Activation of Right Ventral Prefrontal Cortex Using a Predictive Cue during Visual Spatial Orienting of Attentional Processes: An fMRI Study

Abstract

Visual spatial orienting of attention can be investigated with location-cueing paradigms in which a cue provides correct information about the location of the upcoming target. Target detection is facilitated when the target appears at the expected cued location. In this study, we examined the brain activation of the spatial orienting response based on attentional “benefits.” During an fMRI experiment, two types of attentional tasks were used. Both predictive and nonpredictive cues were used and followed by an upcoming target. Behavioral data showed a faster reaction time with the predictive cue when compared with that of the nonpredictive cue. The fMRI results of these two tasks were compared, whereby isolated brain areas activated when the targets appeared at the attended position after a specific spatial expectation was induced by the cue were compared with when equivalent targets appeared after no spatial expectation was induced by the cue. The results showed that the right ventral prefrontal cortex was activated to a similar degree as the dorsal frontoparietal spatial attentional network.