The effect of early attention allocation on location-based attention toward a later threat: an ERP study

The current study investigated the effect of earlier attention processing on later spatial attention allocation using a prime stimulus followed by a dot-probe task. Here we recorded event-related potentials (ERPs) respectively when picture primes and face pairs were displayed at the two successive stages. For negative primes, participants showed smaller amplitudes of negative slow wave (NSW) to initial negative picture primes and greater N1 and smaller P2 amplitudes to subsequent face pairs compared with neutral primes. In addition, participants showed greater amplitudes of NSW to initial neutral picture primes and smaller N1 and greater P2 amplitudes to face pairs in neutral compared with negative prime condition. These results suggest that attention allocation toward an earlier threat influences the attention allocation toward the location of a later threat; and the initial neutral detection does not affect spatial attention allocation toward later face pairs. These findings are interpreted in terms of the theory of limited cognitive resources.