Flanker task with equiprobable congruent and incongruent conditions does not elicit the conflict N2

Abstract

In many published studies, various modifications of the flanker task have been used. Regardless of the flanker task version, the conflict N2 component has been consistently reported and interpreted as evidence for the resolution of conflict introduced by incongruent flankers. However, ERP studies that used the most basic flanker task (i.e., a version with equiprobable congruent and incongruent conditions in which only congruency between the target and flankers is manipulated) have not provided compelling evidence for the conflict N2 component. We report the results of a large-sample ERP study employing a basic flanker task that allowed us to revisit the mechanism underlying the resolution of conflict introduced by incongruent flankers. In the behavioral data, we observed the classic effect of congruency. In the ERP data, we found three conflict-sensitive components: (a) an early frontal component, presumably corresponding to P2, (b) P300 for congruent trials, followed by (c) P300 for incongruent trials. We did not find evidence for the conflict N2 component. Based on a review of literature, we propose that the conflict N2 component observed in a basic flanker task might be a frontal aspect of the P300 component. Given previous attempts to attribute the functional role of the ERP components, the absence of the conflict N2 in the basic flanker task suggests that response inhibition may not be crucial for the resolution of conflict induced by incongruent flankers. Instead, the P2 component appears to indicate that selective attention might play an important role in resolving the flanker conflict.

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