Contingent Negative Variation Research Articles

Neurophysiological characteristics of reward processing in individuals at different levels of gaming.

Altered reward processing has been repeatedly reported in Internet gaming disorder (IGD). However, it remains unclear whether these changes are linked to the severity of addictive symptoms or the extent of gaming experience. This study examined the neurophysiological responses regarding reward anticipation and consummation in individuals at different levels of gaming (including 22 casual gamers, 31 regular gamers, and 27 individuals with IGD) through a monetary incentive delay task. Three event-related potential components during reward anticipation-cue-related P300 (Cue-P3), contingent negative variation, and stimulus-preceding negativity (SPN)-and two during reward consummation-feedback-related negativity and feedback-related P300 (FB-P3)-were measured. We found that IGD individuals exhibited greater Cue-P3 but lower SPN amplitude compared to casual gamers, while regular gamers fell between the two without significant differences. Regressions indicated that more extensive gaming experience, rather than the severity of the symptoms, primarily contributed to the increased Cue-P3 in IGD. No group differences were found during reward consummation. Our results highlight disrupted reward anticipation processing in IGD, characterized by increased attention bias toward reward cues (Cue-P3) but diminished cognitive resources for reward anticipation (SPN) and emphasize the role of gaming experience in increased attention bias in IGD.

Contingent negative variation for assessment of neurological deficits in children with hypothyroidism

Objectives: Hypothyroidism is one of the most common endocrine disorders. Its effect on the central nervous system is more pronounced, especially in the pediatric age group. Despite receiving adequate thyroid hormone replacement therapy, several patients continue to suffer from neurological impairments including cognitive dysfunction. Contingent negative variation (CNV) is an event-related potential (ERP) that is considered as an indicator of cognitive function. In this study, CNV was recorded in children with hypothyroidism. To the best of our knowledge to date, there have been no studies of CNV in hypothyroidism. Materials and Methods: This prospective study included 52 children between 8 and 15 years of age who were newly diagnosed with hypothyroidism. Diagnosis of hypothyroidism was based on laboratory thyroid function tests. CNV ERP was recorded in the enrolled children at the time of diagnosis, 1-month, and 6-month follow-up. Initial CNV (iCNV) and late CNV (lCNV) amplitudes and latencies were recorded each time. Results: Although the amplitudes of iCNV and lCNV appeared to increase during follow-ups, the changes were not statistically significant (P > 0.05). Similarly, there appeared to be a modest reduction in latencies of iCNV or lCNV during follow-up; however, these changes were not statistically significant either. Conclusion: Our study did not show any significant changes in neurophysiological parameters. This may be attributed to a shorter time period of follow-up of six months and a smaller sample size. There is a possibility that CNV parameters may show more pronounced changes after a prolonged duration of treatment.

Rhythm-based Temporal Expectations: Unique Contributions of Predictability and Periodicity.

Anticipating events and focusing attention accordingly are crucial for navigating our dynamic environment. Rhythmic patterns of sensory input offer valuable cues for temporal expectations and facilitate perceptual processing. Rhythm-based temporal expectations may rely on oscillatory entrainment, where neural activity and perceptual sensitivity synchronize with periodic stimuli. However, whether entrainment models can account for aperiodic predictable rhythms remains unclear. Our study aimed to delineate the distinct roles of predictability and periodicity in rhythm-based expectations. Participants performed a pitch-identification task preceded by periodic predictable, aperiodic predictable, or aperiodic unpredictable temporal sequences. By manipulating the temporal position of the target sound, we observed how auditory perceptual performance was modulated by the target position's relative phase relationship to the preceding sequences. Results revealed a significant performance advantage for predictable sequences, both periodic and aperiodic, compared with unpredictable ones. However, only the periodic sequence induced an entrained modulation pattern, with performance peaking in synchrony with the inherent sequence continuation. Event-related brain potentials corroborated these findings. The target-evoked P3b, possibly a neural marker of attention allocation, mirrored the behavioral performance patterns. This supports our hypothesis that temporal attention guided by rhythm-based expectations modulates perceptual performance. Furthermore, the predictive sequences were associated with enhanced target-preceding negativity (akin to the contingent negative variation), indicating enhanced target preparation. The periodic-specific modulation likely reflects more precise temporal expectations, potentially involving neural entrainment and/or more focused attention. Our findings suggest that predictability and periodicity influence perception through distinct mechanisms.

