Abstract
Recent event-related potential studies observed an early posterior
negativity (EPN) reflecting facilitated processing of emotional images.
The present study explored if the facilitated processing of emotional
pictures is sustained while subjects perform an explicit non-emotional
attention task. EEG was recorded from 129 channels while subjects
viewed a rapid continuous stream of images containing emotional pictures
as well as task-related checkerboard images. As expected, explicit
selective attention to target images elicited large P3 waves. Interestingly,
emotional stimuli guided stimulus-driven selective encoding as reflected
by augmented EPN amplitudes to emotional stimuli, in particular to
stimuli of evolutionary significance (erotic contents, mutilations,
and threat). These data demonstrate the selective encoding of emotional
stimuli while top-down attentional control was directed towards non-emotional
target stimuli.
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