Manual response preparation and saccade programming are linked to attention shifts: ERP evidence for covert attentional orienting and spatially specific modulations of visual processing

The premotor theory of attention claims that attentional shifts are triggered during response programming, regardless of which response modality is involved. To investigate this claim, event-related brain potentials (ERPs) were recorded while participants covertly prepared a left or right response, as indicated by a precue presented at the beginning of each trial. Cues signalled a left or right eye movement in the saccade task, and a left or right manual response in the manual task. The cued response had to be executed or withheld following the presentation of a Go/Nogo stimulus. Although there were systematic differences between ERPs triggered during covert manual and saccade preparation, lateralised ERP components sensitive to the direction of a cued response were very similar for both tasks, and also similar to the components previously found during cued shifts of endogenous spatial attention. This is consistent with the claim that the control of attention and of covert response preparation are closely linked. N1 components triggered by task-irrelevant visual probes presented during the covert response preparation interval were enhanced when these probes were presented close to cued response hand in the manual task, and at the saccade target location in the saccade task. This demonstrates that both manual and saccade preparation result in spatially specific modulations of visual processing, in line with the predictions of the premotor theory.

Individual differences and the role of the L1 in L2 processing: an ERP investigation

This study used ERP (event-related potentials) to examine both the role of the L1 and the role of individual differences in the processing of agreement violations. Theories of L2 acquisition differ with regard to whether or not native-like acquisition of L2 features is possible (Schwartz and Sprouse, 1994, 1996; Tsimpli and Mastropavlou, 2007), and the results of previous ERP studies are inconsistent when it comes to whether or not native-like processing is observed in response to L2 agreement violations (e.g., Sabourin, 2003; Tokowicz and MacWhinney, 2005). Furthermore, studies of learners in early stages of L2 acquisition have found variability in the emergence of native-like responses (e.g., McLaughlin et al., 2010; Tanner et al., 2009), but sources of variability have not been investigated. The current study examines responses to gender and number agreement violations in English-speaking learners of Spanish (n=24). Stimuli targeted agreement in three conditions: subject-verb agreement (el barco flota/*flotan), which is similar in Spanish and English; number agreement on adjectival predicates (la isla rocosa/*rocosas), a context in which agreement is not instantiated in English; and gender agreement on adjectival predicates (la isla rocosa/*rocoso), which is unique to Spanish. Grammaticality judgments and ERP responses were also tested for correlations with aptitude scores on the Modern Languages Aptitude Test (MLAT; Carroll and Sapon, 1959) and the Raven Advanced Progressive Matrices (Raven, 1965). Results are in line with theories that claim native-like processing is acquirable, since learners demonstrated similar ERP responses to a control group of native Spanish-speakers (n=8) with regard to all three agreement types. Additionally, the MLAT (but not the Raven) was significantly correlated with sensitivity to number violations, both in terms of grammaticality judgments and ERP amplitudes, indicating a role for verbal but not nonverbal aptitude in L2 processing.

Immediate auditory repetition of words and nonwords: An ERP study of lexical and sublexical processing

ERPs were elicited to (1) words, (2) pseudowords derived from these words, and (3) nonwords with no lexical neighbors, in a task involving listening to immediately repeated auditory stimuli. There was a significant early (P200) effect of phonotactic probability in the first auditory presentation, which discriminated words and pseudowords from nonwords; and a significant somewhat later (N400) effect of lexicality, which discriminated words from pseudowords and nonwords. There was no reliable effect of lexicality in the ERPs to the second auditory presentation. We conclude that early sublexical phonological processing differed according to phonotactic probability of the stimuli, and that lexically-based redintegration occurred for words but did not occur for pseudowords or nonwords. Thus, in online word recognition and immediate retrieval, phonological and/or sublexical processing plays a more important role than lexical level redintegration.

N1 enhancement in synesthesia during visual and audio-visual perception in semantic cross-modal conflict situations: an ERP study

Synesthesia entails a special kind of sensory perception, where stimulation in one sensory modality leads to an internally generated perceptual experience of another, not stimulated sensory modality. This phenomenon can be viewed as an abnormal multisensory integration process as here the synesthetic percept is aberrantly fused with the stimulated modality. Indeed, recent synesthesia research has focused on multimodal processing even outside of the specific synesthesia-inducing context and has revealed changed multimodal integration, thus suggesting perceptual alterations at a global level. Here, we focused on audio-visual processing in synesthesia using a semantic classification task in combination with visually or auditory-visually presented animated and in animated objects in an audio-visual congruent and incongruent manner. Fourteen subjects with auditory-visual and/or grapheme-color synesthesia and 14 control subjects participated in the experiment. During presentation of the stimuli, event-related potentials were recorded from 32 electrodes. The analysis of reaction times and error rates revealed no group differences with best performance for audio-visually congruent stimulation indicating the well-known multimodal facilitation effect. We found enhanced amplitude of the N1 component over occipital electrode sites for synesthetes compared to controls. The differences occurred irrespective of the experimental condition and therefore suggest a global influence on early sensory processing in synesthetes.