Musical Expertise Influences the Processing of Short and Long Auditory Time Intervals: An Electroencephalography Study.

Musical expertise has been proven to be beneficial for time perception abilities, with musicians outperforming nonmusicians in several explicit timing tasks. However, it is unclear how musical expertise impacts implicit time perception. Twenty nonmusicians and 15 expert musicians participated in an EEG recording during a passive auditory oddball paradigm with 0.8- and 1.6-sec standard time intervals and deviant intervals that were either played earlier or delayed relative to the standard interval. We first confirmed that, as was the case for nonmusicians, musicians use different neurofunctional processes to support the perception of short (below 1.2 sec) and long (above 1.2 sec) time intervals: Whereas deviance detection for long intervals elicited a N1 component, P2 was associated with deviance detection for short time intervals. Interestingly, musicians did not elicit a contingent negative variation (CNV) for longer intervals but show additional components of deviance detection such as (i) an attention-related N1 component, even for deviants occurring during short intervals; (ii) a N2 component for above and below 1.2-sec deviance detection, and (iii) a P2 component for above 1.2-sec deviance detection. We propose that the N2 component is a marker of explicit deviance detection and acts as an inhibitory/conflict monitoring of the deviance. This hypothesis was supported by a positive correlation between CNV and N2 amplitudes: The CNV reflects the temporal accumulator and can predict explicit detection of the deviance. In expert musicians, a N2 component is observable without CNV, suggesting that deviance detection is optimized and does not require the temporal accumulator. Overall, this study suggests that musical expertise is associated with optimized implicit time perception.

Neural Signature and Decoding of Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Operators in Emergency Scenarios Using Electroencephalography.

Brain-computer interface (BCI) offers a novel means of communication and control for individuals with disabilities and can also enhance the interactions between humans and machines for the broader population. This paper explores the brain neural signatures of unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) operators in emergencies and develops an operator's electroencephalography (EEG) signals-based detection method for UAV emergencies. We found regularity characteristics similar to classic event-related potential (ERP) components like visual mismatch negativity (vMMN) and contingent negative variation (CNV). Source analysis revealed a sequential activation of the occipital, temporal, and frontal lobes following the onset of emergencies, corresponding to the processing of attention, emotion, and motor intention triggered by visual stimuli. Furthermore, an online detection system was implemented and tested. Experimental results showed that the system achieved an average accuracy of over 88% in detecting emergencies with a detection latency of 431.95 ms from the emergency onset. This work lays a foundation for understanding the brain activities of operators in emergencies and developing an EEG-based detection method for emergencies to assist UAV operations.

Cortical oscillations and event-related brain potentials during the preparation and execution of deceptive behavior.

Deception often occurs in response to a preceding cue (e.g., a precarious question) alerting us about the need to subsequently lie. Here, we simulate this process by adapting a previously established paradigm of intentionally false responding, now instructing participants about the need for deception (vs. truthful responses) by means of a simple cue occurring before each response-relevant target. We analyzed event-related brain potentials (ERPs) as well as cortical oscillations recorded from the scalp. In an experimental study (N = 44), we show that a cue signaling the need for deception involves increased attentional selection (P2, P3a, P3b). Moreover, in the period following the cue and leading up to the target, ERP and oscillatory signatures of anticipation and preparation (Contingent Negative Variation, alpha suppression) were found to be increased during trials requiring a deceptive as compared to a truthful response. Additionally, we replicated earlier findings that target processing involves enhanced motivated attention toward words requiring a deceptive response (LPC). Moreover, a signature of integration effort and semantic inhibition (N400) was observed to be larger for words to which responses have to be intentionally false as compared to those to which responses must be truthful. Our findings support the view of the involvement of a series of basic cognitive processes (especially attention and cognitive control) when responses are deliberately wrong instead of right. Moreover, preceding cues signaling the subsequent need for lying already elicit attentional and preparatory mechanisms facilitating the cognitive operations necessary for later successful lying.

Pain anticipation is a new behavioural sign of minimally conscious state.

