Abstract
The way our brain reacts to sensory stimulation may provide important clues about higher-level cognitive function and its operation. Here we show that short-latency (< 200ms) sensory cortical responses elicited by visual and auditory stimuli differ dramatically between subjects with high and low working-memory span, as well as between subjects scoring high and low on a fluid intelligence test. Our findings also suggest that this link between sensory responses and complex cognitive tasks is modality specific (visual sensory measures correlate with visuo-spatial tasks whereas auditory sensory measures correlate with verbal tasks). We interpret these findings as indicating that people's effectiveness in controlling attention and gating sensory information is a critical determinant of individual differences in complex cognitive abilities.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 373-376 |
Number of pages | 4 |
Journal | Neuroreport |
Volume | 15 |
Issue number | 2 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Feb 9 2004 |
Keywords
- Controlled attention
- Event-related brain potentials (ERPs)
- Individual differences
- Working memory capacity
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Neuroscience(all)