To start or stop an action depends on which movement we perform: An appraisal of the horse-race model.

This research focuses on the evaluation of two major actions of control, action initiation and inhibition, using different response types to understand the underlying psychological processes. The results showed that while action initiation was consistent across response types, the inhibition processes varied, challenging the purely top-down view of some control actions.

Methodology and Experimental Setup

• The researchers used a stop-signal paradigm to evaluate two major acts of control – the initiation and inhibition of action. This paradigm involves two response types: a finger key-pressing response and a wrist pen-swiping response.
• A group of 40 participants were asked to respond quickly to a ‘GO’ stimulus, but to cancel their responses upon the presentation of a ‘STOP’ signal. This STOP signal was presented randomly in 25% of the trials.

Analysis and Findings

• Analyses of reaction times and inhibition probability functions were carried out to evaluate the results of the experiment.
• Results indicated that action initiation generalized across the two response types used in the experiment — finger key-pressing and wrist pen-swiping.
• Contrary to action initiation, the processes of action inhibition were different for the two response types. In other words, the finger key-pressing and the wrist pen-swiping responses engaged different inhibition processes.

Implications and Conclusion

• The differential response to inhibition for different response types challenges a strictly top-down view of some control actions.
• This implies an interaction between the executive and motor levels, depending on the type of response. This shows that the control processes involved in stopping an action may be modality-specific and not uniform across different types of responses.
• The findings contribute to our understanding of the executive processes underlying adaptive behavior and how they can vary depending on the type of motor response involved.