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Intention-based and stimulus-based mechanisms in action selection

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Abstract

Human actions can be classified as being either more stimulus-based or more intention-based. According to the ideomotor framework of action control, intention-based actions primarily refer to anticipated action effects (in other words response-stimulus [R-S] bindings), whereas stimulus-based actions are commonly assumed to be more strongly determined by stimulus-response [S-R] bindings. We explored differences in the functional signatures of both modes of action control in a temporal bisection task. Participants either performed a choice response by pressing one out of two keys in response to a preceding stimulus (stimulus-based action), or pressed one out of two keys to produce the next stimulus (intention-based action). In line with the ideomotor framework, we found intention-based actions to be shifted in time towards their anticipated effects (the next stimulus), whereas stimulus-based actions were shifted towards their preceding stimulus. Event-related potentials (ERPs) in the EEG revealed marked differences in action preparation for the two tasks. The data as a whole provide converging evidence for functional differences in the selection of motor actions as a function of their triggering conditions, and support the notion of two different modes of action selection, one being exogenous or mainly stimulus-driven, the other being endogenous or mainly intention-driven.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychology, Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Amalienstr. 33, 80799, Munich, Germany

    Florian Waszak, Edmund Wascher, Peter Keller, Iring Koch, Gisa Aschersleben & Wolfgang Prinz

  2. The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, 16802, USA

    David A. Rosenbaum

Authors
  1. Florian Waszak
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  2. Edmund Wascher
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  3. Peter Keller
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  4. Iring Koch
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  5. Gisa Aschersleben
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  6. David A. Rosenbaum
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  7. Wolfgang Prinz
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Correspondence to Florian Waszak.

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Waszak, F., Wascher, E., Keller, P. et al. Intention-based and stimulus-based mechanisms in action selection. Exp Brain Res 162, 346–356 (2005). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00221-004-2183-8

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00221-004-2183-8

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