title: Causal influences in the human brain during face discrimination: a short-window directed transfer function approach.
abstract: In this letter, we considered the application of parametric spectral analysis, namely a short-window directed transfer function (DTF) approach, to multichannel electroencephalography (EEG) data during a face discrimination task. We identified causal influences between occipitoparietal and centrofrontal electrode sites, the timing of which corresponded to previously reported EEG face-selective components. More importantly we present evidence that there are both feedforward and feedback influences, a finding that is in direct contrast to current computational models of perceptual discrimination and decision making which tend to favor a purely feedforward processing scheme.
authors.affiliation: Laboratory for Intelligent Imaging and Neural Computing, Department of Biomedical Engineering, Columbia University, New York, USA. mgp2101@columbia.edu
authors.forename: Marios G
authors.initials: MG
authors.lastname: Philiastides
authors.forename: Paul
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Sajda
mesh_terms: D000465:Algorithms; D001931:Brain Mapping / Q000379:methods*; D003198:Computer Simulation; D004193:Discrimination Learning / Q000502:physiology*; D005074:Evoked Potentials, Visual / Q000502:physiology*; D005145:Face / Q000033:anatomy & histology*; D006801:Humans; D008959:Models, Neurological; D010364:Pattern Recognition, Visual / Q000502:physiology*; D014793:Visual Cortex / Q000502:physiology*