Post-error Slowing During Instrumental Learning is Shaped by Working Memory-based Choice Strategies

Area of Science:

• Cognitive Neuroscience
• Human Decision-Making
• Learning and Memory

Background:

• Post-error slowing (PES) is a known phenomenon in decision-making, reflecting increased response time after an error.
• Neural signatures of PES include altered activity in sensorimotor and medial prefrontal cortex.
• PES is generally attributed to the deployment of executive resources to improve task performance.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate whether multiple distinct processes influence PES during learning.
• To examine the role of cognitive load in shaping PES during visuomotor skill acquisition.
• To differentiate the contributions of working memory and reinforcement learning to PES.

Main Methods:

• Human subjects performed an arbitrary visuomotor association learning task under low and high cognitive load conditions.
• Behavioral data on response times and error rates were collected.
• A computational model with parallel working memory and reinforcement learning systems was developed to approximate observed PES effects.

Main Results:

• PES decreased with increasing cognitive load, even after accounting for learning progress.
• The computational model demonstrated that PES is influenced by parallel working memory and reinforcement learning systems.
• Differential recruitment of these systems, based on cognitive load, explained the observed PES variations.

Conclusions:

• PES during learning is not solely driven by a single process but is shaped by multiple interacting systems.
• Working memory plays a significant role in modulating PES, particularly under conditions that favor its engagement.
• Cognitive load dynamically influences the interplay between working memory and reinforcement learning in error processing.