Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging Evidence for a Hierarchical Organization of the Prefrontal Cortex.

@article{citeulike:1700291, abstract = {Abstract The prefrontal cortex (PFC) is central to flexible and organized action. Recent theoretical and empirical results suggest that the rostro-caudal axis of the frontal lobes may reflect a hierarchical organization of control. Here, we test whether the rostro-caudal axis of the PFC is organized hierarchically, based on the level of abstraction at which multiple representations compete to guide selection of action. Four functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) experiments parametrically manipulated the set of task-relevant (a) responses, (b) features, (c) dimensions, and (d) overlapping cue-to-dimension mappings. A systematic posterior to anterior gradient was evident within the PFC depending on the manipulated level of representation. Furthermore, across four fMRI experiments, activation in PFC subregions was consistent with the sub- and superordinate relationships that define an abstract representational hierarchy. In addition to providing further support for a representational hierarchy account of the rostro-caudal gradient in the PFC, these data provide important empirical constraints on current theorizing about control hierarchies and the PFC.}, address = {University of California, Berkeley.}, author = {Badre, David and D'Esposito, Mark }, citeulike-article-id = {1700291}, doi = {10.1162/jocn.2007.91201}, issn = {0898-929X}, journal = {J Cogn Neurosci}, keywords = {controller, fmri, frontal, task-complexity}, month = {September}, posted-at = {2008-04-06 23:31:49}, priority = {2}, title = {Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging Evidence for a Hierarchical Organization of the Prefrontal Cortex.}, url = {http://dx.doi.org/10.1162/jocn.2007.91201}, year = {2007} }

TY - JOUR ID - citeulike:1700291 L3 - citeulike-article-id:1700291 TI - Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging Evidence for a Hierarchical Organization of the Prefrontal Cortex. JF - J Cogn Neurosci AD - University of California, Berkeley. SN - 0898-929X N2 - Abstract The prefrontal cortex (PFC) is central to flexible and organized action. Recent theoretical and empirical results suggest that the rostro-caudal axis of the frontal lobes may reflect a hierarchical organization of control. Here, we test whether the rostro-caudal axis of the PFC is organized hierarchically, based on the level of abstraction at which multiple representations compete to guide selection of action. Four functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) experiments parametrically manipulated the set of task-relevant (a) responses, (b) features, (c) dimensions, and (d) overlapping cue-to-dimension mappings. A systematic posterior to anterior gradient was evident within the PFC depending on the manipulated level of representation. Furthermore, across four fMRI experiments, activation in PFC subregions was consistent with the sub- and superordinate relationships that define an abstract representational hierarchy. In addition to providing further support for a representational hierarchy account of the rostro-caudal gradient in the PFC, these data provide important empirical constraints on current theorizing about control hierarchies and the PFC. KW - controller KW - fmri KW - frontal KW - task-complexity AU - Badre, David AU - D'Esposito, Mark PY - 2007/09/24/ UR - http://dx.doi.org/10.1162/jocn.2007.91201 ER -