EEG tensor decomposition delineates neurophysiological principles underlying conflict-modulated action restraint and action cancellation.

Executive functions are essential for adaptive behavior. One executive function is the so-called 'interference control' or conflict monitoring another one is inhibitory control (i.e., action restraint and action cancelation). Recent evidence suggests an interplay of these processes, which is conceptually relevant given that newer conceptual frameworks imply that nominally different action/response control processes are explainable by a small set of cognitive and neurophysiological processes. The existence of such overarching neural principles has as yet not directly been examined. In the current study, we therefore use EEG tensor decomposition methods, to look into possible common neurophysiological signatures underlying conflict-modulated action restraint and action cancelation as mechanism underlying response inhibition. We show how conflicts differentially modulate action restraint and action cancelation processes and delineate common and distinct neural processes underlying this interplay. Concerning the spatial information modulations are similar in terms of an importance of processes reflected by parieto-occipital electrodes, suggesting that attentional selection processes play a role. Especially theta and alpha activity seem to play important roles. The data also show that tensor decomposition is sensitive to the manner of task implementation, thereby suggesting that switch probability/transitional probabilities should be taken into consideration when choosing tensor decomposition as analysis method. The study provides a blueprint of how to use tensor decomposition methods to delineate common and distinct neural mechanisms underlying action control functions using EEG data.

Response stopping under conflict: The integrative role of representational dynamics associated with the insular cortex.

Coping with distracting inputs during goal-directed behavior is a common challenge, especially when stopping ongoing responses. The neural basis for this remains debated. Our study explores this using a conflict-modulation Stop Signal task, integrating group independent component analysis (group-ICA), multivariate pattern analysis (MVPA), and EEG source localization analysis. Consistent with previous findings, we show that stopping performance is better in congruent (nonconflicting) trials than in incongruent (conflicting) trials. Conflict effects in incongruent trials compromise stopping more due to the need for the reconfiguration of stimulus-response (S-R) mappings. These cognitive dynamics are reflected by four independent neural activity patterns (ICA), each coding representational content (MVPA). It is shown that each component was equally important in predicting behavioral outcomes. The data support an emerging idea that perception-action integration in action-stopping involves multiple independent neural activity patterns. One pattern relates to the precuneus (BA 7) and is involved in attention and early S-R processes. Of note, three other independent neural activity patterns were associated with the insular cortex (BA13) in distinct time windows. These patterns reflect a role in early attentional selection but also show the reiterated processing of representational content relevant for stopping in different S-R mapping contexts. Moreover, the insular cortex's role in automatic versus complex response selection in relation to stopping processes is shown. Overall, the insular cortex is depicted as a brain hub, crucial for response selection and cancellation across both straightforward (automatic) and complex (conditional) S-R mappings, providing a neural basis for general cognitive accounts on action control.

The Ability to Voluntarily Regulate Theta Band Activity Affects How Pharmacological Manipulation of the Catecholaminergic System Impacts Cognitive Control.

BACKGROUND: The catecholaminergic system influences response inhibition, but the magnitude of the impact of catecholaminergic manipulation is heterogeneous. Theoretical considerations suggest that the voluntary modulability of theta band activity can explain this variance. The study aimed to investigate to what extent interindividual differences in catecholaminergic effects on response inhibition depend on voluntary theta band activity modulation. METHODS: A total of 67 healthy adults were tested in a randomized, double-blind, cross-over study design. At each appointment, they received a single dose of methylphenidate or placebo and performed a Go/Nogo task with stimuli of varying complexity. Before the first appointment, the individual's ability to modulate theta band activity was measured. Recorded EEG data were analyzed using temporal decomposition and multivariate pattern analysis. RESULTS: Methylphenidate effects and voluntary modulability of theta band activity showed an interactive effect on the false alarm rates of the different Nogo conditions. The multivariate pattern analysis revealed that methylphenidate effects interacted with voluntary modulability of theta band activity at a stimulus processing level, whereas during response selection methylphenidate effects interacted with the complexity of the Nogo condition. CONCLUSIONS: The findings reveal that the individual's theta band modulability affects the responsiveness of an individual's catecholaminergic system to pharmacological modulation. Thus, the impact of pharmacological manipulation of the catecholaminergic system on cognitive control most likely depends on the existing ability to self-modulate relevant brain oscillatory patterns underlying the cognitive processes being targeted by pharmacological modulations.

