implications of these results both for the impulsivity theory of adolescent risk taking and for the more general issue of adolescent risk taking are discussed.

Electrophysiological indices of error monitoring in juvenile and adult attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)--a meta-analytic appraisal

Attempts to identify the central disturbed processes explaining the overt symptoms of juvenile and adult ADHD rely heavily on the concept of deficient error monitoring processes. A number of studies have investigated event-related potentials (ERPs) and behavioral performance in tasks traditionally used to probe the interference control and inhibition of motor responses. The inspection of the error negativity (Ne/ERN) and error positivity (Pe) components evoked in these tasks has produced conflicting results with respect to the nature and extent of an error monitoring deficit in ADHD. A meta-analytic aggregation of these single studies should help develop a reliable appraisal of the evidence for the compromised performance monitoring processes in ADHD. Our meta-analysis was confined to studies of adult and juvenile ADHD participants examined in GoNogo and Flanker task studies that also reported the Ne/ERN and Pe ERP components. Only seven studies were suited for the meta-analysis, but their aggregation nevertheless led to clear results: Ne was attenuated in adult and adolescent ADHD participants for both tasks, and Pe was attenuated only in the GoNogo tasks. The ADHD participants made more errors than the controls in both tasks but responded slower only in the Flanker task. To our knowledge, this meta-analysis is the first to compare electrophysiological and behavioral indices of error monitoring in adult and juvenile ADHD patients and healthy controls. Admittedly, the data available for this comparison were sparse and heterogeneous; nevertheless, this meta-analysis produced salient results that indicate a monitoring deficit as a central feature of the ADHD syndrome.

Does development affect the error-related negativity of impaired and skilled readers? An ERP study

Previous findings of reduced error-related and correct-related negativities (ERN/CRN) and semantic N400 responses associated with reading errors among impaired adult readers led to the current study on age effects on these components. Event-related potentials (ERPs) were recorded from 43 adolescents and 46 adults, including skilled readers and persons with a history of reading disability, on a lexical decision task. Adolescents exhibited smaller ERN amplitudes and larger N400 amplitudes during reading errors, presumably due to the late maturation of the prefrontal cortex. The ERN amplitude difference between impaired and skilled readers was smaller in adolescents than adults, and adolescents exhibited a smaller N400 difference between correct and erroneous responses than adults. ERN amplitude increased with age in impaired readers. It is postulated that the still developing mental lexicon among adolescents results in greater semantic effort and reduced ERN differences.

Monitoring, metacognition, and executive function: elucidating the role of self-reflection in the development of self-regulation

While an abundance of research has investigated the development of the automatic and controlled processes through which individuals control their thoughts, emotions, and actions, less research has emphasized the role of the self in self-regulation. This chapter synthesizes four literatures that have examined the mechanisms through which the individual acts in a managerial role, evaluating the current status of the system and initiating regulatory actions as necessary. Taken together, these literatures (on executive function, error monitoring, metacognition, and uncertainty monitoring) suggest that self-reflection plays a critical role in self-regulation, and that developmental improvements in self-reflection (via increasing levels of conscious awareness and enhanced calibration of monitoring systems) may serve as driving forces underlying developmental improvement (and temperamental individual differences) in children's ability to control their thoughts and actions.

Self-regulation in ADHD: the role of error processing

Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is characterized by persistent and impairing developmentally inappropriate levels of inattention, hyperactivity, and impulsivity. Such behavioral dysregulation may be a consequence of deficits in self-monitoring or adaptive control, both of which are required for adaptive behavior. Processing of contextual demands, ongoing monitoring of one's behavior to evaluate whether it is appropriate for a particular situation, and adjusting behavior when it is suboptimal are components of self-regulation. This review examines and integrates the emerging literature on error-processing and adaptive control as components of self-regulation into the prominent etiological theories of ADHD. Available data on error-processing, as reflected in event-related potentials (ERN and Pe) and behavioral performance, suggest that both early error detection and later error-evaluation may be diminished in ADHD, thereby interfering with adaptive control processes. However, variability in results limit broad conclusions, particularly for early error detection. A range of methodological issues, including ERP parameters and sample and task characteristics, likely contribute to this variability, and recommendations for future work are presented. The emerging literature on error-processing and adaptive control informs etiological theories of ADHD in general and may provide a method for testing self-regulation models in particular.

