Open AccessDissociating proactively and retroactively cued task switching: a route towards neuropsychological analyses of cognitive control
Author(s) -
Bruno Kopp,
K. Wessel
Publication year - 2011
Publication title -
neuropsychological trends
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.198
H-Index - 7
eISSN - 1970-321X
pISSN - 1970-3201
DOI - 10.7358/neur-2011-010-kopp
Subject(s) - task switching , cued speech , task (project management) , cognitive psychology , psychology , cognition , dissociation (chemistry) , transition (genetics) , control (management) , perseveration , neuropsychology , computer science , neuroscience , artificial intelligence , biochemistry , chemistry , management , economics , gene
Cognitive control is often examined in task switching paradigms with dissociable types of task switching. Proactive task-cuing presents switch cues, signaling both a change of task and the task to implement, which occur prior to imperative events. Proactive transition-cuing utilizes switch cues, signaling a change of task but not indicating the required task, which occur prior to imperative events. Retroactive transition-cuing utilizes switch cues, again signaling a change of task but not indicating the required task, which occur later than imperative events. Thirty-six healthy young adults participated in the study. Response time switch costs were most pronounced on proactive task-cuing, whereas perseveration errors showed highest prevalence on retroactive transition-cuing. Principal component analyses revealed evidence for two components corresponding to the distinction between proactive and retroactive task-cuing, thus implying a dissociation between proactively and retroactively cued task switching. Retroactive transitioncuing might be particularly sensitive to frontal lesions of the cortex.