Attention Task Performance Research Articles

Surprise as an explanation to auditory novelty distraction and post-error slowing.

Performance in sustained attention tasks is known to be slowed by the occurrence of unexpected task-irrelevant distractors (novelty distraction) and the detection of errors (posterror slowing), 2 well-established phenomena studied separately and regarded as reflecting distinct underpinning mechanisms. We measured novelty distraction and posterror slowing in an auditory-visual oddball task to test the hypothesis that they both involve an orienting response. Our results confirm that the 2 effects exhibit a positive interaction. We show that a trial-by-trial measure of surprise credibly accounts for our empirical data. We suggest that novelty distraction and posterror slowing both reflect an orienting response to unexpected events and a reappraisal of action plans. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2018 APA, all rights reserved).

Dynamic functional connectivity during task performance and rest predicts individual differences in attention across studies

Dynamic functional connectivity (DFC) aims to maximize resolvable information from functional brain scans by considering temporal changes in network structure. Recent work has demonstrated that static, i.e. time-invariant resting-state and task-based FC predicts individual differences in behavior, including attention. Here, we show that DFC predicts attention performance across individuals. Sliding-window FC matrices were generated from fMRI data collected during rest and attention task performance by calculating Pearson's r between every pair of nodes of a whole-brain atlas within overlapping 10–60s time segments. Next, variance in r values across windows was taken to quantify temporal variability in the strength of each connection, resulting in a DFC connectome for each individual. In a leave-one-subject-out-cross-validation approach, partial-least-square-regression (PLSR) models were then trained to predict attention task performance from DFC matrices. Predicted and observed attention scores were significantly correlated, indicating successful out-of-sample predictions across rest and task conditions. Combining DFC and static FC features numerically improves predictions over either model alone, but the improvement was not statistically significant. Moreover, dynamic and combined models generalized to two independent data sets (participants performing the Attention Network Task and the stop-signal task). Edges with significant PLSR coefficients concentrated in visual, motor, and executive-control brain networks; moreover, most of these coefficients were negative. Thus, better attention may rely on more stable, i.e. less variable, information flow between brain regions.

Examining the impact of a brief human-canine interaction on stress and attention

Abstract The interaction between humans and canines has been linked to a variety of benefits including reductions in ADHD symptoms in children, depression symptoms in nursing home patients, and PTSD symptoms in veterans returning from war. Although the inclusion of therapy dogs on college campuses has increased over the last few years, little evidence exists demonstrating the effect of canine interaction in these settings. The current study examined the effects of college student’s interactions with therapy dogs during an exam period. Fifty-six students interacted with therapy dogs before or after completing measures of sustained attention, mind wandering, perceived stress, cognitive test anxiety, and state anxiety. Interacting with the therapy dogs reduced state anxiety and resulted in lower perceived stress but did not alter sustained attention task performance or mind wandering. The results suggest that interaction with therapy dogs may help reduce perception of stress and anxiety but may not alter the cognitive functions measured in the current study. Due to the levels of stress that college students experience during exam periods, on-campus therapy dog programs may provide a low, cost effective intervention that universities could implement to benefit their students.

Mindfulness training as cognitive training in high-demand cohorts: An initial study in elite military servicemembers.

Cognitive ability is a key selection criterion for entry into many elite professions. Herein, we investigate whether mindfulness training (MT) can enhance cognitive performance in elite military forces. The cognitive effects of a short-form 8-h MT program contextualized for military cohorts, referred to as Mindfulness-Based Attention Training (MBAT), were assessed. Servicemembers received either a 2-week (n=40) or 4-week (n=36) version of MBAT or no training (NTC, n=44). Sustained attention and working memory task performance along with self-reported cognitive failures were assessed at study onset (T1) and 8-weeks later (T2). In contrast to both the NTC and 2-week MT groups, the 4-week MT group significantly improved over time on attention and working memory outcome measures. Among the 4-week more so than the 2-week MBAT participants, working memory performance improvements were correlated with their amount of out-of-class MT practice. In addition to these group-wise effects, all participants receiving MBAT decreased in their self-reported cognitive failures from T1 to T2. Importantly, none of these improvements were related to self-reported task motivation. Together, these results suggest that short-form MT, when delivered over a 4-week delivery schedule, may be an effective cognitive training tool in elite military cohorts.