Error-related processing dysfunction in children aged 9 to 12 years presenting putative antecedents of schizophrenia

BACKGROUND

Intervention aimed at preventing schizophrenia may be most effective if targeted at specific, but modifiable, functional impairments that present during childhood. We have developed a novel method of screening community samples aged 9 to 12 years to identify children who present a triad of putative antecedents of schizophrenia (ASz), defined as 1) speech and/or motor development lags/problems; 2) internalizing, externalizing, and/or peer-relationship problems in the clinical range; and 3) psychotic-like experiences. This study examined whether ASz children display brain function abnormalities during error processing that are similar to those exhibited by adults with schizophrenia.

METHODS

Twenty-two ASz children and 26 typically developing (TD) children with no antecedents of schizophrenia completed an error-inducing Go/NoGo task during event-related potential recording. Group differences were examined in the amplitude and latency of four event-related potential components: the initial error-related negativity (ERN) and later error-positivity (Pe) elicited on false-alarm responses to NoGo trials, and the corresponding initial correct response negativity (CRN) and later correct response positivity (Pc) elicited during processing of correct responses to Go trials.

RESULTS

Relative to TD children, ASz children were characterized by reduced ERN amplitude but unaffected CRN, Pe, and Pc amplitudes. No group differences were observed in the latency of any component.

CONCLUSIONS

Children presenting a triad of putative antecedents of schizophrenia show error-processing dysfunction mimicking that observed in adults with schizophrenia using the same Go/NoGo paradigm. The ASz children displayed specific early error-processing deficits rather than a generalized deficit in self-monitoring.

Electrophysiological indices of abnormal error-processing in adolescents with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)

BACKGROUND

Impaired cognitive control has been frequently observed in children and young people with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and might underlie the excessive hyperactivity and impulsivity in this population. We investigated behavioural and electrophysiological indices relevant to one domain of cognitive control; namely error processing.

METHODS

Adolescents aged 14 to 17 with ADHD (n = 23) and a typically developing control group (HC; n = 19) performed a visual go/no-go task. Electro-encephalography (EEG) data were collected simultaneously and response-locked error trials were averaged to derive two event-related potentials, the error-related negativity (ERN) and error positivity (Pe). Evoked theta power and inter-trial phase coherence (ITC) were measured in two time windows ('early' and 'late') equivalent to those used for detection of the ERN and Pe.

RESULTS

Analysis revealed normal ERN amplitude and a statistical trend for smaller Pe amplitude at a fronto-central electrode site in the ADHD group. The group also showed significant reductions in late evoked theta power and early and late theta ITC. Relationships between behavioural measures and ITC were different between groups, particularly for post-error slowing, a measure of strategic response adjustment on trials immediately following an error.

CONCLUSIONS

The results reveal abnormalities in behavioural and electrophysiological indices of error processing in adolescents with ADHD and suggest that ITC is more sensitive than traditional ERP measures to error-processing abnormalities.

The development of performance-monitoring function in the posterior medial frontal cortex

BACKGROUND

Despite its critical role in performance-monitoring, the development of posterior medial prefrontal cortex (pMFC) in goal-directed behaviors remains poorly understood. Performance monitoring depends on distinct, but related functions that may differentially activate the pMFC, such as monitoring response conflict and detecting errors. Developmental differences in conflict- and error-related activations, coupled with age-related changes in behavioral performance, may confound attempts to map the maturation of pMFC functions. To characterize the development of pMFC-based performance monitoring functions, we segregated interference and error-processing, while statistically controlling for performance.

METHODS

Twenty-one adults and 23 youth performed an event-related version of the Multi-Source Interference Task during functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). Linear modeling of interference and error contrast estimates derived from the pMFC were regressed on age, while covarying for performance.

RESULTS

Interference- and error-processing were associated with robust activation of the pMFC in both youth and adults. Among youth, interference- and error-related activation of the pMFC increased with age, independent of performance. Greater accuracy associated with greater pMFC activity during error commission in both groups.

DISCUSSION

Increasing pMFC response to interference and errors occurs with age, likely contributing to the improvement of performance monitoring capacity during development.

Brain network dynamics during error commission

Previous studies suggest that the anterior cingulate and other prefrontal brain regions might form a functionally-integrated error detection network in the human brain. This study examined whole brain functional connectivity to both correct and incorrect button presses using independent component analysis (ICA) of functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) data collected from 25 adolescent and 25 adult healthy participants (ages 11-37) performing a visual Go/No-Go task. Correct responses engaged a network comprising left lateral prefrontal cortex, left postcentral gyrus/inferior parietal lobule, striatum, and left cerebellum. In contrast, a similar network was uniquely engaged during errors, but this network was not integrated with activity in regions believed to be engaged for higher-order cognitive control over behavior. A medial/dorsolateral prefrontal-parietal neural network responded to all No-Go stimuli, but with significantly greater activity to errors. ICA analyses also identified a third error-related circuit comprised of anterior temporal lobe, limbic, and pregenual cingulate cortices, possibly representing an affective response to errors. There were developmental differences in error-processing activity within many of these neural circuits, typically reflecting greater hemodynamic activation in adults. These findings characterize the spatial structure of neural networks underlying error commission and identify neurobiological differences between adolescents and adults.

