The Impact of Selective Spatial Attention on Auditory–Tactile Integration: An Event-Related Potential Study

Background: Auditory–tactile integration is an important research area in multisensory integration. Especially in special environments (e.g., traffic noise and complex work environments), auditory–tactile integration is crucial for human response and decision making. We investigated the influence of...

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Main Authors: Weichao An, Nan Zhang, Shengnan Li, Yinghua Yu, Jinglong Wu, Jiajia Yang
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2024-12-01
Series:Brain Sciences
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Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/14/12/1258
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author Weichao An
Nan Zhang
Shengnan Li
Yinghua Yu
Jinglong Wu
Jiajia Yang
author_facet Weichao An
Nan Zhang
Shengnan Li
Yinghua Yu
Jinglong Wu
Jiajia Yang
author_sort Weichao An
collection DOAJ
description Background: Auditory–tactile integration is an important research area in multisensory integration. Especially in special environments (e.g., traffic noise and complex work environments), auditory–tactile integration is crucial for human response and decision making. We investigated the influence of attention on the temporal course and spatial distribution of auditory–tactile integration. Methods: Participants received auditory stimuli alone, tactile stimuli alone, and simultaneous auditory and tactile stimuli, which were randomly presented on the left or right side. For each block, participants attended to all stimuli on the designated side and detected uncommon target stimuli while ignoring all stimuli on the other side. Event-related potentials (ERPs) were recorded via 64 scalp electrodes. Integration was quantified by comparing the response to the combined stimulus to the sum of the responses to the auditory and tactile stimuli presented separately. Results: The results demonstrated that compared to the unattended condition, integration occurred earlier and involved more brain regions in the attended condition when the stimulus was presented in the left hemispace. The unattended condition involved a more extensive range of brain regions and occurred earlier than the attended condition when the stimulus was presented in the right hemispace. Conclusions: Attention can modulate auditory–tactile integration and show systematic differences between the left and right hemispaces. These findings contribute to the understanding of the mechanisms of auditory–tactile information processing in the human brain.
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institution Kabale University
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publishDate 2024-12-01
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spelling doaj-art-1bdfd9a6913d4c33a9d912dc829668332024-12-27T14:14:56ZengMDPI AGBrain Sciences2076-34252024-12-011412125810.3390/brainsci14121258The Impact of Selective Spatial Attention on Auditory–Tactile Integration: An Event-Related Potential StudyWeichao An0Nan Zhang1Shengnan Li2Yinghua Yu3Jinglong Wu4Jiajia Yang5Graduate School of Interdisciplinary Science and Engineering in Health Systems, Okayama University, 3-1-1 Tsushima-Naka, Okayama 700-8530, JapanGraduate School of Interdisciplinary Science and Engineering in Health Systems, Okayama University, 3-1-1 Tsushima-Naka, Okayama 700-8530, JapanGraduate School of Interdisciplinary Science and Engineering in Health Systems, Okayama University, 3-1-1 Tsushima-Naka, Okayama 700-8530, JapanGraduate School of Interdisciplinary Science and Engineering in Health Systems, Okayama University, 3-1-1 Tsushima-Naka, Okayama 700-8530, JapanGraduate School of Interdisciplinary Science and Engineering in Health Systems, Okayama University, 3-1-1 Tsushima-Naka, Okayama 700-8530, JapanGraduate School of Interdisciplinary Science and Engineering in Health Systems, Okayama University, 3-1-1 Tsushima-Naka, Okayama 700-8530, JapanBackground: Auditory–tactile integration is an important research area in multisensory integration. Especially in special environments (e.g., traffic noise and complex work environments), auditory–tactile integration is crucial for human response and decision making. We investigated the influence of attention on the temporal course and spatial distribution of auditory–tactile integration. Methods: Participants received auditory stimuli alone, tactile stimuli alone, and simultaneous auditory and tactile stimuli, which were randomly presented on the left or right side. For each block, participants attended to all stimuli on the designated side and detected uncommon target stimuli while ignoring all stimuli on the other side. Event-related potentials (ERPs) were recorded via 64 scalp electrodes. Integration was quantified by comparing the response to the combined stimulus to the sum of the responses to the auditory and tactile stimuli presented separately. Results: The results demonstrated that compared to the unattended condition, integration occurred earlier and involved more brain regions in the attended condition when the stimulus was presented in the left hemispace. The unattended condition involved a more extensive range of brain regions and occurred earlier than the attended condition when the stimulus was presented in the right hemispace. Conclusions: Attention can modulate auditory–tactile integration and show systematic differences between the left and right hemispaces. These findings contribute to the understanding of the mechanisms of auditory–tactile information processing in the human brain.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/14/12/1258auditory–tactile integrationselective spatial attentionevent-related potentialleft–right hemispace differencesspatiotemporal distribution
spellingShingle Weichao An
Nan Zhang
Shengnan Li
Yinghua Yu
Jinglong Wu
Jiajia Yang
The Impact of Selective Spatial Attention on Auditory–Tactile Integration: An Event-Related Potential Study
Brain Sciences
auditory–tactile integration
selective spatial attention
event-related potential
left–right hemispace differences
spatiotemporal distribution
title The Impact of Selective Spatial Attention on Auditory–Tactile Integration: An Event-Related Potential Study
title_full The Impact of Selective Spatial Attention on Auditory–Tactile Integration: An Event-Related Potential Study
title_fullStr The Impact of Selective Spatial Attention on Auditory–Tactile Integration: An Event-Related Potential Study
title_full_unstemmed The Impact of Selective Spatial Attention on Auditory–Tactile Integration: An Event-Related Potential Study
title_short The Impact of Selective Spatial Attention on Auditory–Tactile Integration: An Event-Related Potential Study
title_sort impact of selective spatial attention on auditory tactile integration an event related potential study
topic auditory–tactile integration
selective spatial attention
event-related potential
left–right hemispace differences
spatiotemporal distribution
url https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/14/12/1258
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