Selection requirements during verb generation: differential recruitment in older and younger adults

Persson, Jonas; Sylvester, Ching-Yune C.; Nelson, J.W.; Welsh, Kathryn; Jonides, John; Reuter‐Lorenz, Patricia A.

doi:10.1016/j.neuroimage.2004.08.004

Cited by 129 publications

(125 citation statements)

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“…Using fMRI, Thompson-Schill et al (1997) investigated the production of verbs from noun cues in conditions of either low or high selection (i.e., items with few associated responses or with a clear dominant response vs. items with many appropriate associated responses without any clearly dominant response, respectively). They found slower RTs and increased activation of the left inferior frontal gyrus (LIFG) in the high-selection condition, indicating that LIFG is involved in selection from among alternative responses (for similar conclusions in the context of both fMRI and neuropsychological studies, see also Moss et al, 2005;Robinson, Shallice, & Cipolotti, 2005;Persson et al, 2004;Zhang, Feng, Fox, Gao, & Tan, 2004;Barch, Braver, Sabb, & Noll, 2000;Robinson, Blair, & Cipolotti, 1998;Thompson-Schill et al, 1998).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 82%

“…In the domain of language production, substantial evidence indicates that the left inferior frontal region is critical for the performance of tasks that demand access and selection of a response from among other possible options. Thus, word generation tasks have often been used to investigate mechanisms of semantic retrieval and competition in this brain area (Martin & Cheng, 2006;Thompson-Schill, Kan, & Oliver, 2006;Persson et al, 2004;Thompson-Schill et al, 1998;Thompson-Schill, DʼEsposito, Aguirre, & Farah, 1997;Petersen, Fox, Snyder, & Raichle, 1990;Petersen, Fox, Posner, Mintun, & Raichle, 1988). However, the cognitive control mechanisms involved in these kinds of tasks and the anatomical and functional organization of processing in the left inferior frontal regions are strongly debated.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…For instance, the speed and the accuracy of word generation may depend both on the number of possible responses (response selection) and on the strength of association between cues and responses (associative strength) (Martin & Cheng, 2006;ThompsonSchill & Botvinick, 2006). From a related perspective, previous behavioral and neuroimaging studies have explored the mechanisms and neural substrates involved in verb generation tasks and have emphasized either the role of response selection (Persson et al, 2004;Thompson-Schill et al, 1997 or the role of associative strength (Martin & Cheng, 2006).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Item Retrieval and Competition in Noun and Verb Generation: An fMRI Study

Crescentini

Shallice

Macaluso

2010

Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience

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Abstract■ Selection between competing responses and stimulus-response association strength is thought to affect performance during verb generation. However, the specific contribution of these two processes remains unclear. Here we used fMRI to investigate the role of selection and association within frontal and BG circuits that are known to be involved in verb production. Subjects were asked to generate verbs from nouns in conditions requiring either high or low selection, but with constant association strength, and in conditions of weak or strong association strength, now with constant selection demands. Furthermore, we examined the role of selection and association during noun generation from noun stimuli. We found that the midpart of the left inferior frontal gyrus was more active in conditions requiring high compared with low selection, with matched association strength. The same left inferior frontal region activated irrespective of verb or noun generation. Results of ROI analyses showed effects of association strength only for verb generation and specifically in the anterior/ventral part of the left inferior frontal gyrus. Moreover, the BG were more active when weakly associated verbs had to be produced relative to weakly associated nouns. These results highlight a functional segregation within the left inferior frontal gyrus for verb generation. More generally, the findings suggest that both factors of selection between competing responses and association strength are important during single-word production with the latter factor becoming particularly critical when task-irrelevant stimuli interfere with the current task (here nouns during verb production), triggering additional activation of the BG. ■

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 82%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Item Retrieval and Competition in Noun and Verb Generation: An fMRI Study

Crescentini

Shallice

Macaluso

2010

Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience

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“…Left VLPFC has also been correlated with increased selection demands in semantic retrieval (Thompson-Schill et al, 1997;Thompson-Schill et al, 1998;Persson et al, 2004;Nelson, 2005). A study examining this process and proactive interference-resolution in the same subjects found overlapping activations within left VLPFC, suggesting a similar mechanism mediating both processes (Nelson, 2005).…”

