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Twin Peaks: An ERP Study of Action Planning and Control in Coacting Individuals

¹ Rutgers University, Newark, ² Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Munich, Germany, ³ University of Dortmund, Germany

Reprint requests should be sent to Natalie Sebanz, Psychology Department, Rutgers University, 101 Warren Street, Newark, NJ 07102, USA, or via e-mail: sebanz@psychology.rutgers.edu.

Previous studies have shown that perceiving another's actions activates corresponding representations in an observer's action system. The present study investigated how performing a task with another person affects action planning and control. Reaction times (RTs) and event-related potentials were measured while participants performed a go/no-go task alone and with another person. Three effects of acting together were observed. First, RTs were slowed when individuals had to respond to a stimulus referring to the other's action, suggesting that an action selection conflict occurred. Second, at frontal sites, a stimulus referring to the other's action elicited a similar electrophysiological response as a stimulus referring to one's own action. Finally, on no-go trials, P300 amplitude was significantly larger in a group setting, indicating that an action was suppressed. These findings provide evidence that individuals acting in a social context form shared action representations.