Extended categorization of conjunction object stimuli decreases the latency of attentional feature selection and recruits orthography-linked ERPs

Folstein, Jonathan R.; Monfared, Shamsi S. · 2019 · Crossref

DOI: 10.1101/605360

archive: archived pipeline: cataloged verified

Get this paper ↗ (DOI — opens at the source; we link to it, we don't host it)

Summary

This study investigates how extended perceptual training influences neural processes related to attentional feature selection and object recognition. While previous research established that expertise alters neural representations, the specific role of attention in driving these effects remains debated. The authors aimed to determine if prolonged category learning modifies the selection negativity (SN), an ERP component indexing attentional modulation, and whether training induces neural changes dissociable from attentional mechanisms. Participants underwent six training sessions comprising 8,800 trials to categorize cartoon animal stimuli constructed from interchangeable features. A second set of similar stimuli remained untrained. Following training, event-related potentials (ERPs) were recorded during a target detection task involving both trained and untrained sets. The experimental design manipulated the number of target features in non-target stimuli to parametrically assess attentional selection and varied stimulus onset asynchronies (SOA) to control for temporal processing demands. The results demonstrated that extended training significantly altered the latency of attentional feature selection. The onset of the selection negativity was approximately 60 ms earlier for trained stimuli compared to untrained stimuli, indicating more efficient attentional processing. However, contrary to expectations based on prior object expertise studies, training did not significantly enhance the N250 component, typically associated with perceptual expertise. Instead, trained stimuli elicited robust centro-parietal N200 and N320 components that were insensitive to attentional feature selection. Source localization using eLORETA revealed that the selection negativity originated primarily in the right ventral temporal cortex, whereas the N200/N320 components were sourced in the left ventral temporal cortex. These findings suggest that extended categorization training recruits neural mechanisms distinct from those observed in standard object expertise paradigms. The scalp distribution and timecourse of the training-induced N200/N320 components closely matched patterns associated with orthographic processing rather than object recognition. This implies that the structural characteristics of the stimuli—defined by conjunctions of interchangeable parts and line junctions—may have engaged visual word form area networks despite the stimuli being non-linguistic. The study concludes that while training enhances the speed of attentional selection, it also recruits non-strategic, orthography-linked neural processes independent of feature selection, challenging the assumption that expertise effects are solely driven by attentional mechanisms or object-specific modules.

Provenance

The full processing record for this entry. Every stage of this paper's journey through the pipeline is logged — what ran, with which tool and model, how many attempts it took, and when it last completed.

Summary generated by qwen3.6-27b-nvidia on 2026-08-10; verification: verified.

Topics

Ranked by relevance to this paper. Hover a topic for its definition.

• attention selective divided