Probing cognition and consciousness in the absence of functional communication remains an extremely challenging task. In this perspective, we imagined a basic clinical procedure to explore pain anticipation at bedside. In a series of 61 patients with a disorder of consciousness, we tested the existence of a nociceptive anticipation response by pairing a somaesthetic stimulation with a noxious stimulation. We then explored how nociceptive anticipation response correlated with (i) clinical status inferred from Coma Recovery Scale-Revised scoring, (ii) with an EEG signature of stimulus anticipation-the contingent negative variation-and (iii) how nociceptive anticipation response could predict consciousness outcome at 6 months. Proportion of nociceptive anticipation response differed significantly according to the state of consciousness: nociceptive anticipation response was present in 5 of 5 emerging from minimally conscious state patients (100%), in 10 of 11 minimally conscious state plus patients (91%), but only in 8 of 17 minimally conscious state minus patients (47%), and only in 1 of 24 vegetative state/unresponsive wakefulness syndrome patients (4%) (χ 2 P < 0.0001). Nociceptive anticipation response correlated with the presence of a contingent negative variation, suggesting that patients with nociceptive anticipation response were more prone to actively expect and anticipate auditory stimuli (Fisher's exact test P = 0.05). However, nociceptive anticipation response presence did not predict consciousness recovery. Nociceptive anticipation response appears as a new additional behavioural sign that can be used to differentiate minimally conscious state from vegetative state/unresponsive wakefulness syndrome patients. As most behavioural signs of minimally conscious state, the nociceptive anticipation response seems to reveal the existence of a cortically mediated state that does not necessarily reflect residual conscious processing.

Connection of social anxiety to impaired pattern of cognitive control and underlying motivational deficiencies: Evidence from event-related potentials.

Numerous studies have established a correlation between social anxiety and poor cognitive control. However, little is known about the cognitive control pattern of individuals with high social anxiety (HSAs) and the underlying mechanisms. Based on the Dual Mechanisms of Control framework and the Expected Value of Control theory, this study explored whether HSAs have an impaired cognitive control pattern (Experiment 1) and whether motivational deficiencies underlie the impaired control pattern (Experiment 2). In Experiment 1, 21 individuals with low social anxiety (LSAs) and 21 HSAs completed an AX-Continuous Performance Task. Results showed that HSAs had a smaller P3b amplitude than LSAs, indicating their weakened proactive control in the cue processing stage, but a larger contingent negative variation (CNV) on cue B as compensation for the negative effects of anxiety in the response preparation stage. No group difference was found in N2 and P3a amplitude on probes, suggesting that reactive control in HSAs was not affected compared to LSAs. In Experiment 2, 21 LSAs and 21 HSAs completed a cued-flanker task, where the likelihood of proactive control engagement was manipulated. The results revealed that HSAs exhibited motivation deficiencies in engaging in proactive control, as evidenced by P3b, CNV amplitude, and response times. These findings shed light on the impaired cognitive control pattern of HSAs and suggest that motivational deficiencies may be the crucial underlying factor.

The effect of performance contingent reward prospects flexibly adapts to more versus less specific task goals.

In some situations, for example, when we expect to gain a reward in case of good performance, goal-driven top-down attention is particularly strong. Little is known about the task specificity of such increases of top-down attention due to environmental factors. To understand to what extent performance-contingent reward prospects can result in specific and unspecific changes in cognitive processing, we here investigate reward effects under different levels of task specification. Thirty-two participants performed a visual or an auditory discrimination task cued by two consecutive visual stimuli: First, a reward cue indicated if good performance was rewarded. Second, a task cue announced either which of the two tasks would follow (precise cue) or that both tasks would follow equally likely (imprecise cue). Reward and task cue preciseness both significantly improved performance. Moreover, the response time difference between precisely and imprecisely cued trials was significantly stronger in rewarded than in unrewarded trials. These effects were reflected in event-related potential (ERP) slow wave amplitudes: Reward and preciseness both significantly enhanced the contingent negative variation (CNV) prior to the task stimulus. In an early CNV time interval, both factors also showed an interaction. A negative slow wave prior to the task cue was also significantly enhanced for rewarded trials. This effect correlated with the reward difference in response times. These results indicate that reward prospects trigger task-specific changes in preparatory top-down attention which can flexibly adapt over time and across different task requirements. This highlights that a reward-induced increase of cognitive control can occur on different specificity levels.

