{
  "abstract": "Cognitive flexibility-the ability to adapt to changing situational or task demands-is a fundamental aspect of human cognition and a potential source of individual differences in higher-order cognitive abilities. To further understand the neural mechanisms underlying this ability, we examined event-related spectral perturbations (ERSP) in three cued switching tasks (parity/magnitude, global/local, number/letter) in a sample of 148 adults. Employing a data-driven approach that combined mass-univariate time-frequency analysis, cluster-based permutation testing, and latent change structural equation modeling, we identified two robust neural signatures: a transient frontal theta increase and a sustained alpha/beta suppression. Both effects were more pronounced in switch compared to repeat trials. Frontal theta reflected task-specific control processes, whereas parietal alpha/beta indexed domain-general attentional processes that persisted from cue onset through target processing-consistent with two-stage models of task switching. Notably, flexibility-related alpha/beta dynamics did not correlate with measures of intelligence or working memory capacity. However, stronger cue-elicited alpha/beta suppression correlated with reduced non-decision-time switch costs, indicating more effective task preparation, underscoring that alpha/beta suppression captures a neurally coherent but behaviorally distinct dimension of cognitive flexibility. These findings provide evidence that alpha/beta suppression constitutes a reliable, cross-task generalizable neural signature of attentional reconfiguration during task switching, while highlighting the multi-component nature of individual differences in cognitive flexibility.",
  "abstract_shown": true,
  "affiliations": [
    "Department of Psychology, Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, Mainz, Germany. huelsemann@posteo.de.",
    "Department of Psychology, Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, Mainz, Germany."
  ],
  "article_type": "research article",
  "arxiv": null,
  "author_total": 3,
  "authors": [
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Mareike Hülsemann",
      "orcid": "0000-0001-5542-938X"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        1
      ],
      "name": "Christoph Löffler",
      "orcid": "0000-0001-8870-8190"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        1
      ],
      "name": "Anna-Lena Schubert",
      "orcid": "0000-0001-7248-0662"
    }
  ],
  "bibtex": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/2dfgft6p105wg.bib",
  "cited_by": 0,
  "doi": "10.1038/s44271-026-00521-9",
  "fulltext_url": "https://europepmc.org/articles/PMC13672302",
  "id": "2dfgft6p105wg",
  "issns": [
    "2731-9121"
  ],
  "landing_url": "https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42881249",
  "language": "eng",
  "licence": "CC-BY",
  "licence_label": "CC BY",
  "licence_source": "article",
  "licence_url": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/",
  "metadata_licence": null,
  "native_subjects": [
    [
      "openalex",
      "2805|Neural and Behavioral Psychology Studies"
    ]
  ],
  "openalex": "W7130956603",
  "pdf_url": "https://europepmc.org/articles/PMC13672302?pdf=render",
  "pmcid": "PMC13672302",
  "pmid": "42881249",
  "published": "2026-10-15",
  "publisher": null,
  "ris": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/2dfgft6p105wg.ris",
  "sources": [
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-10-30T12:18:46Z",
      "native_id": "MED:42881249",
      "source": "europepmc",
      "url": "https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42881249"
    }
  ],
  "subjects": [
    {
      "field": "biology",
      "origin": "openalex:2805|Neural and Behavioral Psychology Studies",
      "subfield": "neuroscience"
    }
  ],
  "title": "Task-specific theta enhancement and domain-general alpha/beta suppression as oscillatory signatures of cognitive flexibility.",
  "title_text": "Task-specific theta enhancement and domain-general alpha/beta suppression as oscillatory signatures of cognitive flexibility.",
  "type": "peer-reviewed",
  "updated_at": "2026-10-30T12:18:46Z",
  "url": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/2dfgft6p105wg",
  "venue": "Communications psychology",
  "versions": []
}