On the Role of Memory Representations in Action Control: Neurophysiological Decoding Reveals the Reactivation of Integrated Stimulus-Response Feature Representations.

Efficient response selection is essential to flexible, goal-directed behavior. Prominent theoretical frameworks such as the Theory of Event Coding and Binding and Retrieval in Action Control have provided insights regarding the dynamics of perception-action integration processes. According to Theory of Event Coding and Binding and Retrieval in Action Control, encoded representations of stimulus-response bindings influence later retrieval processes of these bindings. However, this concept still lacks conclusive empirical evidence. In the current study, we applied representational decoding to EEG data. On the behavioral level, the findings replicated binding effects that have been established in previous studies: The task performance was impaired when an event file had to be reconfigured. The EEG-decoding results showed that retrieval processes of stimulus-response bindings could be decoded using the representational content developed after the initial establishment of these stimulus-response bindings. We showed that stimulus-related properties became immediately reactivated when re-encountering the respective stimulus-response association. These reactivations were temporally stable. In contrast, representations of stimulus-response mappings revealed a transient pattern of activity and could not successfully be decoded directly after stimulus-response binding. Information detailing the bindings between stimuli and responses were also retrieved, but only after having been loaded into a memory system. The current study supports the notion that stimulus-response integration and memory processes are intertwined at multiple levels.

Alpha and Theta Bands Dynamics Serve Distinct Functions during Perception-Action Integration in Response Inhibition.

The ability to inhibit responses is central for situational behavior. However, the mechanisms how sensory information is used to inform inhibitory control processes are incompletely understood. In the current study, we examined neurophysiological processes of perception-action integration in response inhibition using the theory of event coding as a conceptual framework. Based on theoretical considerations, we focused on theta and alpha band activity in close connection to the functional neuroanatomical level using EEG beamforming. Moreover, we performed a network-based analysis of theta and alpha band activity. We show a seesaw-like relationship between medial and superior frontal cortex theta band activity and frontoparietal cortex alpha band activity during perception-action integration in response inhibition, depending on the necessity to reconfigure perception-action associations. When perception-action integration was more demanding, because perception-action associations (bindings) have to be reconfigured, there was an increase of theta and a decrease of alpha band activity. Vice versa, when there was no need to reconfigure perception-action bindings, theta band activity was low and alpha band activity was high. However, theta band processes seem to be most important for perception-action integration in response inhibition, because only the sensor-level network organization of theta band activity showed variations depending on the necessity to reconfigure perception-action associations. When no reconfiguration was necessary, the network architecture was more small-world-like, likely enabling efficient processing. When reconfigurations were necessary, the network organization becomes more random. These differences were particularly strong for fractions of the neurophysiological signal supposed to reflect response selection processes.

Perception-Action Integration Is Modulated by the Catecholaminergic System Depending on Learning Experience.

BACKGROUND: The process underlying the integration of perception and action is a focal topic in neuroscientific research and cognitive frameworks such as the theory of event coding have been developed to explain the mechanisms of perception-action integration. The neurobiological underpinnings are poorly understood. While it has been suggested that the catecholaminergic system may play a role, there are opposing predictions regarding the effects of catecholamines on perception-action integration. METHODS: Methylphenidate (MPH) is a compound commonly used to modulate the catecholaminergic system. In a double-blind, randomized crossover study design, we examined the effect of MPH (0.25 mg/kg) on perception-action integration using an established "event file coding" paradigm in a group of n = 45 healthy young adults. RESULTS: The data reveal that, compared with the placebo, MPH attenuates binding effects based on the established associations between stimuli and responses, provided participants are already familiar with the task. However, without prior task experience, MPH did not modulate performance compared with the placebo. CONCLUSIONS: Catecholamines and learning experience interactively modulate perception-action integration, especially when perception-action associations have to be reconfigured. The data suggest there is a gain control-based mechanism underlying the interactive effects of learning/task experience and catecholaminergic activity during perception-action integration.

