The Influence of Feedback on Task-Switching Performance: A Drift Diffusion Modeling Account.

Russell Cohen Hoffing,Povilas Karvelis,Aaron R. Seitz,Peggy Seriès,Samuel Rupprechter

doi:10.3389/fnint.2018.00001

Russell Cohen Hoffing, Povilas Karvelis + Show 3 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.3389/fnint.2018.00001

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Abstract

Task-switching is an important cognitive skill that facilitates our ability to choose appropriate behavior in a varied and changing environment. Task-switching training studies have sought to improve this ability by practicing switching between multiple tasks. However, an efficacious training paradigm has been difficult to develop in part due to findings that small differences in task parameters influence switching behavior in a non-trivial manner. Here, for the first time we employ the Drift Diffusion Model (DDM) to understand the influence of feedback on task-switching and investigate how drift diffusion parameters change over the course of task switch training. We trained 316 participants on a simple task where they alternated sorting stimuli by color or by shape. Feedback differed in six different ways between subjects groups, ranging from No Feedback (NFB) to a variety of manipulations addressing trial-wise vs. Block Feedback (BFB), rewards vs. punishments, payment bonuses and different payouts depending upon the trial type (switch/non-switch). While overall performance was found to be affected by feedback, no effect of feedback was found on task-switching learning. Drift Diffusion Modeling revealed that the reductions in reaction time (RT) switch cost over the course of training were driven by a continually decreasing decision boundary. Furthermore, feedback effects on RT switch cost were also driven by differences in decision boundary, but not in drift rate. These results reveal that participants systematically modified their task-switching performance without yielding an overall gain in performance.

Highlights

Task-switching is an important cognitive skill that facilitates our ability to choose appropriate behavior in a varied and changing environment
This result indicates that reward structures, if properly constructed to align with training goals, may be able to modify behavior in a manner consistent and beneficial to training outcomes. We found that both feedback and training can have significant effects on task-switching performance
We used Drift Diffusion Model (DDM) modeling to account for speed-accuracy trade-offs and, for the first time, to show how decision processes change over the course of task-switching training

Summary

Introduction

Task-switching is an important cognitive skill that facilitates our ability to choose appropriate behavior in a varied and changing environment. Consistent with this, training studies show that task-switching can, at least in certain circumstances, be improved through training (Minear and Shah, 2008; Karbach and Kray, 2009; Strobach et al, 2012). It is likely that part of these training outcome inconsistencies are due to the use of different task structures and parameters across studies (Vandierendonck et al, 2010). In task-switching training, different preparatory times (Monsell, 2003), cues (Monsell, 2003)

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Conclusion