No Effects of Neurofeedback of Beta Band Components on Reaction Time Performance

Many performance situations, whether in everyday life or, e.g., in sports, require speeded responses. Reaction time (RT) in laboratory tasks—as an index of processing speed—can be improved through neurofeedback training (NFT). Learning to enhance the power of a high EEG frequency (> 10 Hz; e.g. beta band), suppressing a low frequency (< 10 Hz; e.g., theta band), or reducing the ratio between low- and high-frequency powers by means of NFT has been found to improve performance in attention and RT tasks. We aimed to test the frequency specificity of these effects on different aspects of attention and RT performance, and to explore the application of the protocols in athletes. NFT aiming to reduce the power ratio between theta (4–7 Hz) and mid-beta (15–18 Hz) ranges was compared with NFT enhancing power in the low-beta range (sensory motor rhythm [SMR] 12–15 Hz). Following two baseline measurements, participating soccer players (N = 38) were randomly assigned to train for 10 sessions with one of theta/beta ratio (TBR), SMR, or one session with a sham protocol. Training effects were measured by d2, simple, and choice RT tasks and by power of trained frequencies in the EEG. NFT did not lead to modifications in the trained frequency bands and was not able to improve attention or RT performance. The findings of this well-controlled study strongly indicate that the effects of NFT are smaller than what can be inferred from published studies. Clearly, more research is needed in order to establish the effect of NFT on optimizing performance.

Comparing frontal eye field and superior colliculus contributions to covert spatial attention

The causal roles of the frontal eye fields (FEF) and superior colliculus (SC) in spatial selective attention have not been directly compared. Reversible inactivation is an established method for testing causality but comparing results between FEF and SC is complicated by differences in size and morphology of the two brain regions. Here we exploited the fact that inactivation of FEF and SC also changes the metrics of saccadic eye movements, providing an independent benchmark for the strength of the causal manipulation. Using monkeys trained to covertly perform a visual motion-change detection task, we found that inactivation of either FEF or SC could cause deficits in attention task performance. However, SC-induced attention deficits were found with saccade changes half the size needed to get FEF-induced attention deficits. Thus, performance in visual attention tasks is vulnerable to loss of signals from either structure, but suppression of SC activity has a more devastating effect.

Visual attention, biological motion perception, and healthy ageing

Biological motion perception is the ability of the visual system to perceive complex human movement patterns. The previous studies have shown a direct link between attentional abilities and performance on biological motion tasks, both of which have been shown to deteriorate with age. However, it is not known whether there is a direct link between age-related deficits in biological motion processing and attention. Here, we investigated whether age-related changes in biological motion perception are mediated by impaired attentional abilities. To assess basic biological motion performance, we asked 42 younger (M = 21 years) and 39 older adults (M = 69 years) to indicate the facing direction of point-light actions. Performance did not differ between age groups. We assessed visual spatial and selective attentional abilities, using a range of tasks: conjunctive visual search, spatial cueing, and the Stroop task. Across all tasks, older adults were significantly slower to respond and exhibited larger interference/cueing effects, compared to younger adults. To assess attentional demands in relation with biological motion perception, participants performed a biological motion search task for which they had to indicate the presence of a target point-light walker among a varied number of distracters. Older adults were slower, and generally worse than younger adults at discriminating the walkers. Correlations showed that there was no significant relationship between performance in attention tasks and biological motion processing, which indicates that age-related changes in biological motion perception are unlikely to be driven by general attentional decline.

