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. 2018 Oct;55(10):e13208.
doi: 10.1111/psyp.13208. Epub 2018 Aug 15.

Time-frequency approaches to investigating changes in feedback processing during childhood and adolescence

M E Bowers  1 , G A Buzzell  2 , E M Bernat  1   3 , N A Fox  1   2 , T V Barker  4
Affiliations

Time-frequency approaches to investigating changes in feedback processing during childhood and adolescence

M E Bowers et al. Psychophysiology. 2018 Oct.

Abstract

Processing feedback from the environment is an essential function during development to adapt behavior in advantageous ways. One measure of feedback processing, the feedback negativity (FN), is an ERP observed following the presentation of feedback. Findings detailing developmental changes in the FN have been mixed, possibly due to limitations in traditional ERP measurement methods. Recent work shows that both theta and delta frequency activity contribute to the FN; utilizing time-frequency methods to measure change in power and phase in these frequency bands may provide more accurate representation of feedback processing development in childhood and adolescence. We employ time-frequency power and intertrial phase synchrony measures, in addition to conventional time-domain ERP methods, to examine the development of feedback processing in the theta (4-7 Hz) and delta (.1-3 Hz) bands throughout adolescence. A sample of 54 female participants (8-17 years old) completed a gambling task while EEG was recorded. As expected, time-domain ERP amplitudes showed no association with age. In contrast, significant effects were observed for the time-frequency measures, with theta power decreasing with age and delta power increasing with age. For intertrial phase synchrony, delta synchrony increased with age, while age-related changes in theta synchrony differed for gains and losses. Collectively, these findings highlight the importance of considering time-frequency dynamics when exploring how the processing of feedback develops through late childhood and adolescence. In particular, the role of delta band activity and theta synchrony appear central to understanding age-related changes in the neural response to feedback.

Keywords: EEG; ERPs; adolescents; development; gambling; oscillation/time-frequency analyses.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Unfiltered grand average ERP Waveform and topographic plot of the voltage difference between loss and gain between 213 ms and 273 ms. The line at 0 ms in the waveform represents feedback onset.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Time-Frequency Principal Components Analysis. TF energy distributions and topographic plots based on PCA weights for both theta and delta bands in response to gains, losses, and the difference between gains and losses.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Inter-trial phase synchrony. TF energy distributions and topographic plots based on PCA weights for both theta and delta bands in response to gains, losses, and the difference between gains and losses.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Relations between age and TF neural measures. Loss is presented in red, while gain is presented in blue. Both delta power and ITPS increase with age, while theta power decreases with age. Theta ITPS to loss showed a pattern of increasing with age, while theta ITPS to gain showed a pattern of decreasing with age.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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