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A carry-over task rule in task switching: an ERP investigation using a Go/Nogo paradigm
Kaoru Umebayashi1, Tsunetaka Okita
1Department of Home and Life Sciences, Gifu Women's University, 80, Taromaru, Gifu City 501-2592, Japan. kaoru@gijodai.ac.jp
Biological Psychology
|November 28, 2012
Summary
Task switching incurs a cost due to lingering stimulus-response (SR) rules. This study used event-related brain potentials (ERPs) to show that Nogo trials reveal these carry-over effects, impacting early automatic processes.
Area of Science:
- Cognitive Neuroscience
- Experimental Psychology
Background:
- Task switching is a key aspect of executive control.
- Switch costs, longer reaction times on switch trials, are often attributed to carry-over effects from previous task rules.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the neural basis of stimulus-response (SR) rule carry-over effects in task switching.
- To examine event-related brain potential (ERP) evidence for these carry-over effects, particularly during Nogo trials.
Main Methods:
- A task-switching paradigm combined with Go/Nogo trials was employed.
- Participants performed compatible and incompatible button-pressing tasks that switched predictably.
- Event-related brain potentials (ERPs), including the stimulus-locked lateralized readiness potential (sLRP), were recorded.
Main Results:
- Reaction times were significantly longer for task-switch trials compared to task-repetition trials.
- The sLRP on Nogo stimuli during compatible switch trials showed a positive dip.
- This ERP signature suggests premature response activation due to carry-over SR rules.
Conclusions:
- Carry-over of stimulus-response (SR) rules from preceding tasks influences cognitive control during task switching.
- Early, automatic processes are affected by these carry-over rules, as evidenced by ERP data.
- The Go/Nogo paradigm effectively reveals these underlying neural mechanisms of task switching costs.