Discretized Theta-Rhythm Perception Revealed by Moving Stimuli

Despite the subjective continuity of perception over time, increasing evidence suggests that the human nervous system samples sensory information periodically, a finding strongly exemplified by discretized perception in the alpha-rhythm frequency band. More recently, studies have revealed a theta-band cyclic process that manifests itself as periodical fluctuations in behavioral performance. Here, we used a simple stimulus to demonstrate that the theta-cyclic system can produce a vivid experience of slow discrete visual sampling: a Gabor texture pattern appears as a series of flickering snapshots if its spatial window moves continuously over a carrier grating that remains still or drifts continuously in the opposite direction. While the perceptual magnitude of this illusory saltation varied with the speed difference between grating and window components in head-centered coordinates, the perceived rhythm of saltation remained nearly constant (3–8 Hz) over a wide range of stimulus parameters. Results provide further evidence that the slow cyclic neural processes play a critical role not only in attentional task performance but also in conscious perception.

Hemispheric asymmetry and homotopy of resting state functional connectivity correlate with visuospatial abilities in school-age children

Hemispheric specialization of cognitive functions is a developmental process that shapes the brain from the gestational stage to adulthood. Functional connectivity of the resting brain has been largely used to infer the hemispheric organization of the spontaneous brain activity. In particular, two main properties have been largely explored throughout development: hemispheric asymmetry of functional connectivity and homotopic functional connectivity. However, their relation with specific cognitive processes typically associated with hemispheric specialization, such as visuospatial abilities, remains largely unexplored. Such relationships could be particularly relevant for the quest of developmental cognitive biomarkers in childhood, a significant maturation period of visuospatial abilities. Moreover, the relation between asymmetry and homotopy of brain functional connectivity is not well understood. We have examined these two properties in a sample of 60 typically developing children between 6 and 10 years of age, and explored their relation with visuospatial abilities. First, we identified a strong negative relation between homotopy and asymmetry across the brain. In addition, these properties showed areas in the posterior portion of the brain, with significant correlation with performance in visual memory and visual attention tasks. These results highlight the relevance of the hemispheric organization of spontaneous brain activity for developmental cognition, particularly for visuospatial abilities.

α5 nAChR modulation of the prefrontal cortex makes attention resilient

A loss-of-function polymorphism in the α5 nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (nAChR) subunit gene has been linked to both drug abuse and schizophrenia. The α5 nAChR subunit is strategically positioned in the prefrontal cortex (PFC), where a loss-of-function in this subunit may contribute to cognitive disruptions in both disorders. However, the specific contribution of α5 to PFC-dependent cognitive functions has yet to be illustrated. In the present studies, we used RNA interference to knockdown the α5 nAChR subunit in the PFC of adult rats. We provide evidence that through its contribution to cholinergic modulation of cholinergic modulation of neurons in the PFC, the α5 nAChR plays a specific role in the recovery of attention task performance following distraction. Our combined data reveal the potent ability of this subunit to modulate the PFC and cognitive functions controlled by this brain region that are impaired in disease.

ИЗМЕНЕНИЯ КОГНИТИВНЫХ ВЫЗВАННЫХ ПОТЕНЦИАЛОВ И СПОНТАННОЙ БИОЭЛЕКТРИЧЕСКОЙ АКТИВНОСТИ В УСЛОВИЯХ НОРМОБАРИЧЕСКОЙ ГИПОКСИИ

The latencies and amplitudes of auditory event related potentials (ERPs) in oddball paradigm were evaluated in men in the conditions of normoxia and influence of the moderate (11.5 % content of O2 in oxygen-nitrogen mix) normobaric hypoxia. Spectral power changes were evaluated in the same conditions and in the eyes closed states. There were obtained increase of spectral power in theta- (4—8 Hz) and beta-1 (13—18 Нz) EEG frequency bands in moderate hypoxia in eyes closed condition without cognitive task in comparison with normoxia states. There were no significant EEG spectral power changes in attention task performance in hypoxia compared to normoxia. Performance accuracy in attention task and the latencies of average ERP components were estimated. Difference waves were used to isolate the P3 wave. Increase of a latency of the P3 component in difference wave was observed in the condition of the moderate hypoxia, without the decrease of accuracy in task performance and P3 component amplitude changes. Thus, increase of the P3 wave latency of the auditory ERPs even without the changes of accuracy in task performance can serve as an index of hypoxia influence in the performance of the cognitive and attention tasks.

