Central as well as peripheral attentional bottlenecks in dual-task performance activate lateral prefrontal cortices

Szameitat, Andre J; eVanloo, Azonya; Müller, Hermann J · 2016 · DOAJ

DOI: 10.3389/fnhum.2016.00119

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Summary

This study investigates the neural mechanisms underlying attentional bottlenecks in dual-task performance, specifically comparing central bottlenecks (CB) at the response selection stage with peripheral bottlenecks (PB) at the response initiation stage. The research addresses whether both types of bottlenecks require executive functions mediated by the lateral prefrontal cortex (LPFC) and how these demands differ. The authors hypothesized that while both bottlenecks engage the LPFC, the specific areas activated and the relationship between neural activation and behavioral costs would differ based on the nature of the interference. The researchers re-analyzed functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) data from two previous studies involving a total of 33 participants. The CB group (N=17) performed a psychological refractory period (PRP) dual-task using two-choice response tasks, which induce central bottlenecks. The PB group (N=16) performed a PRP dual-task using simple-response tasks, which induce peripheral bottlenecks. Both groups underwent fMRI scanning while performing single tasks and dual tasks. The analysis focused on dual-task-specific activation by subtracting single-task activations from dual-task activations. Behavioral costs were measured by the slowing of the second response in the dual-task condition compared to single tasks. Behavioral results confirmed significant dual-task costs in both groups, evidenced by prolonged response times for the second task. In the CB group, fMRI analysis revealed bilateral activation in the middle frontal gyri and inferior frontal gyri, as well as premotor and parietal areas. Crucially, higher activation in the left and right inferior frontal sulcus/middle frontal gyrus was negatively correlated with dual-task costs, suggesting that greater executive engagement facilitated better performance. In the PB group, activation was observed in the right middle frontal and inferior frontal gyri. Here, higher activation was positively correlated with dual-task costs, indicating that increased neural activity reflected greater effort to resolve interference caused by crosstalk between tasks. The study concludes that both central and peripheral attentional bottlenecks demand executive functions located in the lateral prefrontal cortices. However, the distinct correlational patterns suggest that the executive processes resolving interference differ between the two bottleneck types. For central bottlenecks, LPFC activation likely reflects preparatory processes that reduce costs, whereas for peripheral bottlenecks, activation reflects the resolution of crosstalk, where higher interference leads to both higher costs and greater neural demand. These findings highlight that while the LPFC is broadly involved in multitasking coordination, the specific cognitive operations and their neural signatures depend on the locus of the processing bottleneck.

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Topics

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• dual task multitasking
• dual task performance