Abstract

The brain's response to acoustic irregularities includes the MMN, an automatic response of temporo-frontal generators which can be elicited in the absence of the subjects' conscious detection of the delivered stimulus (Bekinschtein et al., 2009; Dehaene et al., 2006; Näätänen, Kujala, & Winkler, 2011). Additionally, a P300 response originating from frontoparietal cortical regions is elicited only when the stimulus is consciously processed (Bekinschtein et al., 2009; Datta et al., 2007; Polich, 2007). A phasic increase in pupil size has also been found in response to auditory novelties and in combination with the P300 (Kamp & Donchin, 2015), which also seems to be modulated by cognitive load (Winn, Edwards & Litovsky, 2015). However, the relationship between the HPR and the temporal sequence of different auditory event-related responses has not been explored in detail. In this study, we investigate the relationship between auditory ERPs and the HPR in response to acoustic irregularities with and without subjects' conscious report.