title: Error-related electromyographic activity over the corrugator supercilii is associated with neural performance monitoring.
abstract: Emerging research in social and affective neuroscience has implicated a role for affect and motivation in performance monitoring and cognitive control. No study, however, has investigated whether facial electromyography (EMG) over the corrugator supercilii-a measure associated with negative affect and the exertion of effort-is related to neural performance monitoring. Here, we explored these potential relationships by simultaneously measuring the error-related negativity, error positivity (Pe), and facial EMG over the corrugator supercilii muscle during a punished, inhibitory control task. We found evidence for increased facial EMG activity over the corrugator immediately following error responses, and this activity was related to the Pe for both between- and within-subject analyses. These results are consistent with the idea that early, avoidance-motivated processes are associated with performance monitoring, and that such processes may also be related to orienting toward errors, the emergence of error awareness, or both.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
authors.forename: Nathaniel
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Elkins-Brown
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
authors.forename: Blair
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Saunders
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.|Rotman School of Management, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Inzlicht
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000339:Affect / Q000502:physiology; D001921:Brain / Q000502:physiology*; D002755:Choice Behavior / Q000502:physiology*; D003220:Conflict, Psychological; D004569:Electroencephalography; D004576:Electromyography; D005152:Facial Muscles / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007266:Inhibition, Psychological; D008297:Male; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests; D011930:Reaction Time / Q000502:physiology; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Affect; Cognitive control; Corrugator; ERN; Effort; Pe; Performance monitoring