Reduction in preparatory brain activity preceding gait initiation in individuals with chronic ankle instability: A movement-related cortical potential study.

Evidence suggests that chronic ankle instability (CAI) is not merely a peripheral musculoskeletal injury but should be recognized as a neurophysiological dysfunction. This reflects a paradigm shift from focusing on peripheral structural changes to emphasizing the central nervous system. However, changes in cortical activity during functional activities remain poorly understood. Thus, this study aimed to compare preparatory brain activity during gait initiation (GI) through movement-related cortical potentials (MRCPs) in individuals with CAI and healthy subjects. The proactive components of MRCPs, including contingent negative variation (CNV) and event-related desynchronization (ERD), were measured using electroencephalography. The primary outcomes were late CNV amplitude, CNV peak amplitude, CNV peak time, and alpha/beta ERD. The results indicated that the late CNV amplitude was significantly lower in the CAI group compared to the healthy group at the Fz and Cz electrodes (P< 0.001). The CAI group also demonstrated lower CNV peak amplitude at the Fz, Cz, and Pz electrodes (P< 0.0025). Additionally, in the CAI group, signals peaked earlier at the Cz electrode (P= 0.002). Furthermore, alpha ERD at Pz was significantly lower in the CAI group than in the healthy group (P= 0.003), suggesting diminished preparatory brain activity during GI in CAI subjects. Recognizing CAI as a condition involving both peripheral and central dysfunctions highlights the importance of a multidisciplinary approach in treatment and rehabilitation. This approach should target brain activity in addition to peripheral structures, potentially leading to improved long-term outcomes for patients.

Electrodermal lability and sensorimotor preparation: effects on reaction time, contingent negative variation, and heart rate

Electrodermal lability is a trait-like measure of spontaneous sympathetic resting activity. In the present study, we addressed whether interindividual differences in this lability have an impact on the reaction time (RT) and on two physiological indicators of a goal-oriented sensorimotor preparation in a long-running, forewarned RT task (S1-S2 paradigm). The two indicators were the brain’s contingent negative variation (CNV) and a heart rate deceleration (HRD). The interindividual differences were determined by counting spontaneous skin conductance fluctuations during a 5-min resting phase and dividing the subjects into two groups: individuals below (stable) and above (labile) the median of these fluctuations. In the task, labile individuals had a shorter RT compared with stable individuals and showed in the final phase of preparation in both physiological indicators the stronger response. Thus, lability-dependent effects in forewarned RT tasks cannot be explained by differences in stimulus-driven or passively controlled processes alone. Rather, goal-oriented, deliberately controlled processes that serve to adequately prepare for an imperative stimulus—the S2 in our paradigm—also must be considered to explain them. Labile individuals not only react faster than stable ones but also intentionally prepare themselves more appropriately for the imperative stimulus. A norepinephrine hypothesis focusing on the tonic activity of the locus coeruleus (LC) is proposed as an explanation for these and other lability-dependent effects. The frequency of spontaneous electrodermal fluctuations at rest may represent a peripheral, noninvasive, and easily measurable indicator of the baseline LC activity during wakefulness.

Temporal context modulates cross-modality time discrimination: Electrophysiological evidence for supramodal temporal representation

Although the peripheral nervous system lacks a dedicated receptor, the brain processes temporal information through different sensory channels. A critical question is whether temporal information from different sensory modalities at different times forms modality-specific representations or is integrated into a common representation in a supramodal manner. Behavioral studies on temporal memory mixing and the central tendency effect have provided evidence for supramodal temporal representations. We aimed to provide electrophysiological evidence for this proposal by employing a cross-modality time discrimination task combined with electroencephalogram (EEG) recordings. The task maintained a fixed auditory standard duration, whereas the visual comparison duration was randomly selected from the short and long ranges, creating two different audio–visual temporal contexts. The behavioral results showed that the point of subjective equality (PSE) in the short context was significantly lower than that in the long context. The EEG results revealed that the amplitude of the contingent negative variation (CNV) in the short context was significantly higher (more negative) than in the long context in the early stage, while it was lower (more positive) in the later stage. These results suggest that the audiovisual temporal context is integrated with the auditory standard duration to generate a subjective time criterion. Compared with the long context, the subjective time criterion in the short context was shorter, resulting in earlier decision-making and a preceding decrease in CNV. Our study provides electrophysiological evidence that temporal information from different modalities inputted into the brain at different times can form a supramodal temporal representation.

