Reconfiguration of processing mode prior to task performance.

TLDR

Participants performed choice reaction‑time tasks on two‑dimensional stimuli, each task defined by a single dimension, with a cue presented before the target to indicate the task and a cue‑target interval that varied independently of the previous trial. Task switching incurred a reaction‑time cost that was greater when the cue‑target interval was short, indicating that the cost arises from preparatory processes rather than carryover, and this pattern held across location, color, and shape tasks, suggesting a time‑consuming reconfiguration of processing mode.

Abstract

Participants performed choice reaction time (RT) tasks on 2-dimensional stimuli such that each task was based on 1 stimulus dimension. A cue preceded the target stimulus and instructed the participant about which (randomly selected) task to perform. Shifting between tasks was associated with an RT cost, which was larger when the (randomly varying) cue-target interval was short as opposed to when it was long. Cue-target interval was not confounded with the remoteness from the previous trial. Hence, it affected the task-shift cost through preparation rather than by allowing carryover effects to dissipate. Similar results were obtained for 2 location tasks and for the object-based tasks (color and shape discrimination). They indicate a time-effort consuming process that operates after a task shift, precedes task execution, and presumably reflects the advance reconfiguration of processing mode.