Peak alpha frequency is linked to visual temporal attention in 6-month-olds

Abstract The temporal resolution of adults’ visual attention has been linked to the frequency of alpha-band oscillations in electroencephalogram (EEG) signal, with higher Peak Alpha Frequency (PAF) being associated with better visual temporal processing skills. However, relatively less is known abou...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Martina Arioli, Matteo Mattersberger, Stefanie Hoehl, Alicja Brzozowska
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Nature Portfolio 2024-11-01
Series:Scientific Reports
Subjects:
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-79129-0
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1846165279024873472
author Martina Arioli
Matteo Mattersberger
Stefanie Hoehl
Alicja Brzozowska
author_facet Martina Arioli
Matteo Mattersberger
Stefanie Hoehl
Alicja Brzozowska
author_sort Martina Arioli
collection DOAJ
description Abstract The temporal resolution of adults’ visual attention has been linked to the frequency of alpha-band oscillations in electroencephalogram (EEG) signal, with higher Peak Alpha Frequency (PAF) being associated with better visual temporal processing skills. However, relatively less is known about neural mechanisms underlying individual differences in the temporal resolution of visual attention in infancy. This study investigated the role of PAF in visual temporal processing in early infancy. In a sample of 6-month-old infants (n = 62) we examined the relationship between PAF extracted from resting-state EEG, and saccadic latencies in a predictive cueing task where the appearance of a reward was predicted by higher or lower frequency of two flickering objects. Results showed that higher PAF was associated with shorter saccadic latencies in a condition with higher differences between the two flickering frequencies, speaking for the involvement of PAF in visual temporal attention in early development. Additionally, we found that infants were generally faster to orient to the reward in trials where both peripheral stimuli were flickering at relatively lower frequencies, roughly corresponding to the theta frequency band. Our findings support theoretical accounts highlighting the role of PAF in visual attention processing and extend this framework to early infancy.
format Article
id doaj-art-b4d9feb6f325458cb4ae8d93b73a4b5b
institution Kabale University
issn 2045-2322
language English
publishDate 2024-11-01
publisher Nature Portfolio
record_format Article
series Scientific Reports
spelling doaj-art-b4d9feb6f325458cb4ae8d93b73a4b5b2024-11-17T12:26:03ZengNature PortfolioScientific Reports2045-23222024-11-0114111110.1038/s41598-024-79129-0Peak alpha frequency is linked to visual temporal attention in 6-month-oldsMartina Arioli0Matteo Mattersberger1Stefanie Hoehl2Alicja Brzozowska3Department of Psychology, University of Milano-BicoccaDepartment of Developmental and Educational Psychology, University of ViennaDepartment of Developmental and Educational Psychology, University of ViennaDepartment of Developmental and Educational Psychology, University of ViennaAbstract The temporal resolution of adults’ visual attention has been linked to the frequency of alpha-band oscillations in electroencephalogram (EEG) signal, with higher Peak Alpha Frequency (PAF) being associated with better visual temporal processing skills. However, relatively less is known about neural mechanisms underlying individual differences in the temporal resolution of visual attention in infancy. This study investigated the role of PAF in visual temporal processing in early infancy. In a sample of 6-month-old infants (n = 62) we examined the relationship between PAF extracted from resting-state EEG, and saccadic latencies in a predictive cueing task where the appearance of a reward was predicted by higher or lower frequency of two flickering objects. Results showed that higher PAF was associated with shorter saccadic latencies in a condition with higher differences between the two flickering frequencies, speaking for the involvement of PAF in visual temporal attention in early development. Additionally, we found that infants were generally faster to orient to the reward in trials where both peripheral stimuli were flickering at relatively lower frequencies, roughly corresponding to the theta frequency band. Our findings support theoretical accounts highlighting the role of PAF in visual attention processing and extend this framework to early infancy.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-79129-0Peak alpha frequencyTemporal resolution of visual attentionInfancy
spellingShingle Martina Arioli
Matteo Mattersberger
Stefanie Hoehl
Alicja Brzozowska
Peak alpha frequency is linked to visual temporal attention in 6-month-olds
Scientific Reports
Peak alpha frequency
Temporal resolution of visual attention
Infancy
title Peak alpha frequency is linked to visual temporal attention in 6-month-olds
title_full Peak alpha frequency is linked to visual temporal attention in 6-month-olds
title_fullStr Peak alpha frequency is linked to visual temporal attention in 6-month-olds
title_full_unstemmed Peak alpha frequency is linked to visual temporal attention in 6-month-olds
title_short Peak alpha frequency is linked to visual temporal attention in 6-month-olds
title_sort peak alpha frequency is linked to visual temporal attention in 6 month olds
topic Peak alpha frequency
Temporal resolution of visual attention
Infancy
url https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-79129-0
work_keys_str_mv AT martinaarioli peakalphafrequencyislinkedtovisualtemporalattentionin6montholds
AT matteomattersberger peakalphafrequencyislinkedtovisualtemporalattentionin6montholds
AT stefaniehoehl peakalphafrequencyislinkedtovisualtemporalattentionin6montholds
AT alicjabrzozowska peakalphafrequencyislinkedtovisualtemporalattentionin6montholds