Abstract
Focusing on relevant and ignoring irrelevant information is essential for many learning processes. The present study investigated attention-related brain activity and pupil dilation responses, evoked by task-irrelevant emotional novel sounds. In the framework of current theories about the relation between attention and the locus coeruleus-norepinephrine (LC-NE) system, we simultaneously registered event-related potentials (ERPs) in the EEG and changes in pupil diameter (PDR).Unexpected emotional negative and neutral environmental novel sounds were presented within a sequence of repeated standard sounds to 7–10-year-old children and to adults, while participants focused on a visual task.Novel sounds evoked distinctive ERP components, reflecting attention processes and a biphasic PDR in both age groups. Amplitudes of the novel-minus-standard ERPs were increased in children compared to adults, indicating immature neuronal basis of auditory attention in middle childhood. Emotional versus neutral novel sounds evoked increased responses in the ERPs and in the PDR in both age groups. This demonstrates the increased impact of emotional sounds on attention mechanisms and indicates an advanced level of emotional information processing in children. The similar pattern of novel-related PDR and ERPs is conforming to recent theories, emphasizing the role of the LC-NE system in attention processes adding a developmental perspective.
Highlights
Focused attention can be captured by an unexpected occurrence of new events even if they are not relevant for the task at hand
The analyses were based on the difference amplitudes of the components P2, early and late P3a and late discriminative negativity (LDN) observed in both groups
Novel sounds evoked a characteristic pattern of event-related potentials (ERPs) components containing P2, early and late P3a, and LDN, that have been associated with attention
Summary
Focused attention can be captured by an unexpected occurrence of new events even if they are not relevant for the task at hand. The present study aimed to investigate the neuronal basis of the underlying mechanisms for the orientation of attention and the evaluation of task-irrelevant events in middle childhood (7–10 years). We focused on the impact of emotional information of novel sounds on attention processes in children. The analysis of emotion and novelty processing and their interaction is highly relevant to understand how children deal with new but unexpected emotional information. Knowledge about the development of attention processes can be used to improve learning environments and task structures, especially in schools (for an example, see Fisher et al, 2014)
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