Beta- and gamma-band activity reflect predictive coding in the processing of causal events
Open accessAbstract
In daily life, complex events are perceived in a causal manner, suggesting that the brain relies on predictive processes to model them. Within predictive coding theory, oscillatory beta-band activity has been linked to top-down predictive signals and gamma-band activity to bottom-up prediction errors. However, neurocognitive evidence for predictive coding outside lower-level sensory areas is scarce. We used magnetoencephalography to investigate neural activity during probability-dependent action perception in three areas pivotal for causal inference, superior temporal sulcus, temporoparietal junction and medial prefrontal cortex, using bowling action animations. Within this network, Granger-causal connectivity in the beta-band was found to be strongest for backward top-down connections and gamma for feed-forward bottom-up connections. Moreover, beta-band power in TPJ increased parametrically with the predictability of the action kinematics-outcome sequences. Conversely, gamma-band power in TPJ and MPFC increased with prediction error. These findings suggest that the brain utilizes predictive-coding-like computations for higher-order cognition such as perception of causal events.
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Direct evidence for alpha/beta and gamma in predictive coding per se comes from observations of increased gamma power to stimuli that are prediction errors.
“Direct evidence for alpha/beta and gamma in predictive coding per se comes from observations of increased gamma power to stimuli that are prediction errors (22, 24, 25).”
From Layer and rhythm specificity for predictive routing (2020) · cites this paper as [24]
Oscillatory dynamics play a role in regulating cortical processing, especially the gamma (40 to 90 Hz) and alpha/beta (10 to 30 Hz) bands.
“But there is mounting evidence that oscillatory dynamics play a role in regulating cortical processing and thus can also play a role, especially the gamma (40 to 90 Hz) and alpha/beta (10 to 30 Hz) bands (1, 18–25).”
From Layer and rhythm specificity for predictive routing (2020) · cites this paper as [24]
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- Authors
- van Pelt, S., Heil, L., Kwisthout, J., Ondobaka, S., van Rooij, I., & Bekkering, H.
- Affiliations
- Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, Radboud University Nijmegen, Nijmegen, The Netherlands and
- Radboud University Nijmegen (NL)
- Venue
- Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience
- Publisher
- Oxford University Press (OUP)
- Published
- 2016-02-12
- Volume
- 11
- Issue
- 6
- Pages
- 973-980
- ISSN
- 1749-5016 (ISSN-L)
- 1749-5024
- PMC
- PMC4884316
- OpenAlex
- W2255704194
- Cited by
- 98
- References
- 56
- Citations by year
- 2026: 13 · 2025: 10 · 2024: 12 · 2023: 12 · 2022: 12 · 2021: 8 · 2020: 10 · 2019: 9 · 2018: 6 · 2017: 4 · 2016: 2
- FWCI
- 11.01
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- hybrid
- doi.org
- Licence
- Locations
- Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience (publishedVersion, cc-by-nc)
- Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (publishedVersion)
- PubMed Central (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- HighWire Press Open Archive (submittedVersion)
- Radboud Repository (Radboud University) (submittedVersion)
- Radboud Repository (Radboud University) (submittedVersion, other-oa)
- Funders
- Nederlandse Organisatie voor Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek (407‐11‐040, 446-14-002)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Action Observation and Synchronization
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Neural dynamics and brain function
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Embodied and Extended Cognition
- Keywords
- predictive coding, causal inference, beta oscillations, gamma oscillations, prediction error, top-down prediction, superior temporal sulcus, temporoparietal junction, medial prefrontal cortex, action perception
- MeSH terms
- Adult, Beta Rhythm, Cerebral Cortex, Humans, Motor Activity, Probability, Thinking, Visual Perception, Magnetoencephalography, Gamma Rhythm
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