Do performance-monitoring related cortical potentials mediate fluency and difficulty effects on decision confidence?

It remains unclear to what extent the performance-monitoring (PM) processes involved in perceptual decisions are also more complex reasoning decisions. To address this problem, we examined whether PM-related cortical potentials known correlate with confidence ratings context of simple a task. In an EEG experiment, 49 participants had quickly decide equation (e.g. 9 * 7 = 65) was correct or incorrect and then report their that decision. Task difficulty response fluency were varied manipulate confidence. Pooling responses across as well trials, analyzed amplitudes Error-Related Negativity (pooled ERN) Error Positivity Pe). We found pooled ERN but not Pe positive significant correlation decision unpooled correlated for correct, error trials. Further analysis indicated although task difficulty, neither mediated effects on These results suggest might reflect implicit performance monitoring may rely different neural mechanisms.