FUNCTIONAL NEUROIMAGING STUDIES OF OBJECT PROCESSING

物体处理涉及将许多信息源整合到一个单一的感知或判断中。行为学和神经科学的研究都证明了对物体加工的注意调节：对物体的判断取决于所注意的属性。这项拟议的研究将探讨这种注意调节的神经基础。首先，将使用功能成像技术，针对由行为研究确定的不同对象类别，检查属性判断任务中的对象处理。在有人和无人参与的情况下，将记录四种不同对象类别的大脑激活模式。历时平均分析将揭示所有对象类型所共有的注意调制成分，以及取决于被判断对象类型的调制方面。第二，将开发与事件相关的分析技术。这项技术将允许调查单次审判对目标判断的注意效应。对注意过程的研究将有助于研究以注意加工受损为特征的临床症状(如精神分裂症、注意力缺陷障碍)。目前的研究将提供对大脑中潜在的物体感知的注意系统的描述。对这些注意系统的理解将产生与患者群体一起工作的研究假设。

Object processing involves the integration of many sources of information into a single perception or judgment. Both behavioral and neuroscientific studies have demonstrated attentional modulation of object processing: judgments about an object depend on attributes attended to. The proposed studies will investigate the neural bases of this attentional modulation. First, object processing in an attribute judgment task will be examined for different object categories, as established by behavioral research, using functional imaging techniques. Patterns of brain activation will be recorded for four different object categories in both attended and non-attended conditions. Epoch- averaging analyses will reveal components of attentional modulation that are common to all object types and aspects of modulation that depend on the type of object being judged. Second, an event-related analysis technique will be developed. This technique will allow investigation of single-trial attentional effects on object judgments. Investigation of attentional processes will benefit research into clinical syndromes characterized by impaired attentional processing (e.g., schizophrenia, attention-deficit disorder). The current studies will provide a description of the attentional systems in the brain underlying object perception. An understanding of these attentional systems will generate research hypotheses for work with patient populations.