When the Heart Meets the Mind: Exploring the Brain-Heart Interaction during Time Perception.

Recent studies suggest that time estimation relies on bodily rhythms and interoceptive signals. We provide the first direct electrophysiological evidence suggesting an association between the brain's processing of heartbeat and duration judgment. We examined heartbeat-evoked potential (HEP) and contingent negative variation (CNV) during an auditory duration-reproduction task and a control reaction-time task spanning 4, 8, and 12 s intervals, in both male and female participants. Interoceptive awareness was assessed with the Self-Awareness Questionnaire (SAQ) and interoceptive accuracy through the heartbeat-counting task (HCT). Results revealed that SAQ scores, but not the HCT, correlated with mean reproduced durations with higher SAQ scores associating with longer and more accurate duration reproductions. Notably, the HEP amplitude changes during the encoding phase of the timing task, particularly within 130-270 ms (HEP1) and 470-520 ms (HEP2) after the R-peak, demonstrated interval-specific modulations that did not emerge in the control task. A significant ramp-like increase in HEP2 amplitudes occurred during the duration-encoding phase of the timing but not during the control task. This increase within the reproduction phase of the timing task correlated significantly with the reproduced durations for the 8 s and the 4 s intervals. The larger the increase in HEP2, the greater the under-reproduction of the estimated duration. CNV components during the encoding phase of the timing task were more negative than those in the reaction-time task, suggesting greater executive resources orientation toward time. We conclude that interoceptive awareness (SAQ) and cortical responses to heartbeats (HEP) predict duration reproductions, emphasizing the embodied nature of time.

From preparation to post-processing: Insights into evoked and induced cortical activity during pre-cued motor reactions in children and adolescents

IntroductionThe motor system undergoes significant development throughout childhood and adolescence. The contingent negative variation (CNV), a brain response reflecting preparation for upcoming actions, offers valuable insights into these changes. However, previous CNV studies of motor preparation have primarily focused on adults, leaving a gap in our understanding of how cortical activity related to motor planning and execution matures in children and adolescents. MethodsThe study addresses this gap by investigating the maturation of motor preparation, pre-activation, and post-processing in 46 healthy, right-handed children and adolescents aged 5–16 years. To overcome the resolution limitations of previous studies, we combined 64-electrode high-density Electroencephalography (EEG) and advanced analysis techniques, such as event-related potentials (ERPs), mu-rhythm desynchronization as well as source localization approaches. The combined analyses provided an in-depth understanding of cortical activity during motor control. ResultsOur data showed that children exhibited prolonged reaction times, increased errors, and a distinct pattern of cortical activation compared to adolescents. The findings suggest that the supplementary motor area (SMA) plays a progressively stronger role in motor planning and response evaluation as children age. Additionally, we observe a decrease in sensory processing and post-movement activity with development, potentially reflecting increased efficiency. Interestingly, adolescent subjects, unlike young adults in previous studies, did not yet show contralateral activation of motor areas during the motor preparation phase (late CNV). ConclusionThe progressive increase in SMA activation and distinct cortical activation patterns in younger participants suggest immature motor areas. These immature regions might be a primary cause underlying the age-related increase in motor action control efficiency. Additionally, the study demonstrates a prolonged maturation of cortical motor areas, extending well into early adulthood, challenging the assumption that motor control is fully developed by late adolescence. This research, extending fundamental knowledge of motor control development, offers valuable insights that lay the foundation for understanding and treating motor control difficulties.