Positive valence music restores executive control over sustained attention.

Music sometimes improves performance in sustained attention tasks. But the type of music employed in previous investigations has varied considerably, which can account for equivocal results. Progress has been hampered by lack of a systematic database of music varying in key characteristics like tempo and valence. The aims of this study were to establish a database of popular music varying along the dimensions of tempo and valence and to examine the impact of music varying along these dimensions on restoring attentional resources following performance of a sustained attention to response task (SART) vigil. Sixty-nine participants rated popular musical selections that varied in valence and tempo to establish a database of four musical types: fast tempo positive valence, fast tempo negative valence, slow tempo positive valence, and slow tempo negative valence. A second group of 89 participants performed two blocks of the SART task interspersed with either no break or a rest break consisting of 1 of the 4 types of music or silence. Presenting positive valence music (particularly of slow tempo) during an intermission between two successive blocks of the SART significantly decreased miss rates relative to negative valence music or silence. Results support an attentional restoration theory of the impact of music on sustained attention, rather than arousal theory and demonstrate a means of restoring sustained attention. Further, the results establish the validity of a music database that will facilitate further investigations of the impact of music on performance.

The performance of Dutch train drivers based on the impact of the presence of a second person in the cab

Insufficient attention allocation of train drivers towards the driving task impairs the driving performance and increases the risk of signals passed at danger. This pilot study explores the performance and attention allocation of train drivers based on the impact of the behaviour of another person present in the driver’s cab. A method that uses a train simulator has been developed to assess the attention allocation and task performance for routes with different complexity levels and for conditions when train drivers were driving alone, with a person present who was considerate of the driving task or with a person who was not. The presence of a non-considerate person in the cabin has a negative impact on the driving performance; tasks were completed successfully more often when driving alone. Train drivers interrupted conversations more often to focus on driving on routes with high complexity, which indicates that conversations increased the workload. An increase in the conversation frequency had a negative impact on the accuracy of speed monitoring. Participants indicated that the driving performance improved as a result of participating in the experiment on the awareness of the impact of another person’s presence in the cab. It is anticipated that the findings of this pilot study and further works will provide more understanding about the factors that are important to the performance of train drivers and the improvement of railway safety.

The Interaction of Emotional Valence and Arousal on Attentional Breadth and Creative Task Performance

Within the literature, there are two opposing views regarding the influencing role of emotions on the creative process. The most commonly held view contends that positive emotions enhance creativity and negative emotions stifle it; yet, some studies show an opposite trend. These contradictory findings can be explained by examining two aspects of the emotions: attention and creativity relationship. First, emotional valence and arousal levels interact to affect attention. Second, creativity is not a unitary cognitive process and some stages rely more on focused attention but others are aided by diffused or broad attention. To test this proposition, two experiments were conducted. In Experiment 1, valence (positive vs. negative) and arousal (high vs. low) were manipulated and participants completed a series of attention and creativity tasks. Experiment 2 employed similar emotion induction procedure, but a different set of creative problems was used. The results of both experiments were consistent with the proposed explanation of the effects of emotions on creativity.

Top-Down Beta Enhances Bottom-Up Gamma.