Method for exploratory cluster analysis and visualisation of single-trial ERP ensembles

Background: The validity of ensemble averaging on event-related potential (ERP) data has been questioned, due to its assumption that the ERP is identical across trials. Thus, there is a need for preliminary testing for cluster structure in the data. New method: We propose a complete pipeline for the cluster analysis of ERP data. To increase the signalto-noise (SNR) ratio of the raw single-trials, we used a denoising method based on Empirical Mode Decomposition (EMD). Next, we used a bootstrap-based method to determine the number of clusters, through a measure called the Stability Index (SI). We then used a clustering algorithm based on a Genetic Algorithm (GA)to define initial cluster centroids for subsequent k-means clustering. Finally, we visualised the clustering results through a scheme based on Principal Component Analysis (PCA). Results: After validating the pipeline on simulated data, we tested it on data from two experiments – a P300 speller paradigm on a single subject and a language processing study on 25 subjects. Results revealed evidence for the existence of 6 clusters in one experimental condition from the language processing study. Further, a two-way chi-square test revealed an influence of subject on cluster membership.

An optimized ERP brain–computer interface based on facial expression changes

Objective. Interferences from spatially adjacent non-target stimuli are known to evoke event-related potentials (ERPs) during non-target flashes and, therefore, lead to false positives. This phenomenon was commonly seen in visual attention-based brain–computer interfaces (BCIs) using conspicuous stimuli and is known to adversely affect the performance of BCI systems. Although users try to focus on the target stimulus, they cannot help but be affected by conspicuous changes of the stimuli (such as flashes or presenting images) which were adjacent to the target stimulus. Furthermore, subjects have reported that conspicuous stimuli made them tired and annoyed. In view of this, the aim of this study was to reduce adjacent interference, annoyance and fatigue using a new stimulus presentation pattern based upon facial expression changes. Our goal was not to design a new pattern which could evoke larger ERPs than the face pattern, but to design a new pattern which could reduce adjacent interference, annoyance and fatigue, and evoke ERPs as good as those observed during the face pattern. Approach. Positive facial expressions could be changed to negative facial expressions by minor changes to the original facial image. Although the changes are minor, the contrast is big enough to evoke strong ERPs. In this paper, a facial expression change pattern between positive and negative facial expressions was used to attempt to minimize interference effects. This was compared against two different conditions, a shuffled pattern containing the same shapes and colours as the facial expression change pattern, but without the semantic content associated with a change in expression, and a face versus no face pattern. Comparisons were made in terms of classification accuracy and information transfer rate as well as user supplied subjective measures. Main results. The results showed that interferences from adjacent stimuli, annoyance and the fatigue experienced by the subjects could be reduced significantly (p < 0.05) by using the facial expression change patterns in comparison with the face pattern. The offline results show that the classification accuracy of the facial expression change pattern was significantly better than that of the shuffled pattern (p < 0.05) and the face pattern (p < 0.05). Significance. The facial expression change pattern presented in this paper reduced interference from adjacent stimuli and decreased the fatigue and annoyance experienced by BCI users significantly (p < 0.05) compared to the face pattern.

