Prediction reduces neural response amplitude, but enhances stimulus representation in early visual cortex
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1
Donders Institute, Radboud University Nijmegen, Netherlands
Numerous empirical studies have shown that predicted stimuli evoke reduced neural responses, compared to unpredicted stimuli. Predictive coding models of perception explain this by proposing that higher-order areas send predictions to lower-order sensory areas, thereby reducing ‘prediction error’ in these lower-order areas. However, the exact nature of this reduction in activity is not known. Two opposing hypotheses can be formulated: either sensory signals consistent with current top-down predictions are inhibited (i.e. ‘explaining away’), or signals inconsistent with these predictions are suppressed. While the former scheme predicts a reduced representation of the predicted stimulus, the latter scheme predicts an enhanced ('sharpened') representation of the predicted stimulus. To distinguish between these two hypotheses, we performed an fMRI study in which we manipulated both attention and prediction with respect to the orientation of sinusoidal gratings. Univariate analysis confirmed that gratings with predicted orientations evoked less activity than gratings with unpredicted orientations, in early visual cortex (V1, V2, and V3), both when orientation was task-relevant and when it was not. However, multi-voxel pattern analysis (MVPA) revealed that orientation could be decoded from the fMRI-signal more accurately when the stimulus was predicted than when it was unpredicted. Attention had a similar effect, in line with previous findings. Thus, our results show that both attention and prediction can enhance the neural signatures of stimulus features, and that prediction does so despite a reduction in response amplitude.
Keywords:
Attention,
fMRI
Conference:
XI International Conference on Cognitive Neuroscience (ICON XI), Palma, Mallorca, Spain, 25 Sep - 29 Sep, 2011.
Presentation Type:
Poster Presentation
Topic:
Poster Sessions: Neurophysiology of Cognition and Attention
Citation:
Kok
P,
Jehee
JF and
De Lange
FP
(2011). Prediction reduces neural response amplitude, but enhances stimulus representation in early visual cortex.
Conference Abstract:
XI International Conference on Cognitive Neuroscience (ICON XI).
doi: 10.3389/conf.fnhum.2011.207.00471
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Received:
25 Nov 2011;
Published Online:
28 Nov 2011.
*
Correspondence:
Dr. Peter Kok, Donders Institute, Radboud University Nijmegen, Nijmegen, Netherlands, p.kok@ucl.ac.uk