Distinct brain mechanisms for conscious versus subliminal error detection

作者：Charles Lucie^*; Van Opstal Filip; Marti Sebastien; Dehaene Stanislas

来源：NeuroImage, 2013, 73: 80-94.

DOI：10.1016/j.neuroimage.2013.01.054

• Error-related negativity
• Consciousness
• MEG
• EEG

Metacognition, the ability to monitor one%26apos;s own cognitive processes, is frequently assumed to be univocally associated with conscious processing. However, some monitoring processes, such as those associated with the evaluation of one%26apos;s own performance, may conceivably be sufficiently automatized to be deployed non-consciously. Here, we used simultaneous electro- and magneto-encephalography (EEG/MEG) to investigate how error detection is modulated by perceptual awareness of a masked target digit. The Error-Related Negativity (ERN), an EEG component occurring similar to 100 ms after an erroneous response, was exclusively observed on conscious trials: regardless of masking strength, the amplitude of the ERN showed a step-like increase when the stimulus became visible. Nevertheless, even in the absence of an ERN, participants still managed to detect their errors at above-chance levels under subliminal conditions. Error detection on conscious trials originated from the posterior cingulate cortex, while a small response to non-conscious errors was seen in dorsal anterior cingulate. We propose the existence of two distinct brain mechanisms for metacognitive judgements: a conscious all-or-none process of single-trial response evaluation, and a non-conscious statistical assessment of confidence.

• 出版日期2013-6
• 单位中国地震局