How Sequentially Changing Reward Prospect Modulates Meta-control: Increasing Reward Prospect Promotes Cognitive Flexibility

Fröber, Kerstin; Dreisbach, Gesine · 2020 · OpenAlex-citations

DOI: 10.3758/s13415-020-00825-1

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Summary

This study investigates how sequential changes in reward prospect modulate meta-control, specifically the balance between cognitive stability and flexibility. While previous research established that increasing reward prospect promotes flexibility and maintaining high reward promotes stability, these findings were limited to two-task paradigms. This limitation raised the possibility that observed flexibility was merely task-specific switching rather than a general state of readiness. To address this, the authors conducted experiments using a three-task uncued voluntary task-switching paradigm, aiming to determine if increasing reward prospect induces a generic form of cognitive flexibility by lowering the updating threshold in working memory. The researchers performed two experiments with undergraduate participants, utilizing three univalent tasks (number, letter, and symbol in Experiment 1; shape, character, and symbol in Experiment 2). The design manipulated reward sequences (remain low, increase, remain high, decrease) and task transitions (repeat, switch). Crucially, low reward trials required only correct responses, while high reward trials required both correct and fast responses to ensure performance-contingency. In Experiments 1 and 2, a forced-choice paradigm was used to measure reaction time (RT) switch costs. The results showed that when reward prospect increased, RT switch costs were reduced to non-significant levels, indicating equal readiness for both task repetitions and switches. Conversely, when reward prospect remained high, switch costs were largest, and repetition RTs were fastest, indicating increased cognitive stability. Bayesian analyses provided moderate to strong evidence for these null and significant effects, respectively. To further validate these findings and control for the confound of differing response requirements between reward conditions, Experiment 3 employed a voluntary task-switching paradigm where participants freely chose to repeat or switch tasks. This design eliminated the speed requirement for high rewards. The results replicated the meta-control modulation: increasing reward prospect led to a high voluntary switch rate, whereas remaining high reward prospect resulted in the lowest switch rate. This pattern confirms that the effects observed in Experiments 1 and 2 were driven by changes in meta-control rather than simple speed-accuracy trade-offs or task-specific facilitation. The study concludes that increasing reward prospect serves as a meta-control signal that promotes general cognitive flexibility, likely by lowering the updating threshold in working memory. This creates a state of equal readiness to respond to any potential task, rather than facilitating switching to a specific alternative. In contrast, maintaining high reward prospect increases the updating threshold, shielding current goal representations and promoting stability. These findings refine the understanding of how reward history dynamically regulates the stability-flexibility balance, supporting computational models that link dopamine activity to attractor state depth in the prefrontal cortex.

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• task switching