Cognitive Control 1 PDF

Cognitive Control 1 Gazzaniga et al chapter 12 Key concepts Cognitive Control Prefrontal cortex Phineas Gage Working Memory Delayed non-match to sample Delay cells The n-Back Task Tower of London task Inhibitory control Hot/Cool framework Utilisation behaviour Wisconsin Card Sorting Task Mischel’s...

Cognitive Control 1 Gazzaniga et al chapter 12 Key concepts Cognitive Control Prefrontal cortex Phineas Gage Working Memory Delayed non-match to sample Delay cells The n-Back Task Tower of London task Inhibitory control Hot/Cool framework Utilisation behaviour Wisconsin Card Sorting Task Mischel’s Marshmallow Test Set shifting Trail-Making Test Dorsolateral Prefrontal Cortex Homunculus  What is Cognitive Control? The set of psychological processes that contribute to planning, controlling and regulating the flow of information processing These processes bias the selection of action and thoughts to enable goal-directed behaviour by supressing irrelevant thoughts and actions and strengthening those related to our goals.  Cognitive control: Frontal cortex Premotor cortex (vmPFC) Gazziniga et al (2019) Gazziniga et al (2019) Phineas Gage 25 year old, male Railroad foreman Worksite injury, solid recovery “ the lesion the ventromedial region of both frontal lobes while sparing the dorsolateral.” Damasio et al., 1994 Phineas Gage Before: “hard-working, responsible, and "a great favorite" with the men in his charge, his employers having regarded him as "the most efficient and capable foreman in their employ" After: When he returned to work, others noticed significant behavioural changes - “no longer Gage” “The equilibrium or balance, so to speak, between his intellectual faculties and animal propensities, seems to have been destroyed. He is fitful, irreverent, indulging at times in the grossest profanity (which was not previously his custom), manifesting but little deference for his fellows, impatient of restraint or advice when it conflicts with his desires, at times pertinaciously obstinate, yet capricious and vacillating, devising many plans of future operations, which are no sooner arranged than they are abandoned in turn for others appearing more feasible.” Another case study: 50 year old, male, married Attorney for successful Fortune 500 company Left frontal glioma discovered and removed - solid recovery When returning to work, he recalled professional obligations but lacked concentration and eye for detail. He generated illogical outputs, made careless errors and displayed increasingly erratic performance He was apathetic to professional and personal losses although aware of his short-comings He showed a lack of emotional response – no embarrassment or shame  Cognitive control habits goal-directed emotions  Cognitive control habits goal-directed emotions Key components of cognitive control: Working memory Working memory is required because there is no prior association between correct object and reward  Prefrontal cortex and working memory DELAY RESPONSE In a delayed response task, some PFC cells respond during the cue period, others during the delay period ‘Delay cells’ Fuster 1973 Prefrontal lesions impair working memory performance Bechara et al 1998 The n-back task: a test of working memory Indicate when the current stimulus matches the one from n steps earlier in the sequence (ignoring letter case). lure mikeclaffey.com Increased Prefrontal activity during lures is associated with greater WM span Dorsolateral PFC better ability to supress non-relevant information (response to lures)? Burgess et al (2011) in Gazziniga et al (2014)  The Tower of London Test The goal is to reach a target configuration with a specified number of moves. One ball at a time, max 2 on middle post, max 1 on left post. Complexity increases e.g. A-B. (Shallice, 1982) Results of a meta-analysis of activation during the Tower of London task Dorsolateral PFC Nitschke et al (2017) Prefrontal cortex allows for manipulation of representations in temporal cortex Simons and Spiers (2003)  Cognitive control habits goal-directed emotions Key components of cognitive control: Working memory Inhibitory control  Inhibitory (self) -control Where previously reinforced, highly reinforcing, or well- learned (habitual) responses have to be supressed Self-regulation is critical for harmonious group living There is an inherent conflict between what is enjoyable for the individual and what is best for the group Controlling oneself to be a good group member involves an awareness of how one is thinking, feeling, or behaving and the ability to alter any of these to satisfy the standards or expectations of the group. Thus, people need to inhibit their impulses, stifle their desires, resist temptations, undertake difficult or unpleasant activities, banish unwanted and intrusive thoughts, and control their emotional displays, all of which are difficult to do but are necessary for staying in the good graces of others Heatherton (2011) Numerous studies have associated successful self-regulation with top-down control from the prefrontal cortex over subcortical regions involved in reward and threat processing Utilisation Behaviour Lhermitte (1983) Case Study 55 year old, female, widowed Administrative assistant in professional office Olfactory meningioma discovered and removed, solid recovery When returning to work, no evidence of cognitive impairment in professional obligations Began to repeatedly approach complete strangers for sex Recognized her impulsivity and that she “lacked brakes” – but continued despite negative consequences Phineas Gage “devising many plans of operation which are no sooner arranged than they abandoned in turn for others appearing more feasible” A test of frontal lobe function Wisconsin Card Sorting Task ? Wisconsin Card Sorting Task Perseveration Correct pile Gazzaniga et al (1998) Dorsolateral Prefrontal cortex activation increases with increased WCST task complexity Sorting info provided Sorting info at start of each change Standard WCST Lie et al (2006) Mischel’s Marshmallow Test  Developmental changes in prefrontal cortex Right lateral and top views of the dynamic sequence of GM maturation over the cortical surface Blue indicates mature areas Gogtay N et al. PNAS 2004;101:8174-8179 ©2004 by National Academy of Sciences Performance in a go/no-go task 40 years after Mischel’s task neutral faces emotional faces Casey et al (2011) Performance in a go/no-go task 40 years after Mischel’s task Activation in right inferior frontal gyrus during correct inhibition of response Low delayers show greater activity in ventral striatum when inhibiting responses to happy faces Casey et al (2011)  Self-control Self-control encompasses behaviours that enable us to forgo immediate temptations in favour of more beneficial delayed rewards. Self-control has been associated with superior academic, professional, and personal outcomes. (Age 32) Self control assessed between age 3-11, adult outcomes assessed at age 32 Moffitt et al (2011) Thus, resistance to temptation as measured originally by the delay-of- gratification task appears to be a relatively stable individual difference Can that be changed? Effortful training specific focus on attention and working memory. Avoidance reduce chance of conflict in advance Effortless training mindfulness, flow states, nature exposure. The data suggests that the benefits of effortful training tend to be selective for the training tasks, with limited generalisation. Avoidance strategies may be harmful in the long run. Effortless strategies show promise Tang et al (2022)  Cognitive control habits goal-directed emotions Key components of cognitive control: Working memory Inhibitory control Set-shifting  The Trail-Making Test Part A Part B Increased dorsal prefrontal thickness associated with higher TMT-B scores Miskin et al (2016) How is dorsolateral prefrontal cortex connected? Action execution and evaluation Wood & Grafman, 2003 Summary Cognitive control processes bias the selection of action and thoughts to enable goal-directed behaviour. Damage to the dorsal prefrontal cortex is associated with utilization behaviour, perseveration and environmental dependency Many of these behaviours result from a reduction in self-control and a lack of behavioural flexibility. Working memory underlies many aspects of behavioural flexibility Dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPC) is involved in working memory DLPC is important for self-regulation and behavioural flexibility Self-regulation is stable over time but may be trained DLPC has connectivity that allows it to in modulate action execution and evaluation The term ‘Executive Function’ suggests a “Central Executive” The homunculus Men in Black The Idea of a “Central Executive” Beware of the homunculus END