Reduced error monitoring in children with autism spectrum disorder: an ERP study

This study investigated self-monitoring in children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) with event-related potentials looking at both the error-related negativity (ERN) and error-related positivity (Pe). The ERN is related to early error/conflict detection, and the Pe has been associated with conscious error evaluation or attention allocation. In addition, post-error slowing in reaction times (RTs) was measured. Children with ASD and age- and IQ- matched controls were administered an easy and a hard version of an auditory decision task. Results showed that the ERN was smaller in children with ASD but localized in the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) in both groups. In addition we found a negativity on correct trials (CRN) that did not differ between the groups. Furthermore, a reduced Pe and a lack of post-error slowing in RTs were found in children with ASD. The reduced ERN in children with ASD, in the presence of an intact CRN, might suggest a specific insensitivity to detect situations in which the chance of making errors is enhanced. This might in turn lead to reduced error awareness/attention allocation to the erroneous event (reduced Pe) and eventually in a failure in change of strategy to deal with a situation, as becomes evident from the lack of post-error slowing in the ASD group. This relates well to the perseverative behaviour that is seen in children with ASD. We discuss these results in terms of a general deficit in self-monitoring, underlying social disturbance in ASD and the involvement of the ACC.

Pilot study of response inhibition and error processing in the posterior medial prefrontal cortex in healthy youth

BACKGROUND

Recent neuroimaging work suggests that inhibitory and error processing in healthy adults share overlapping, but functionally distinct neural circuitries within the posterior medial frontal cortex (pMFC); however, it remains unknown whether the pMFC is differentially engaged by response inhibition compared to error commission in the developing brain. Developmental neuroimaging studies of response inhibition have found pMFC activation, but the possible contribution of error-related activation during inhibitory processing has not been well studied in youth.

METHOD

To examine the processing of correct response inhibition compared to errors in the developing brain, we performed functional magnetic resonance imaging scans in 11 healthy subjects, ages 8-14 years, during an antisaccade task while performance was monitored.

RESULTS

Successful antisaccades activated the pre-supplementary motor area. In contrast, errors on the antisaccade task activated the dorsal anterior cingulate cortex.

CONCLUSION

The findings suggest the functional sub-specialization of inhibitory and error processing within the pMFC in this pilot sample of children and adolescents. Future neuroimaging studies of developing inhibitory control should examine both between correct and error trials.

The error-related negativity (ERN) and psychopathology: toward an endophenotype

The ERN is a negative deflection in the event-related potential that peaks approximately 50 ms after the commission of an error. The ERN is thought to reflect early error-processing activity of the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC). First, we review current functional, neurobiological, and developmental data on the ERN. Next, the ERN is discussed in terms of three psychiatric disorders characterized by abnormal response monitoring: anxiety disorders, depression, and substance abuse. These data indicate that increased and decreased error-related brain activity is associated with the internalizing and externalizing dimensions of psychopathology, respectively. Recent data further suggest that abnormal error-processing indexed by the ERN indexes trait- but not state-related symptoms, especially related to anxiety. Overall, these data point to utility of ERN in studying risk for psychiatric disorders, and are discussed in terms of the endophenotype construct.

Maturational changes in anterior cingulate and frontoparietal recruitment support the development of error processing and inhibitory control

Documenting the development of the functional anatomy underlying error processing is critically important for understanding age-related improvements in cognitive performance. Here we used functional magnetic resonance imaging to examine time courses of brain activity in 77 individuals aged 8-27 years during correct and incorrect performance of an oculomotor task requiring inhibitory control. Canonical eye-movement regions showed increased activity for correct versus error trials but no differences between children, adolescents and young adults, suggesting that core task processes are in place early in development. Anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) was a central focus. In rostral ACC all age groups showed significant deactivation during correct but not error trials, consistent with the proposal that such deactivation reflects suspension of a "default mode" necessary for effective controlled performance. In contrast, dorsal ACC showed increased and extended modulation for error versus correct trials in adults, which, in children and adolescents, was significantly attenuated. Further, younger age groups showed reduced activity in posterior attentional regions, relying instead on increased recruitment of regions within prefrontal cortex. This work suggests that functional changes in dorsal ACC associated with error regulation and error-feedback utilization, coupled with changes in the recruitment of "long-range" attentional networks, underlie age-related improvements in performance.