Integrated externally and internally generated task predictions Jointly guide cognitive control in prefrontal cortex

Abstract
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Abstract

Cognitive control proactively configures information processing to suit expected task demands. Predictions of forthcoming demand can be driven by explicit external cues or be generated internally, based on past experience (cognitive history). However, it is not known whether and how the brain reconciles these two sources of information to guide control. Pairing a probabilistic task-switching paradigm with computational modeling, we found that external and internally generated predictions jointly guide task preparation, with a bias for internal predictions. Using model-based neuroimaging, we then show that the two sources of task prediction are integrated in dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, and jointly inform a representation of the likelihood of a change in task demand, encoded in frontoparietal cortex. Upon task-stimulus onset, dorsomedial prefrontal cortex encoded the need for reactive task-set adjustment. These data reveal how the human brain integrates external cues and cognitive history to prepare for an upcoming task.

Data availability

Data Availability: Statistical maps for all whole-brain fMRI analyses have been uploaded to https://neurovault.org/collections/3732/ We will share raw behavioral and fMRI data (e.g., using openfmri.org), as well as Matlab source code (using github) for the task and key analyses once this manuscript is published.

Article and author information

Author details

Jiefeng Jiang

Department of Psychology, Stanford University, Stanford, United States

For correspondence
jiefeng.jiang@stanford.edu

Competing interests
The authors declare that no competing interests exist.

"This ORCID iD identifies the author of this article:" 0000-0002-4264-6382
Anthony D Wagner

Department of Psychology, Stanford University, Stanford, United States

Competing interests
The authors declare that no competing interests exist.

"This ORCID iD identifies the author of this article:" 0000-0003-0624-4543
Tobias Egner

Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, Duke University, Durham, United States

Competing interests
The authors declare that no competing interests exist.

"This ORCID iD identifies the author of this article:" 0000-0001-7956-3241

Funding

National Institute of Mental Health (R01 MH097965)

Tobias Egner

National Institute of Aging (F32AG056080)

Jiefeng Jiang

The funders had no role in study design, data collection and interpretation, or the decision to submit the work for publication.

Ethics

Human subjects: Twenty-eight volunteers gave informed written consent, in accordance with institutional guidelines. This study was approved by the Duke University Health System Institutional Review Board.

Copyright

This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License permitting unrestricted use and redistribution provided that the original author and source are credited.