Several recent studies have demonstrated that the bottom-up signaling of a visual stimulus is subserved by interareal gamma-band synchronization, whereas top-down influences are mediated by alpha-beta band synchronization. These processes may implement top-down control of stimulus processing if top-down and bottom-up mediating rhythms are coupled via cross-frequency interaction. To test this possibility, we investigated Granger-causal influences among awake macaque primary visual area V1, higher visual area V4, and parietal control area 7a during attentional task performance. Top-down 7a-to-V1 beta-band influences enhanced visually driven V1-to-V4 gamma-band influences. This enhancement was spatially specific and largest when beta-band activity preceded gamma-band activity by ∼0.1 s, suggesting a causal effect of top-down processes on bottom-up processes. We propose that this cross-frequency interaction mechanistically subserves the attentional control of stimulus selection.SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT Contemporary research indicates that the alpha-beta frequency band underlies top-down control, whereas the gamma-band mediates bottom-up stimulus processing. This arrangement inspires an attractive hypothesis, which posits that top-down beta-band influences directly modulate bottom-up gamma band influences via cross-frequency interaction. We evaluate this hypothesis determining that beta-band top-down influences from parietal area 7a to visual area V1 are correlated with bottom-up gamma frequency influences from V1 to area V4, in a spatially specific manner, and that this correlation is maximal when top-down activity precedes bottom-up activity. These results show that for top-down processes such as spatial attention, elevated top-down beta-band influences directly enhance feedforward stimulus-induced gamma-band processing, leading to enhancement of the selected stimulus.

Neurocognitive Impairments in Unaffected First-degree Relatives of Schizophrenia.

Background:Neurocognitive impairments of attention and executive functioning are trait abnormalities in schizophrenia, and these are considered to be endophenotypes. These deficits have been convincingly linked to prefrontal cortical functioning. In this study, we examined the cognitive performance in the domains of attention and executive functioning among first-degree relatives of Indian people with schizophrenia (high-risk [HR] patients) compared to healthy controls (HC).Materials and Methods:Siblings of patients with DSM-IV schizophrenia, HR patients (n = 17), were compared with HC (n = 30) (matched as a group for age, sex, years of education, and handedness) using the following neurocognitive tests for attention and executive function – digit span test (DST), trail making test, letter-number sequencing (LNS), and spatial span test.Results:HR patients had significantly deficient performance in attention and executive function tasks (DST-forward [P < 0.001], DST-backward [P < 0.001], spatial span-forward [P < 0.001], spatial span-backward [P < 0.001], and LNS [P < 0.001]).Conclusions:This study replicates the findings that neurocognitive deficits involving executive function task performance, attention, and working memory, which are considered as principal features in patients with schizophrenia, are also significantly present in the first-degree relatives of patients. Thus, these neurocognitive parameters can be considered as potential endophenotypes in schizophrenia.

0037 LONG-TERM BEHAVIORAL CONSEQUENCES OF NEONATAL SLEEP FRAGMENTATION

Sleep fragmentation (SF) occurs in many disease states and frequently occurs in both the pediatric and adult intensive care units. However, it is unclear how sleep fragmentation in the absence of disease effects the neurochemical and behavioral development of the brain. In adults, SF results in daytime somnolence and a reduction in performance in attentional and vigilance tasks. Rodents who experience SF exhibit transient microglial activation and impaired hippocampal learning. The effects of SF on microglial activation and cytokine expression on the developing brain and long-term neurocognitive consequences have not been studied. Post-natal day 3 New Zealand White rabbit kits were assigned to one of three conditions: SF, sham, and control. The SF group was placed on an orbital shaker controlled by a timer to induce repetitive on/off cycling set at 100rpm on a 120s cycle (30s on, 90s off) for 72 hours. Shams were placed in an incubator for 72 hours, while the control group remained with the dam. Open field and behavioral milestone testing occurred before, during, and after active fragmentation. Fourteen days after fragmentation kits were challenged with a novel object recognition task. Three weeks after SF, a spontaneous alternation T-maze task was performed. Kits were sacrificed 3–50 days after the last day of fragmentation. Each hemisphere was processed separately for immunohistochemical evaluation and cytokine expression using rt-PCR. Microglial activation was associated with region specific modulations in cytokine production, and an upregulation of indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase. Microglia continued to be activated in the SF group 50-days post-fragmentation. During active fragmentation and up to 24-hours post-fragmentation, SF kits displayed a hyperactive phenotype, with a higher velocity and traveled more distance in the open field. Long term, SF resulted in impaired novel object recognition and spent significantly more time completing the T-maze task. Early sleep fragmentation may lead to chronic immune dysregulation in the immature brain, subsequently leading to diminished long-term performance in cognitive tasks. HL110952-03, Society for Anesthesia and Sleep Medicine Research Grant.

