The role of neural oscillations on perceptual decision-making

• Grant number: 16/25817-8
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Doctorate
• Start date: April 01, 2017
• End date: March 31, 2019
• Field of knowledge: Humanities - Psychology - Cognitive Psychology
• Principal Investigator: André Mascioli Cravo
• Grantee: Pedro Teodoro Cardoso Canário
• Host Institution: Centro de Matemática, Computação e Cognição (CMCC). Universidade Federal do ABC (UFABC). Ministério da Educação (Brasil). Santo André , SP, Brazil

Abstract

Perceptual decision-making is a key process in the relationship of the subjects with the environment and it can be defined as choice through the accumulation of sensory evidence. Mathematical models that describe this accumulation process at a constant rate are successful in explain behavioral outcomes of decisions based on isolated stimuli. However, they do not adequately describe the choices based in sequential stimuli, which may cause a competition for cognitive resources. In this case, recent work suggests that the accumulation of evidence is not at a steady rate but rather rhythmically, and that this rhythm is modulated by neural oscillations in the Delta range (1 to 4 Hz) of the electroencephalogram (EEG). However, it is still unclear whether the accumulation of evidence is an adaptation to a cognitive bottleneck in perceptual processing or whether it is necessary for the optimal processing of stimuli with a given characteristic. In this work, we aim to answer this question. For this, there are two psychophysical perceptual experiments with concomitant recording of EEG.