Citation

Low KA, Miller J. Psychophysiology 1999; 36(3): 288-297.

Affiliation

Department of Psychology, University of Otago, Dunedin, New Zealand. klow@psy.otago.ac.nz

Copyright

(Copyright © 1999, Society for Psychophysiological Research, Publisher John Wiley and Sons)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

10352552

Abstract

In the present study, we examined whether the use of partial information for response preparation depends on the utility of that partial information for meeting task demands. Using a choice/Nogo task, the utility of the partial information was varied by manipulating the proportion of Go relative to Nogo signals, and preliminary response preparation was indexed by the degree of lateralized readiness potential (LRP) activity on Nogo trials. The Nogo LRP was clearly present when Go probability was high (67% Go) and, to a lesser extent, when Go and Nogo signals were equiprobable. However, the Nogo LRP disappeared when the probability of a Go signal was low (25% Go). This pattern of results supports the hypothesis that response preparation will be based on partial stimulus information only when the information has significant utility in the context of the overall task requirements.

Language: en