title: Direct evidence of cognitive control without perceptual awareness.
abstract: A central question within the domain of human cognition is whether or not the ability to replace a current action with a new one (i.e., cognitive control) depends on a conscious appreciation of the environmental change that necessitates the new behavior. Specifically, it is not yet known if non-consciously perceived stimuli can trigger the modification of a currently ongoing action. We show for the first time that individuals are able to use non-consciously perceived information to modify the course and outcome of an ongoing action. Participants were presented with a masked (i.e., subliminal) 'stop' or 'go-on' prime stimulus whilst performing a routine reach-to-touch action. Despite being invisible to participants, the stop primes produced more hesitations mid-flight and more movement reversals than the go-on primes. This new evidence directly establishes that cognitive control (i.e., the ability to modify a currently ongoing action) does not depend on a conscious appreciation of the environmental trigger.
authors.affiliation: School of Psychology, Australian Catholic University, Brisbane, 4014, QLD, Australia, brenda.ocampo@mindsci.net.
authors.forename: Brenda
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Ocampo
authors.forename: Shahd
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Al-Janabi
authors.forename: Matthew
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Finkbeiner
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001364:Awareness; D003071:Cognition / Q000502:physiology*; D003243:Consciousness; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007266:Inhibition, Psychological; D008297:Male; D009068:Movement; D010470:Perceptual Masking; D011930:Reaction Time; D060865:Repetition Priming; D013360:Subliminal Stimulation; D014473:Unconscious, Psychology; D014796:Visual Perception / Q000502:physiology*; D055815:Young Adult