An optimized ERP Brain-computer interface based on facial expression changes

OBJECTIVE: Interferences from spatially adjacent non-target stimuli are known to evoke event-related potentials (ERPs) during non-target flashes and, therefore, lead to false positives. This phenomenon was commonly seen in visual attention-based brain-computer interfaces (BCIs) using conspicuous stimuli and is known to adversely affect the performance of BCI systems. Although users try to focus on the target stimulus, they cannot help but be affected by conspicuous changes of the stimuli (such as flashes or presenting images) which were adjacent to the target stimulus. Furthermore, subjects have reported that conspicuous stimuli made them tired and annoyed. In view of this, the aim of this study was to reduce adjacent interference, annoyance and fatigue using a new stimulus presentation pattern based upon facial expression changes. Our goal was not to design a new pattern which could evoke larger ERPs than the face pattern, but to design a new pattern which could reduce adjacent interference, annoyance and fatigue, and evoke ERPs as good as those observed during the face pattern. APPROACH: Positive facial expressions could be changed to negative facial expressions by minor changes to the original facial image. Although the changes are minor, the contrast is big enough to evoke strong ERPs. In this paper, a facial expression change pattern between positive and negative facial expressions was used to attempt to minimize interference effects. This was compared against two different conditions, a shuffled pattern containing the same shapes and colours as the facial expression change pattern, but without the semantic content associated with a change in expression, and a face versus no face pattern. Comparisons were made in terms of classification accuracy and information transfer rate as well as user supplied subjective measures. MAIN RESULTS: The results showed that interferences from adjacent stimuli, annoyance and the fatigue experienced by the subjects could be reduced significantly (p < 0.05) by using the facial expression change patterns in comparison with the face pattern. The offline results show that the classification accuracy of the facial expression change pattern was significantly better than that of the shuffled pattern (p < 0.05) and the face pattern (p < 0.05). SIGNIFICANCE: The facial expression change pattern presented in this paper reduced interference from adjacent stimuli and decreased the fatigue and annoyance experienced by BCI users significantly (p < 0.05) compared to the face pattern.

Neurolinguistic measures of typological effects in multilingual transfer: introducing an ERP methodology

This article has two main objectives. First, we offer an introduction to the subfield of generative third language (L3) acquisition. Concerned primarily with modeling initial stages transfer of morphosyntax, one goal of this program is to show how initial stages L3 data make significant contributions toward a better understanding of how the mind represents language and how (cognitive) economy constrains acquisition processes more generally. Our second objective is to argue for and demonstrate how this subfield will benefit from a neuro/psycholinguistic methodological approach, such as event-related potential experiments, to complement the claims currently made on the basis of exclusively behavioral experiments.

Aprendendo com a implementação de ERP: um estudo comparativo entre Brasil e Canadá

Esta pesquisa é uma extensão do trabalho de doutorado Studying Configurational Technology Implementation: A Mediation Process, cujo foco de análise foi o processo de mediação nas implementações de ERP. Processo de mediação é o processo através do qual clientes e consultores conjuntamente influenciam as decisões que são feitas sobre como o sistema será configurado. A partir dessa análise, foram identificados alguns padrões no processo de mediação, estabelecendo-se associações entre esses padrões e os resultados da implementação. Nosso estudo busca analisar o processo de implementação de tecnologias configuráveis, mais precisamente ERP Enterprise Resource Planning, sob o mesmo enfoque do trabalho de doutorado descrito acima, mas observando-se empresas brasileiras. Nossos resultados serão comparados aos resultados encontrados nas empresas canadenses, buscando-se identificar diferenças e similaridades e seu impacto nos resultados do projeto. Visamos, dessa maneira, promover um melhor entendimento sobre o processo de implementação de ERP, contribuindo para minimizar o risco de fracasso de tal empreendimento em empresas brasileiras.

Modas e modismos em gestão empresarial: uma pesquisa empírica sobre sistemas integrados de gestão (ERP) no Brasil

Este trabalho discute a onda dos Sistemas Integrados de Gestão (SIG). SIG representam imensos investimentos para empresas em todo o mundo e tem sido promovidos como panacéias gerenciais. Previsivelmente, muitas implantações não atendem as expectativas. Neste estudo, nós: (i) propomos uma perspectiva ampla para a compreensão dos fatores substantivos, institucionais e políticos envolvidos no fenômeno SIG, assim como uma alternativa ao "tecno-reducionismo" que tem caracterizado as abordagens usuais ao tema; e (ii) apresentamos uma pesquisa exploratória de 28 experiências de implantação, concentrando o foco no processo de adoção, na abordagem escolhida para implantação e na avaliação dos resultados.

O impacto da implantação dos softwares de ERP - Enterprise Resource Planning - na contabilidade gerencial e no papel do contador gerencial

Aborda o impacto da implantação dos sistemas ERP - Enterprise Resource Planning- sobre a Contabilidade e sobre o Papel do Contador Gerencial. Analisa quais foram as alterações estruturais, - funcionais e de responsabilidades ocorridas com a contabilidade gerencial, após a implantação do ERP, bem como as alterações ocorridas no papel do contador gerencial, nas suas funções, na sua importância e no seu papel nas organizações. Identifica, em função desse novo papel, quais são as novas habilidades que o contador gerencial deverá incorporar

O papel do gerente nos projetos de implementação de soluções ERP : estudo sobre a capacidade de articulação de tecnologia, de pessoas e de processos para o sucesso do projeto

Trata do papel do gerente de implementação de soluções ERP no que se refere as suas habilidades de gerenciar as mudanças resultantes do processo, como por exemplo, as resistências dos usuários ao desenvolvimento do projeto. Discute como as metodologias e os recursos disponíveis ao gerente de implementação podem ser utilizadas para maximizar a probabilidade de sucesso do projeto.

