NON-DIRECTIONAL, SYMBOLIC CUES IN A GO BEFORE YOU KNOW TASK

Abstract

Inhibition of Return (IOR) has been observed in reaching movements to a known target location following predictive symbolic cues. Facilitatory like effects, as they appear in traditional cue-target paradigms, have not yet been observed in response to these cues. The aim of the current study is to determine if facilitatory like effects occur in response to centrally presented, predictive symbolic cues. At cue presentation participants initiated a reach to a potential target location and the true target location was revealed at movement onset. Participant’s choice of side was influenced by the predictive symbolic cues wherein they reached right more often following a right target predictive cue compared to a left target predictive cue or a neutral, non-predictive cue. These findings provide evidence that under end-goal uncertainty symbolic cues elicit facilitatory effects; participants used the learned association between cue type and target location advantageously to facilitate target acquisition.