Attentional control during conflict: Causal contributions and interactions of fronto-parietal corties in the human brain

• Applicant: Professor Dr. Claus Hilgetag
• Subject Area: Human Cognitive and Systems Neuroscience
• Term: from 2011 to 2019
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 191208562

Attentional control is essential for navigating through a stimulus-rich world in which competing pieces of information demand attention. Attention mechanisms are mediated by widely distributed brain networks. However, the exact causal functional contributions and interactions within these networks are still poorly understood. In our project we will employ different approaches of brain perturbation using transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) in order to: (i) identify regions of bilateral human parietal and frontal cortex that make causal contributions to the allocation of attention during conflict; (ii) characterize each region’s specific functional contributions and temporal dynamics and (iii) investigate the regions’ intra-hemispheric and inter-hemisheric network interactions in a standard conflict paradigm (flanker task) which requires selective attention and conflict resolution. The goal of the project is to contribute to a better understanding of the fundamental neural mechanisms of attentional control and has implications for the characterization of the function and dysfunction of these mechanisms after brain damage.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants
• Participating Person: Professorin Dr. Bettina Olk