Submission 109
Task Set Inhibition Following Mere Task Preparation Induced by Cue-Only Trials
SymposiumTalk-01
Presented by: Alexander Berger
One mechanism considered to aid the switch between tasks is the inhibition of previous, no longer required task sets. Recently, n-2 repetition costs – a marker of such inhibitory processes – were observed following a cue-only trial, in which only the task cue, but no actual task was presented. This indicates that merely preparing for a task activates a task set, which is inhibited during the switch to a new task. In the present work, we investigate the influence of the cue duration (cue-target interval; CTI) on such inhibitory processes following cue-only trials (long CTI: 750ms; short CTI: 300ms). The CTI was previously shown to reduce switch costs, indicating that participants use longer cue durations for more in-depth task preparation. However, in the present work, whilst robust n-2 repetition costs following cue-only trials were observed, these costs were not significantly moderated by CTI. This suggests that different levels of task preparation result in a conflict between competing task sets, with inhibition as a mechanism to resolve this conflict.