Cortical representations of confidence in a visual perceptual decision

Abstract

To date the exact neuronal implementation of decision confidence has been subject to little research. Here we explore electroencephalographic correlates of human choice certainty in a visual motion discrimination task for either spatial attention or motor effector cue instructions. We demonstrate electrophysiological correlates of choice certainty that evolve as early as 300 ms after stimulus onset and resemble the primary visual motion representations in early visual cortex. These correlates do not emerge unless or until the subject unambiguously knows which of the competing visual stimuli is actually relevant to behaviour. They extend beyond stimulus presentation up to the motor response but are independent of the motor effector. Our findings suggest that perceptual confidence evolves in parallel with representations of stimulus properties and is dedicated to one specific aspect of the visual world. Its electroencephalographic correlates can be disentangled from representations of sensory evidence, objective discrimination performance and overt motor behaviour.

A temporo-spatial analysis of the neural correlates of extrinsic perceptual grouping in vision

“…According to this account, the larger amplitude of the P280 may be specifically associated with the existence of differences in confidence in perceptual decisions when participants selected one out of many possible courses of action (Han et al, 2001;Kerkhof and Uhlenbroek, 1981). In fact, there is recent evidence showing certainty-specific ERP activity around 300 ms that has been related to perceptual decision confidence when observers discriminated global visual motion and rated their confidence in their judgment (Zizlsperger et al, 2014). From this view, it could be assumed that prior higher perceptual saliency indexed by the enhanced N210 amplitudes found in common region relative to comparison conditions led to a more confident decision about grouping of the target at a subsequent processing stage.…”

Decoded fMRI neurofeedback can induce bidirectional confidence changes within single participants

“…Several studies have linked frontoparietal areas with the computation of perceptual confidence, in humans (Huettel et al 2005; Fleming et al 2010; Rounis et al 2010; Simons et al 2010; De Martino et al 2012; Zizlsperger et al 2014; Rahnev et al 2016) as well as in primates (Kiani & Shadlen 2009; Fetsch et al 2014) and rats (Kepecs et al 2008; Lak et al 2014). Specifically, dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (dlPFC) as well as inferior parietal cortex seem to play a crucial role.…”

“…For example, gray matter thickness in the dlPFC correlated with metacognitive abilities of participants (Fleming et al 2010), and transcranial magnetic stimulations (TMS) applied over loci within the dlPFC have been shown to selectively disrupt confidence judgements (Rounis et al 2010). A recent study has highlighted the temporal structure of confidence processing in cortical areas, demonstrating that electrophysiological correlates of decision confidence can be detected in the left parietal cortex (Zizlsperger et al 2014). …”

Self-evaluation of decision-making: A general Bayesian framework for metacognitive computation.

“…Dynamic extensions of signal detection theory accumulate evidence for or against a particular choice (Link & Heath, 1975; Gold & Shadlen, 2002), and several variants of this approach have linked the state of the decision variable at decision time to confidence (Kiani & Shadlen, 2009; Merkle & Van Zandt, 2006; Moreno-Bote, 2010; Ratcliff & Starns, 2009; Vickers, 1979; see Fetsch, Kiani, & Shadlen, 2015; Yeung & Summerfield, 2012 for reviews). Empirically, putative neural correlates of decision variables are also correlated with subjective confidence (De Martino, Fleming, Garrett, & Dolan, 2013; Gherman & Philiastides, 2015; Kiani & Shadlen, 2009; Komura, Nikkuni, Hirashima, Uetake, & Miyamoto, 2013; Zizlsperger, Sauvigny, Händel, & Haarmeier, 2014). …”