Neural Manifestations of Implicit Self-Esteem: An ERP Study |
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| Authors: | Lili Wu Huajian Cai Ruolei Gu Yu L. L. Luo Jianxin Zhang Jing Yang Yuanyuan Shi Lei Ding |
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| Affiliation: | 1. Key Laboratory of Mental Health, Institute of Psychology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.; 2. Key Laboratory of Behavioral Science, Institute of Psychology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.; 3. School of Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of Oklahoma, Norman, Oklahoma, United States of America.; Vanderbilt University, United States of America, |
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| Abstract: | Behavioral research has established that humans implicitly tend to hold a positive view toward themselves. In this study, we employed the event-related potential (ERP) technique to explore neural manifestations of positive implicit self-esteem using the Go/Nogo association task (GNAT). Participants generated a response (Go) or withheld a response (Nogo) to self or others words and good or bad attributes. Behavioral data showed that participants responded faster to the self paired with good than the self paired with bad, whereas the opposite proved true for others, reflecting the positive nature of implicit self-esteem. ERP results showed an augmented N200 over the frontal areas in Nogo responses relative to Go responses. Moreover, the positive implicit self-positivity bias delayed the onset time of the N200 wave difference between Nogo and Go trials, suggesting that positive implicit self-esteem is manifested on neural activity about 270 ms after the presentation of self-relevant stimuli. These findings provide neural evidence for the positivity and automaticity of implicit self-esteem. |
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