Work

Distinct electrophysiological correlates of low- and high-level visual consciousness with minimized post-perceptual processing

Year: 2026

Type: article

Abstract: Conscious visual phenomenology comprises multiple representational levels, from basic features to integrated percepts, raising the question of how the neural correlates of consciousness (NCC) differentiate accordingly. Event-related potential (ERP) studies identified early occipitotemporal negativities as reliable NCC; yet, it remains unclear whether these capture conscious content beyond low-level features and extend to higher-order representations. Moreover, whether later ERP components index higher-level conscious percepts independent of task-related processing remains contested. The present study addresses this question using an inattentional blindness (IB) paradigm that isolates three representational levels of conscious perception (no, low- or high-level awareness) for an identical stimulus under minimized post-perceptual processing. Across 85 healthy participants, low-level line perception was indexed by an enhanced early occipital negativity, whereas high-level face perception additionally recruited a right-lateralized occipitotemporal negativity, followed by medial posterior positivities. These findings reveal systematic spatiotemporal differentiation of awareness-related potentials across representational levels of consciousness under task-irrelevant conditions.

Source: iScience

DOI: 10.1016/j.isci.2026.117853

Authors: Annika Hense, Antje Peters, Torge Dellert, Maximilian Bruchmann, Thomas Straube

Institutions: University of Münster, Goethe University Frankfurt, University Hospital Frankfurt

Language: English

Topic: Visual perception and processing mechanisms

Subfield: Cognitive Neuroscience

Field: Neuroscience

Domain: Life Sciences

Open Access status: gold

Estimated APC paid: $3,240

OpenAlex ID: W7222014239