Arousal evoked by detecting a performance error may provide a mechanism by which error detection leads to either adaptive or maladaptive changes in attention and performance. By pairing EEG data acquisition with simultaneous measurements of pupil diameter, which is thought to reflect norepinephrinergic arousal, this study tested whether transient changes in EEG oscillations in the alpha frequency range (8–12 Hz) following performance mistakes may reflect error‐evoked arousal. In the inter‐trial interval following performance mistakes (approximately 8% of trials), pupil diameter increased and EEG alpha power decreased, compared to the inter‐trial interval following correct responses. Moreover when trials were binned based on pupil diameter on a within‐subjects basis, trials with greater pupil diameter were associated with lower EEG alpha power during the inter‐trial interval. This pattern of association suggests that error‐related alpha suppression, like pupil dilation, reflects arousal in response to error commission. Errors were also followed by worse next‐trial performance, implying that error‐evoked arousal may not always be beneficial for adaptive control.
This study investigated whether detection of a performance mistake is followed by adaptive or detrimental effects on subsequent attention and performance. Using a Stroop task with spatial cueing, along with simultaneous EEG and pupillary measurements, we examined evidence bearing on two alternative hypotheses: maladaptive arousal and adaptive control. Error detection, indexed by the error‐related negativity ERP component, was followed by pupil dilation and suppression of EEG oscillations in the alpha band, two indices of arousal that were associated with one another on a trial‐by‐trial basis. On the trials following errors, there was neural evidence of enhanced spatial cueing, manifested in greater hemispheric activation contralateral to the cued visual field. However, this post‐error enhancement was not followed by changes in Stroop or spatial cueing effects in performance, nor by increased attentional cueing effects in ERP responses to targets. Rather, performance tended to be slower and less accurate following errors compared to correct trials, and higher post‐response arousal, indexed by larger pupils, predicted next‐trial slowing and decreased P2 amplitude to targets. Results favor the maladaptive arousal account of post‐error cognitive control and offer only limited support for adaptive control.
more » « less- NSF-PAR ID:
- 10364405
- Publisher / Repository:
- Wiley-Blackwell
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- Psychophysiology
- Volume:
- 59
- Issue:
- 4
- ISSN:
- 0048-5772
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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