Perceptual metacognition of human faces is causally supported by function of the lateral prefrontal cortex

Abstract

Metacognitive visual awareness-the ability to know that one is having a particular visual experience-is thought to optimally guide behavior and help us accurately navigate our complex social environments. Yet the neural underpinnings of visual metacognition continue to be the subject of vigorous debate: While prior work identified correlations between perceptual metacognitive ability and the structure and function of lateral prefrontal cortex (LPFC), evidence for a causal role of this region in promoting metacognition is controversial-in fact, some question whether the prefrontal cortex plays any role in supporting conscious visual experiences. Moreover, whether LPFC function promotes metacognitive awareness of perceptual and emotional features of complex, yet ubiquitous socio-emotional face stimuli is unknown. Using model-based analyses following a causal intervention to LPFC in humans, we demonstrate that LPFC promotes metacognitive awareness of the orientation of emotional faces-although not of their emotional expressions. Effects were specific to metacognition, as LPFC perturbation did not alter stimulus discrimination performance. Collectively, these data support the causal involvement of the prefrontal cortex in metacognitive awareness, and indicate that the role of LPFC function in metacognition encompasses perceptual experiences of naturalistic social stimuli.

The plasticity of well-being: A training-based framework for the cultivation of human flourishing

“…The causal status of specific components of these networks in different aspects of well-being has hardly been studied. One example of how this might be approached is recent collaborative work from our group in which transcranial magnetic stimulation was used to transiently disrupt a key prefrontal node central to meta-awareness, thus establishing a causal role for lateral PFC in certain forms of metaawareness (172). Similarly, despite decades of research, there have been few substantive improvements in the measurement of wellbeing that go beyond self-report measures.…”

Time-sensitive Prefrontal Involvement in Associating Confidence With Task Performance Illustrates Metacognitive Introspection in Monkeys

“…Our results corroborate the human literature. The human lateral PFC has been associated with a unique type of metacognitive process-the feeling of knowing 14 . Studies inactivating the dlPFC to diminish metacognitive ability without altering perceptual discrimination performance and con dence criteria 10 , as well as decoded multivariate patterns in the lPFC pertaining to metacognitive judgements, indicate the lPFC's involvement in conscious experiences 6 .…”

“…A number of human transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) studies have implicated the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (dlPFC) in meta-perceptual judgements more than in perceptual judgements [10][11][12] . This evidence indicates that the prefrontal cortex, especially the lateral prefrontal cortex (lPFC), is a key region in the metacognitive mechanism 8, 13,14 .…”

Time-sensitive prefrontal involvement in associating confidence with task performance illustrates metacognitive introspection in monkeys

“…Our results corroborate with the human literature. The human lateral PFC has been associated with a unique type of metacognitive process-the feeling of knowing (Lapate et al, 2020). Studies inactivating the dlPFC to diminish the metacognitive ability without altering perceptual discrimination performance and confidence criteria (Rounis et al, 2010) as well as decoded multivariate patterns in the lPFC pertaining to metacognitive judgements indicate the lPFC's involvement in conscious experiences (Morales et al, 2018).…”

“…A number of human transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) studies has implicated the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (dlPFC) in meta-perceptual judgments more than in perceptual judgements (Rounis et al, 2010;Rahnev et al, 2016;Shekhar and Rahnev et al, 2018). These evidence indicate that the prefrontal cortex, especially the lateral prefrontal cortex (lPFC), is a key region of the metacognitive mechanism (Odegaard et al, 2017;Brown et al, 2019;Lapate et al, 2020).…”