Electrophysiological correlation between executive vigilance and attention network based on cognitive resource control theory

Attention is comprised of three independent and interacting attention networks: phasic alertness, orienting, and executive control. Previous studies have explored event-related potentials associated with these attention networks and executive vigilance, there is a lack of research on the relationship between executive vigilance and the three attention networks. However, there is a lack of research on the relationship between executive vigilance and the three attention networks. The present study aims to investigate this relationship. Based on the theory of cognitive resource control, two experimental blocks were designed with the vigilance task as the control variable. A total of 39 participants completed both ANTI and ANTI-V trials (two variants of the traditional attention network test ANT) in the same period. Through analysis of behavior measures (RT) and electrophysiological results related to phasic alertness (N1, P2, and contingent negative variation), orienting (P1, N1, and P3), and executive control (N2 and slow positive potential), we found that the reaction time of the ANTI block was lower than that of the ANTI-V block under all conditions, This suggests that adding a vigilance task may lead to reduced allocation of attention resources across all three attention networks. Furthermore, the orienting ability was weaker in the ANTI-V experimental block compared to that in the ANTI block due to effects on P1 and P3 regulation by the vigilance task. The N2 amplitude of the ANTI-V block was consistently reduced under similar conditions, indicating a weakening of executive control ability. The electrophysiological results revealed that executive vigilance inhibited the component of early attention perception related to the orienting network and was also related to the ability to detect conflict in the executive control network.

Electrocortical activity associated with movement-related fear: a methodological exploration of a threat-conditioning paradigm involving destabilising perturbations during quiet standing

Musculoskeletal trauma often leads to lasting psychological impacts stemming from concerns of future injuries. Often referred to as kinesiophobia or re-injury anxiety, such concerns have been shown to hinder return to physical activity and are believed to increase the risk for secondary injuries. Screening for re-injury anxiety is currently restricted to subjective questionnaires, which are prone to self-report bias. We introduce a novel approach to objectively identify electrocortical activity associated with the threat of destabilising perturbations. We aimed to explore its feasibility among non-injured persons, with potential future implementation for screening of re-injury anxiety. Twenty-three participants stood blindfolded on a translational balance perturbation platform. Consecutive auditory stimuli were provided as low (neutral stimulus [CS–]) or high (conditioned stimulus [CS+]) tones. For the main experimental protocol (Protocol I), half of the high tones were followed by a perturbation in one of eight unpredictable directions. A separate validation protocol (Protocol II) requiring voluntary squatting without perturbations was performed with 12 participants. Event-related potentials (ERP) were computed from electroencephalography recordings and significant time-domain components were detected using an interval-wise testing procedure. High-amplitude early contingent negative variation (CNV) waves were significantly greater for CS+ compared with CS– trials in all channels for Protocol I (> 521-800ms), most prominently over frontal and central midline locations (P ≤ 0.001). For Protocol II, shorter frontal ERP components were observed (541-609ms). Our test paradigm revealed electrocortical activation possibly associated with movement-related fear. Exploring the discriminative validity of the paradigm among individuals with and without self-reported re-injury anxiety is warranted.

Relationship between Contingent Negative Variation and afterimage duration in migraine patients.

Abnormalities in electrocortical parameters and persistence of afterimage after visual stimulation are known to occur in migraine patients. The results of studies on Contingent Negative Variation (CNV) and afterimage persistence in migraine patients suggest a link between these two phenomena and a connection to the pathomechanism of migraine. To date, no studies have investigated both afterimage duration and CNV parameters in the same subjects. The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between the early component of CNV (iCNV) and the duration of the afterimage in migraine patients. Sixty seven migraine patients from the headache center of the University of Rostock Medical Center were examined for iCNV amplitude, iCNV habituation and afterimage duration. The subjects also completed questionnaires developed for this study and the MIDAS (Migraine Disability Assessment) questionnaire. Associations were found between iCNV amplitude and afterimage duration and between habituation capacity and afterimage duration. A deficit in habituation capacity correlated with a significantly prolonged afterimage duration. Increased iCNV amplitude and prolonged afterimage duration were also significantly correlated. Conclusions about the pathophysiology of migraine can be drawn from the results of this study. The results support the hypothesis of cortical hyperexcitability as a consequence of a low pre-activation level, which may be a possible contributory cause of migraine. Furthermore, they allow assessment of whether the afterimage examination, which is easier and quicker to perform than the CNV examination, can be used as a diagnostic tool or as a parameter to monitor the course of therapy in people with migraine.