Section: Left Ventrolateral Prefrontal Cortexmentioning

confidence: 99%

Neural mechanisms of proactive interference-resolution

2007

Self Cite

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The ability to mitigate interference from information that was previously relevant, but is no longer relevant, is central to successful cognition. Several studies have implicated left ventrolateral prefrontal cortex (VLPFC) as a region tied to this ability, but it is unclear whether this result generalizes across different tasks. In addition, it has been suggested that left anterior prefrontal cortex (APFC) also plays a role in proactive interference-resolution although support for this claim has been limited. The present study used event-related functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to investigate the role of these regions in resolving proactive-interference across two different tasks performed on the same subjects. Results indicate that both left VLPFC and left APFC are involved in the resolution of proactive interference across tasks. However, different functional networks related to each region suggest dissociable roles for the two regions. Additionally, regions of the posterior cingulate gyrus demonstrated unique involvement in facilitation when short-and long-term memory converged. This pattern of results serves to further specify models of proactive interferenceresolution.

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“…Here we test the predictions of the model regarding selection processes that are supported by the left ventrolateral prefrontal cortex. We do so for the following reasons: (i) this region has been implicated in selecting among competing alternatives during language processing (6,(15)(16)(17)(18); (ii) this region shows altered activity in individuals who suffer from anxiety (particularly anxious apprehension, characterized by worry, and hereafter referred to as "anxiety" (19); and (iii) GABAergic function is reduced in individuals with anxiety (20)(21)(22)(23). Hence, our model provides a unified framework that can link these formerly disconnected observations.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Neural inhibition enables selection during language processing

Snyder

Hutchison²,

Nyhus³

et al. 2010

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

133

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Whether grocery shopping or choosing words to express a thought, selecting between options can be challenging, especially for people with anxiety. We investigate the neural mechanisms supporting selection during language processing and its breakdown in anxiety.Our neural network simulations demonstrate a critical role for competitive, inhibitory dynamics supported by GABAergic interneurons. As predicted by our model, we find that anxiety (associated with reduced neural inhibition) impairs selection among options and associated prefrontal cortical activity, even in a simple, nonaffective verb-generation task, and the GABA agonist midazolam (which increases neural inhibition) improves selection, whereas retrieval from semantic memory is unaffected when selection demands are low. Neural inhibition is key to choosing our words.P eople claim to love the freedom of unlimited choices, but in reality we are often stymied by too many options and disconcerted by not knowing what the outcomes of our choices will be. Selecting among multiple options is effortful and time consuming, whether choosing among fruit jams (1), retirement plans (2), or medical treatments (3). This problem is particularly pervasive during language production, when we must constantly choose words to express a thought (4-6). People with anxiety disorders find coping with too many options particularly difficult, and struggle with decision-making problems (7), indecisiveness (8), and intolerance of uncertainty (9). What mechanisms allow us to select among multiple options when speaking, and why does this process break down in people with anxiety? Current psychological theories of selection focus on the importance of cognitive control (5) and prefrontal cortical regions (4, 6, 10), but do not address questions at the level of specific neural mechanisms. We address these questions by implementing a unified, biologically plausible computational model of selection, and testing its predictions about both brain and behavior in humans making choices in a well-controlled language production task.Our model demonstrates how competitive, inhibitory dynamics among neurons in prefrontal cortical networks (11) support selection between alternatives. Specifically, these competitive dynamics serve to sharpen cognitive representations by amplifying activity in the most active, task-relevant, representations (e.g., the most appropriate word to complete a sentence) and suppressing competing representations (e.g., for the many other word possibilities). A tenet of the model is that these critical dynamics occur via inhibitory, GABAergic interneurons (12-14). Here we test the predictions of the model regarding selection processes that are supported by the left ventrolateral prefrontal cortex. We do so for the following reasons: (i) this region has been implicated in selecting among competing alternatives during language processing (6, 15-18); (ii) this region shows altered activity in individuals who suffer from anxiety (particularly anxious apprehension, characterized by w...

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Selection requirements during verb generation: differential recruitment in older and younger adults

Cited by 129 publications

References 48 publications

Item Retrieval and Competition in Noun and Verb Generation: An fMRI Study

Item Retrieval and Competition in Noun and Verb Generation: An fMRI Study

Neural mechanisms of proactive interference-resolution

Neural inhibition enables selection during language processing

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