Attention, memory, visuoconstructive, and executive task performance in adolescents with anxiety disorders: a case-control community study.

The aim of the present study was to assess children and adolescents with mild and severe anxiety disorders for their performance in attention, verbal episodic memory, working memory, visuoconstructive skills, executive functions, and cognitive global functioning and conduct comparative analyses with the performance of children free from anxiety disorders. Our sample comprised 68 children and adolescents aged 10 to 17 years (41 with current diagnoses of anxiety disorders and 27 controls) selected from a larger cross-sectional community sample of adolescents. Children and adolescents with anxiety disorders were categorized into two groups on the basis of anxiety severity (mild or severe). All participants underwent a neuropsychological assessment battery to evaluate attention, verbal episodic memory, working memory, visuoconstructive skills, and executive and cognitive functions. No differences were found in any neuropsychological tests, with the single exception that the group with mild anxiety had better performance on the Digit Span backward test compared to subjects with severe anxiety and to controls (p = 0.041; η2 = 0.11). Not only might anxiety disorders spare main cognitive functions during adolescence, they may even enhance certain working memory processes.

White Matter Microstructural Abnormalities in Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus: A Diffusional Kurtosis Imaging Analysis.

Increasing DTI studies have demonstrated that white matter microstructural abnormalities play an important role in type 2 diabetes mellitus-related cognitive impairment. In this study, the diffusional kurtosis imaging method was used to investigate WM microstructural alterations in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus and to detect associations between diffusional kurtosis imaging metrics and clinical/cognitive measurements. Diffusional kurtosis imaging and cognitive assessments were performed on 58 patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus and 58 controls. Voxel-based intergroup comparisons of diffusional kurtosis imaging metrics were conducted, and ROI-based intergroup comparisons were further performed. Correlations between the diffusional kurtosis imaging metrics and cognitive/clinical measurements were assessed after controlling for age, sex, and education in both patients and controls. Altered diffusion metrics were observed in the corpus callosum, the bilateral frontal WM, the right superior temporal WM, the left external capsule, and the pons in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus compared with controls. The splenium of the corpus callosum and the pons had abnormal kurtosis metrics in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus. Additionally, altered diffusion metrics in the right prefrontal WM were significantly correlated with disease duration and attention task performance in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus. With both conventional diffusion and additional kurtosis metrics, diffusional kurtosis imaging can provide additional information on WM microstructural abnormalities in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus. Our results indicate that WM microstructural abnormalities occur before cognitive decline and may be used as neuroimaging markers for predicting the early cognitive impairment in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus.

Pupil Sizes Scale with Attentional Load and Task Experience in a Multiple Object Tracking Task.

Previous studies have related changes in attentional load to pupil size modulations. However, studies relating changes in attentional load and task experience on a finer scale to pupil size modulations are scarce. Here, we investigated how these changes affect pupil sizes. To manipulate attentional load, participants covertly tracked between zero and five objects among several randomly moving objects on a computer screen. To investigate effects of task experience, the experiment was conducted on three consecutive days. We found that pupil sizes increased with each increment in attentional load. Across days, we found systematic pupil size reductions. We compared the model fit for predicting pupil size modulations using attentional load, task experience, and task performance as predictors. We found that a model which included attentional load and task experience as predictors had the best model fit while adding performance as a predictor to this model reduced the overall model fit. Overall, results suggest that pupillometry provides a viable metric for precisely assessing attentional load and task experience in visuospatial tasks.