title: Control of perception should be operationalized as a fundamental property of the nervous system.
abstract: This commentary proposes that "cognitive control" is neither componential nor emergent, but a fundamental feature of behavior. The term "control" requires an operational definition. This is best provided by the negative feedback loop that utilizes behavior to control perception; it does not control behavior per se. In order to model complex cognitive control, Perceptual Control Theory proposes that loops are organized into a dissociable hierarchical network (PCT; Powers, Clark, & McFarland, 1960; Powers, 1973a, 2008). In this way, behavior is dynamically adaptive to environmental disturbances, rather than being formed by, or superimposed upon, learned associations between stimulus and response.
authors.affiliation: School of Psychological Sciences, University of Manchester.
authors.forename: Warren
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Mansell
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001288:Attention / Q000502:physiology*; D005075:Biological Evolution; D002657:Child Development / Q000502:physiology*; D003243:Consciousness / Q000502:physiology*; D056344:Executive Function / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D007266:Inhibition, Psychological; D007802:Language; D008570:Memory, Short-Term / Q000502:physiology*; D009043:Motor Activity / Q000502:physiology*; D017397:Prefrontal Cortex / Q000502:physiology*; D011323:Primates / Q000502:physiology*; D012677:Sensation / Q000502:physiology*
keywords: Control theory; Cybernetics; Hierarchy; Integrative; Interdisciplinary; Negative feedback