Resting theta activity is associated with specific coding levels in event-related theta activity during conflict monitoring.

Brain electrical activity in the theta frequency band is essential for cognitive control (e.g., during conflict monitoring), but is also evident in the resting state. The link between resting state theta activity and its relevance for theta-related neural mechanisms during cognitive control is still undetermined. Yet, theoretical considerations suggest that there may be a connection. To examine the link between resting state theta activity and conflict-related theta activity, we combined temporal EEG signal decomposition methods with time-frequency decomposition and beamforming methods in N = 86 healthy participants. Results indicate that resting state theta activity is closely associated with the strength of conflict-related neural activity at the level of ERPs and total theta power (consisting of phase-locked and nonphase-locked aspects of theta activity). The data reveal that resting state theta activity is related to a specific aspect of conflict-related theta activity, mainly in superior frontal regions and in the supplemental motor area (SMA, BA6) in particular. The signal decomposition showed that only stimulus-related, but not motor-response-related coding levels in the EEG signal and the event-related total theta activity were associated with resting theta activity. This specificity of effects may explain why the association between resting state theta activity and overt conflict monitoring performance may not be as strong as often assumed. The results suggest that resting state theta activity is particularly important to consider for input integration processes during cognitive control.

Learning Experience Reverses Catecholaminergic Effects on Adaptive Behavior.

BACKGROUND: Catecholamines are important for cognitive control and the ability to adapt behavior (e.g., after response errors). A prominent drug that modulates the catecholaminergic system is methylphenidate. On the basis of theoretical consideration, we propose that the effects of methylphenidate on behavioral adaptation depend on prior learning experience. METHODS: In a double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled crossover study design, we examined the effect of methylphenidate (0.25 mg/kg) on post error behavioral adaptation processes in a group of n = 43 healthy young adults. Behavioral adaptation processes were examined in a working memory, modulated response selection task. The focus of the analysis was on order effects within the crossover study design to evaluate effects of prior learning/task experience. RESULTS: The effect of methylphenidate/placebo on post-error behavioral adaptation processes reverses depending on prior task experience. When there was no prior experience with the task, methylphenidate increased post-error slowing and thus intensified behavioral adaptation processes. However, when there was prior task experience, (i.e., when the placebo session was conducted first in the crossover design), methylphenidate even decreased post-error slowing and behavioral adaptation. Effect sizes were large and the power of the observed effects was higher than 95%. CONCLUSIONS: The data suggest that catecholaminergic effects on cognitive control functions vary as a function of prior learning/task experience. The data establish a close link between learning/task familiarization and catecholaminergic effects for executive functions, which has not yet been studied, to our knowledge, but is of considerable clinical relevance. Theoretical implications are discussed.

The role of visual association cortices during response selection processes in interference-modulated response stopping.

Response inhibition and the ability to navigate distracting information are both integral parts of cognitive control and are imperative to adaptive behavior in everyday life. Thus far, research has only inconclusively been able to draw inferences regarding the association between response stopping and the effects of interfering information. Using a novel combination of the Simon task and a stop signal task, the current study set out to investigate the behavioral as well as the neurophysiological underpinnings of the relationship between response stopping and interference processing. We tested n = 27 healthy individuals and combined temporal EEG signal decomposition with source localization methods to delineate the precise neurophysiological dynamics and functional neuroanatomical structures associated with conflict effects on response stopping. The results showed that stopping performance was compromised by conflicts. Importantly, these behavioral effects were reflected by specific aspects of information coded in the neurophysiological signal, indicating that conflict effects during response stopping are not mediated via purely perceptual processes. Rather, it is the processing of specific, stop-relevant stimulus features in the sensory regions during response selection, which underlies the emergence of conflict effects in response stopping. The findings connect research regarding response stopping with overarching theoretical frameworks of perception-action integration.

