The Lateralized Readiness Potentials and the Psychological Refractory Period
Disciplines
Behavioral Neurobiology | Cognitive Neuroscience
Abstract (300 words maximum)
The interactive relationship between the brain and the body continues to be the focal point of physiological research. However, pinpointing the onset of a lateralized readiness potential (LRP) has proven to be a challenge. Measured using electroencephalography, LRPs are negative electrophysiological signals originating from the motor cortex that are initiated approximately 200ms prior to the onset of the motor response. We used the psychological refractory period (PRP) paradigm task to generate LRPs and measure the onset of the motor response. In the PRP paradigm, the subject emits motor responses after being rapidly presented with two different stimuli corresponding to two tasks. A PRP is a psychological phenomenon in which a subject's response to the second stimulus is significantly delayed due to the processing of the first stimulus. Upon analyzing the latency of the response locked LRPs of 19 subjects, using the PRP paradigm task, we found that the interaction between the stimulus onset asynchrony (SOA) and task difficulty was not quite significant, with a p value of p= 0.051. There were also no significant effects of SOA or task difficulty on amplitude and onset of the LRP.
Academic department under which the project should be listed
RCHSS - Psychological Science
Primary Investigator (PI) Name
Dr. Timothy Martin
The Lateralized Readiness Potentials and the Psychological Refractory Period
The interactive relationship between the brain and the body continues to be the focal point of physiological research. However, pinpointing the onset of a lateralized readiness potential (LRP) has proven to be a challenge. Measured using electroencephalography, LRPs are negative electrophysiological signals originating from the motor cortex that are initiated approximately 200ms prior to the onset of the motor response. We used the psychological refractory period (PRP) paradigm task to generate LRPs and measure the onset of the motor response. In the PRP paradigm, the subject emits motor responses after being rapidly presented with two different stimuli corresponding to two tasks. A PRP is a psychological phenomenon in which a subject's response to the second stimulus is significantly delayed due to the processing of the first stimulus. Upon analyzing the latency of the response locked LRPs of 19 subjects, using the PRP paradigm task, we found that the interaction between the stimulus onset asynchrony (SOA) and task difficulty was not quite significant, with a p value of p= 0.051. There were also no significant effects of SOA or task difficulty on amplitude and onset of the LRP.