[Event-related potentials to response production and inhibition in go/nogo task. I. Topographical characteristics to...

Event-related potentials (ERPs) were measured in eight healthy right-handed adults during three different visual Go/NoGo tasks, which consisted of color, figure, and Chinese character (kanji) paradigms. Subjects responded to a Go stimulus after a cue stimulus from the monitor during the execution of a continuous performance test (CPT). We obtained ERPs of the Go and NoGo conditions from 13-channel EEG recordings and measured peak latency, amplitude, and topographic distribution of each component. The N2 components of the figure and kanji NoGo tasks were located from Fz to Cz;o n the other hand, the N2 distribution of the color task was significant from Cz to Pz. The P3 component of both the Go and NoGo tasks were mostly seen from Cz to Pz. The NoGo-P3 components were distributed in more anterior regions than Go-P3 topography. In the color task, the amplitude of NoGo P3 was highest and the latency was shortest of the three tasks. These results suggest that ERP components in visual Go/NoGo tasks are most distinguishable in the color task.,and that NoGo potentials in a color task might be a useful tool for cognitive testing in children.