Fronto—Parietal Regions Predict Transient Emotional States in Emotion Modulated Response Inhibition via Low Frequency and Beta Oscillations

Abstract

The current study evaluated the impact of task-relevant emotion on inhibitory control while focusing on midline cortical regions rather than brain asymmetry. Single-trial time-frequency analysis of electroencephalography recordings linked with response execution and response inhibition was done while thirty-four participants performed the emotion modulated stop-signal task. To evaluate individual differences across decision-making processes involved in inhibitory control, a hierarchical drift-diffusion model was used to fit data from Go-trials for each of the 34 participants. Response threshold in the early processing stage for happy and disgust emotions could be distinguished from the later processing stage at the mid-parietal and mid-frontal regions, respectively, by the single-trial power increments in low frequency (delta and theta) bands. Beta desynchronization in the mid-frontal region was specific for differentiating disgust from neutral emotion in the early as well as later processing stages. The findings are interpreted based on the influence of emotional stimuli on early perceptual processing originating as a bottom-up process in the mid-parietal region and later proceeding to the mid-frontal region responsible for cognitive control processing, which resulted in enhanced inhibitory performance. The results show the importance of mid-frontal and mid-parietal regions in single-trial dynamics of inhibitory control processing.

Keywords

• emotion
• response inhibition
• delta
• theta
• drift diffusion model