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Top-Down Attentional Modulation in Human Frontal Cortex: Differential Engagement during External and Internal
Julia W Y Kam1,2,3, Randolph F Helfrich4,5, Anne-Kristin Solbakk6,7,8
1Department of Psychology, University of Calgary, Calgary AB T2N 1N4, Canada.
Cerebral Cortex (New York, N.Y. : 1991)
|October 16, 2020
Summary
The lateral frontal cortex preferentially engages external attention, showing enhanced neural responses to external stimuli when attention is directed outward versus inward. This clarifies top-down attentional control mechanisms.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Cognitive Neuroscience
- Electrophysiology
Background:
- Top-down control is crucial for attention, with the lateral frontal cortex implicated in processing external stimuli.
- The role of the frontal cortex in directing attention internally versus externally is not well understood.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the involvement of frontal and temporal cortices in top-down attentional control.
- To differentiate neural activity during external versus internal attention using electrocorticography.
Main Methods:
- Intracranial electrocorticography (ECoG) was used in human subjects.
- Participants directed attention either externally to auditory stimuli or internally to thoughts.
- High-frequency activity (70-150 Hz) was analyzed to compute target effects.
Main Results:
- Both frontal and temporal cortices exhibited target effects during both external and internal attention.
- The frontal cortex demonstrated a significantly enhanced target effect during external attention compared to internal attention.
- Temporal cortex showed similar target effects regardless of attention state.
Conclusions:
- The lateral frontal cortex plays a key role in top-down attentional modulation.
- Electrophysiological evidence supports preferential engagement of the frontal cortex with external attention.
- Findings elucidate the neural mechanisms distinguishing external and internal attentional focus.
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