Análise da resistência a sistemas de informação: a percepção dos gestores de tecnologia da informação acerca de sistemas ERP

Este trabalho visa obter e verificar empiricamente um meta-modelo que possa apoiar e aprofundar a compreensão do fenômeno da resistência a sistemas de informação. Tratase de uma pesquisa explanatória e quantitativa na qual faz-se, por meio de uma extensa revisão da literatura mundial, o levantamento e consolidação das principais teorias e modelos existentes sobre o tema. Dessa forma, buscando obter um melhor entendimento do problema de pesquisa, propõe-se um meta-modelo de fatores pertinentes ao comportamento de resistência a sistemas de informação. Neste modelo, considera-se um conjunto de aspectos que, embora já abordados anteriormente, em sua maior parte ainda não haviam sido testados empiricamente, quais sejam: (i) as características idiossincráticas dos indivíduos, (ii) os aspectos técnicos inerentes aos sistemas de informação, (iii) as características da interação sócio-técnica, (iv) as características da interação de poder e políticas e, finalmente, (v) as características das organizações nas quais a tecnologia e o homem estão inseridos e interagem entre si. O instrumento de pesquisa utilizado no trabalho foi um questionário estruturado, aplicado via Internet, com suas questões contextualizadas quanto aos sistemas de gestão empresarial ERPs: Enterprise Resource Planning Systems. Obteve-se um total de 169 respondentes, considerando-se uma amostra composta exclusivamente por gestores de tecnologia da informação (TI) brasileiros e que tenham vivenciado pelo menos uma experiência de implantação de sistemas ERP ao longo de suas carreiras. Uma vez realizada a coleta dos dados, foram empregados testes estatísticos relativos à análise fatorial, visando alcançar um modelo definitivo. A partir do novo modelo encontrado, por meio da validação proporcionada pela análise fatorial, cada fator identificado representou uma causa para o comportamento de resistência a sistemas de informação. Por fim, testou-se também hipóteses a partir do novo modelo identificado, verificando-se as relações entre a percepção direta dos gestores quanto à resistência e os diversos fatores considerados relevantes para a explicação deste comportamento. Como resultado do estudo, consolidou-se um modelo de análise do comportamento de resistência a sistemas de informação, baseado na percepção do gestor de TI e contextualizado nos sistemas ERPs.

A influência do ERP nos ativos intangíveis de organizações de TI de pequeno e médio porte: um estudo de caso no Distrito Federal

A tecnologia da informação (TI) tem provocado mudanças significativas nas empresas, mudanças estas que muitas vezes não têm um grau de sustentabilidade coerente com os bons resultados obtidos, principalmente no que se refere aos ativos intangíveis à organização. Nesse sentido, o ERP – Enterprise Resource Planning – ou Sistemas de Informações Gerenciais – SIG – são sistemas que estão sendo discutidos e analisados não só pela academia e institutos ligados à comercialização do ERP, como também pelo próprio meio empresarial como uma tecnologia de agregação de valor intangível às organizações. Este trabalho, através de um estudo de caso, baseado em pesquisa de natureza essencialmente qualitativa, mas com alguns ferramentais quantitativos, e de caráter exploratório, numa empresa do ramo de TI, localizada no Distrito Federal, analisa a evolução dos componentes do capital intelectual (capital de processos, capital de relacionamento, capital de inovação e capital humano), após a implantação do ERP. O objetivo deste estudo foi determinar a influência do ERP no desenvolvimento do capital intelectual numa organização de TI de pequeno porte do Distrito Federal. O referencial teórico contextualiza a importância da tecnologia da informação. Faz-se um apanhado da taxonomia existente de ativos intangíveis, abordando suas importâncias para a competitividade de organizações modernas, e apresenta categorizações dos diferentes tipos de intangíveis. A principal conclusão da pesquisa é que existem fortes evidências que o capital de processos evoluiu após a implantação do ERP. Entretanto, não existe evidências de que houve evolução no capital de inovação. Já para o capital de relacionamento e humano as evidências de evolução são fracas