Cite as:
Reisenauer R, Plank T, Greenlee M W, 2009, "Neural correlates of priming for audiovisual stimulus processing at different levels of categorization" Perception 38 ECVP Abstract Supplement, page 141

Neural correlates of priming for audiovisual stimulus processing at different levels of categorization

R Reisenauer, T Plank, M W Greenlee

Categorization of natural images and sounds are basic cognitive processes we perform mostly unconsciously. While numerous studies have investigated the neural correlates of auditory and visual categorization and audiovisual integration, the categorization of audiovisually presented stimuli remains poorly understood. We used a priming paradigm to assess whether the matching of simultaneously presented congruent or incongruent auditory and visual stimuli to a prime word leads to BOLD-signal increases in regions previously linked to auditory and visual categorization, or whether there is a mutual activation site, indicating that representation of categories in semantic memory is multimodal. Additionally we tested whether there were priming-related top-down processes that were modulated by the level of categorization of the prime, the word being either a basic level or a superordinate level name. Our results indicate that compared to baseline the BOLD-signal increased on congruent trials for categorization of auditory and visual objects. This increase was found bilaterally in posterior cingulate and middle and superior temporal, parahippocampal, and lingual gyrus. There were no significant differences between auditory and visual categorization. Compared to superordinate level, basic level primes led to an increase in BOLD-signal bilaterally in inferior frontal cortex, occipito-temporal cortex and parietal cortex.

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