Differentiating anticipatory and consummatory reward processing in problematic pornography use: An event-related potential analysis of reward dynamics

Problematic pornography use (PPU) is characterized by compulsive and uncontrolled pornography consumption due to a disordered reward processing system. Past studies have shown that reward involves multiple stages, but the connection between these specific stages and PPU remains unclear. In this research, an electrophysiological incentive delay task (IDT) was employed, using both erotic and monetary incentives as rewards, to decompose the distinct phases of both anticipatory and consummatory aspects of reward processing. ERP components linked to reward anticipation (cue-P3 and contingent negative variation, CNV), as well as reward feedback (reward positivity; RewP and feedback-P3; fb-P3), were investigated in a group of 31 individuals with PPU and 33 control participants. In contrast to the control group, who reacted faster to monetary cues, individuals with PPU responded more quickly to erotic cues. RT differences between erotic and monetary cues correlated with CNV amplitudes during anticipation, although no significant CNV differences across groups. In the consummatory phase, controls had higher RewP for large-monetary than large-erotic rewards, not seen in the PPU group. Conversely, the PPU group had increased fb-P3 for large-erotic over large-monetary rewards, a trend absents in controls. Our findings indicate an imbalanced sensitivity in PPU to erotic versus non-erotic rewards, evident in both the anticipatory and consummatory aspects of reward processing. This imbalance could lead to a preference for erotic rewards, possibly fostering addictive sexual behaviors.

Early and late contingent negative variation (CNV) reflect different aspects of deficits in schizophrenia.

Abnormal reward processing and psychomotor slowing are well-known in schizophrenia (SZ). As a slow frontocentral potential, contingent negative variation (CNV) is associated with anticipatory attention, motivation and motor planning. The present study aims to evaluate the early and late amplitude and latencies of CNV in patients with SZ compared to healthy controls during a reward processing task and to show its association with clinical symptoms. We recruited 21 patients with SZ and 22 healthy controls to compare early and late CNV amplitude and latency values during a Monetary Incentive Delay (MID) Task between groups. Patients' symptom severity, levels of negative symptoms and depressive symptoms were assessed. Clinical features of the patients were further examined for their relation with CNV components. In conclusion, we found decreased early CNV amplitudes in SZ during the reward condition. They also displayed diminished and shortened late CNV responses for incentive cues, specifically at the central location. Furthermore, early CNV amplitudes exhibited a significant correlation with positive symptoms. Both CNV latencies were linked with medication dosage and the behavioural outcomes of the MID task. We revealed that early and late CNV exhibit different functions in neurophysiology and correspond to various facets of the deficits observed in patients. Our findings also emphasized that slow cortical potentials are indicative of deficient motivational processes as well as impaired reaction preparation in SZ. To gain a deeper understanding of the cognitive and motor impairments associated with psychosis, future studies must compare the effects of CNV in the early and late phases.

Understanding Pedestrian Cognition Workload in Traffic Environments Using Virtual Reality and Electroencephalography

Understanding pedestrians’ cognitive processes in traffic environments is crucial for developing strategies to enhance safety and reduce accidents. This study assesses the efficacy of virtual reality (VR) in evaluating pedestrian behavior in simulated road-crossing scenarios. It investigates VR’s capability to realistically mimic the cognitive load experienced in real-world settings. It examines the technical integration of VR with psychophysiological recording to capture cognitive demand indicators accurately. Utilizing a dedicated VR application and electroencephalogram (EEG) measurements, this research aims to elicit significant Event-Related Potentials (ERP), like P3 and Contingent Negative Variation (CNV), associated with decision-making processes. The initial results demonstrate VR’s effectiveness in creating realistic environments for investigating cognitive mechanisms and the balance between induced immersion and experienced discomfort. Additionally, the tasks involving time-to-arrival estimations and oddball scenarios elicited the anticipated components related to attentional and decision-making processes. Despite increased discomfort with extended VR exposure, our results show that it did not negatively impact the cognitive workload. These outcomes highlight VR’s efficacy in replicating the cognitive demands of real-world settings and provide evidence to understand the neurophysiological and behavioral dynamics of vulnerable road users (VRUs) in traffic scenarios. Furthermore, these findings support VR’s role in behavioral and neurophysiological research to design specific safety interventions for VRUs.