Pre-trial fronto-occipital electrophysiological connectivity affects perception-action integration in response inhibition.

Inhibition of inappropriate behavior is relevant in many everyday situations. Nevertheless, the mechanisms that induce response inhibition based on sensory information and what influences these mechanisms are not entirely understood. We examined neurophysiological processes of perception-action integration in response inhibition and the impact of the pre-trial neurophysiological functional connectivity state in the theta and alpha band on these integration processes. The study was motivated by the Theory of Event Coding framework. Within the trial, fronto-medial theta band activity and occipital alpha band activity revealed an opposing interplay depending on the necessity of (re-)binding event files, i.e., the disintegration and recombination of stimulus-response associations, during response inhibition. When response inhibition required the reconfiguration of event files, this was associated with increased theta band activity but lower alpha band activity, and vice versa for the retrieval of event files. Notably, the most substantial impact of pre-trial connectivity on the within-trial event file binding effect (the difference between conditions that require reconfiguration and those that do not) during response inhibition occurred between fronto-medial areas and areas of the ventral stream in the theta frequency band. This suggests a preparatory top-down control of sensory areas before stimulus presentation. Increased pre-trial connectivity was associated with a decreased event file binding effect in the alpha frequency band and an increased event file binding effect in the theta frequency band during response inhibition. This implies an impact of the pre-trial functional connectivity state on inhibitory gating processes of relevant information and event file (re-)binding during response inhibition. The study shows how perception-action integration during response inhibition is affected by preceding transient neurophysiological connectivity states.

Cognitive science theory-driven pharmacology elucidates the neurobiological basis of perception-motor integration.

An efficient integration of sensory and motor processes is crucial to goal-directed behavior. Despite this high relevance, and although cognitive theories provide clear conceptual frameworks, the neurobiological basis of these processes remains insufficiently understood. In a double-blind, randomized placebo-controlled pharmacological study, we examine the relevance of catecholamines for perception-motor integration processes. Using EEG data, we perform an in-depth analysis of the underlying neurophysiological mechanisms, focusing on sensorimotor integration processes during response inhibition. We show that the catecholaminergic system affects sensorimotor integration during response inhibition by modulating the stability of the representational content. Importantly, catecholamine levels do not affect the stability of all aspects of information processing during sensorimotor integration, but rather-as suggested by cognitive theory-of specific codes in the neurophysiological signal. Particularly fronto-parietal cortical regions are associated with the identified mechanisms. The study shows how cognitive science theory-driven pharmacology can shed light on the neurobiological basis of perception-motor integration and how catecholamines affect specific information codes relevant to cognitive control.

The Effects of Different Theta and Beta Neurofeedback Training Protocols on Cognitive Control in ADHD.

Neurofeedback (NF) is an important treatment for attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). In ADHD, cognitive control deficits pose considerable problems to patients. However, NF protocols are not yet optimized to enhance cognitive control alongside with clinical symptoms, partly because they are not driven by basic cognitive neuroscience. In this study, we evaluated different EEG theta and/or beta frequency band NF protocols designed to enhance cognitive control. Participants were n = 157 children and adolescents, n = 129 of them were patients with ADHD (n = 28 typically developing (TD) controls). Patients with ADHD were divided into five groups in the order of referral, with four of them taking part in different NF protocols systematically varying theta and beta power. The fifth ADHD group and the TD group did not undergo NF. All NF protocols resulted in reductions of ADHD symptoms. Importantly, only when beta frequencies were enhanced during NF (without any theta regulation or in combination with theta upregulation), consistent enhancing effects in both response inhibition and conflict control were achieved. The theta/beta NF protocol most widely used in clinical settings revealed comparatively limited effects. Enhancements in beta band activity are key when aiming to improve cognitive control functions in ADHD. This calls for a change in the use of theta/beta NF protocols and shows that protocols differing from the current clinical standard are effective in enhancing important facets of cognitive control in ADHD. Further studies need to examine regulation data within the neurofeedback sessions to provide more information about the mechanisms underlying the observed effects. Supplementary Information: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s41465-022-00255-6.