# Frequency-specific attentional mechanisms phasically modulate the influence of distractors on task performance

## TL;DR

This study shows that brain rhythms, specifically theta and alpha waves, influence how we focus attention and are affected by distractions.

## Contribution

The study identifies distinct theta- and alpha-mediated mechanisms that phasically modulate attention and susceptibility to distractors.

## Key findings

- Perceptual sensitivity at the cued target location depends on pre-stimulus theta phase (~7 Hz) at central electrodes.
- Alpha phase at occipital electrodes is associated with fluctuations in distractor-evoked visual responses, suggesting alpha-mediated distractor gating.
- Theta-rhythmically occurring windows increase susceptibility to distractors, especially during the proposed 'shifting state.'

## Abstract

The Rhythmic Theory of Attention proposes that visual spatial attention is characterized by alternating states that promote either sampling at the present focus of attention or a higher likelihood of shifting attentional resources to another location. While theta-rhythmically (4–8 Hz) occurring windows of opportunity for shifting attentional resources might provide cognitive flexibility, these windows might also make us more susceptible to distractors. Here, we used EEG in humans to test how frequency-specific neural activity phasically influences behavioral performance and visual processing when high-contrast distractors co-occur with low-contrast targets. For trials with and without distractors, perceptual sensitivity at the cued target location depended on pre-stimulus theta phase (~7 Hz) recorded at central electrodes. For trials with distractors, there was a greater increase in false alarm rates at the same theta phase associated with lower hit rates (i.e., during the proposed “shifting state”), confirming theta-rhythmically occurring windows of increased susceptibility to distractors. In addition to these phase–behavior effects at central electrodes, we observed phase–behavior effects at frontocentral and occipital electrodes that (i) only occurred on trials with distractors, (ii) peaked in the alpha-frequency range (~9–10 Hz), and (iii) were strongest at occipital electrodes that were contralateral to distractors. Alpha phase at these electrodes was also associated with fluctuations in the amplitude of distractor-evoked visual responses, consistent with an alpha-mediated gating of distractors. The present findings thus provide evidence for distinct theta- and alpha-mediated mechanisms of spatial attention that phasically modulate the influence of distractors on task performance.

Our attentional resources vary rhythmically, which supports the shifting of attentional resources but might also make us more susceptible to distractors. This study shows that theta and alpha phases distinctly modulate sensitivity and distractor impact, revealing rhythm-specific mechanisms that shape attention and our susceptibility to distractors.