Cue-based preparation and stimulus-based priming of tasks in task switching

Koch, Iring; Allport, Alan · 2006 · OpenAlex-citations

DOI: 10.3758/bf03193420

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Summary

This study investigates the interaction between three sources of task activation in precued task switching: intentional cue-based preparation, involuntary decay of activation from the preceding trial, and involuntary stimulus-based priming. The authors aimed to determine how these processes interact, specifically testing whether cue-based preparation reduces the interference caused by stimulus-based priming of competing tasks. Previous research had established that shift costs decrease with longer cue–stimulus intervals (CSI, allowing preparation) and longer response–cue intervals (RCI, allowing decay), but the role of stimulus-specific associations remained less understood in symmetrical task pairs. The experiment involved 48 participants performing magnitude and parity judgments on digits. Stimuli were consistently mapped to specific tasks for four blocks before the mapping was reversed in the fifth block to induce negative stimulus-based priming. Three groups manipulated timing: one varied CSI (100 vs. 900 msec) while holding total response–stimulus interval constant, and another varied RCI (100 vs. 900 msec) while holding CSI constant. This design allowed the isolation of preparation effects from decay effects. Results demonstrated that reversing stimulus–task mappings significantly increased reaction times and doubled task-switch costs, confirming that stimuli acquire task-specific associations that interfere with performance when reversed. Crucially, this stimulus-based priming effect was markedly reduced in the group with a long CSI (900 msec) compared to the short CSI group. This indicates that strong cue-based preparation biases task competition in favor of the correct task, thereby mitigating the interference from involuntary stimulus priming. In contrast, lengthening the RCI (decay time) reduced overall shift costs but did not diminish the magnitude of the stimulus-based priming effect. Furthermore, the priming effect persisted for response-congruent stimuli, suggesting it operates at the task level rather than merely through stimulus–response associations. The findings support a theoretical framework where intentional cue-based activation and involuntary stimulus-based activation are separable but interacting processes. Cue-based preparation actively suppresses task competition, reducing the impact of conflicting stimulus cues. However, the decay of previous task activation operates independently of stimulus-based priming. These results provide empirical constraints for theories of executive control, highlighting that voluntary preparation can override involuntary stimulus-driven interference, whereas passive decay of prior tasks does not.

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• task switching