HOW DO COGNITIVE RESOURCE LIMITATIONS INFLUENCE EVALUATIVE CONDITIONING? A TDCS STUDY

Evaluative Conditioning (EC) refers to the process by which neutral stimuli acquire affective value through pairing with affective stimuli. While associative and propositional theories offer competing explanations for EC, the role of higher-order cognitive processes still needs to be explored. This study investigated the influence of cognitive resource limitations on EC by applying high-definition cathodal transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) to the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (dlPFC), a region implicated in propositional learning. A within-subjects design was used, varying tDCS stimulation during the learning and evaluation stages. Explicit evaluations (Likert ratings) and implicit associations (Evaluative Priming Task) were measured to assess EC effects. Results revealed that tDCS during learning reduced positive explicit evaluations of positively conditioned stimuli but did not impact implicit associations or negatively conditioned stimuli. These findings suggest that HD-tDCS applied on the left dlPFC modulates explicit learning processes. Future studies should explore alternative tools and stimulation protocols to examine EC's neural mechanisms further. This research contributes to ongoing debates about the interplay between automatic and controlled processes in attitude formation.