Flexibility of internal attention: divergent spatiotemporal profiles for feature and object cueing

Abstract

Abstract Internal attention efficiently prioritizes information in working memory (WM), yet it remains unclear whether it reflects a unified, domain-general mechanism, or a flexible set of operations tailored to the format of selected information. Using magnetoencephalography (MEG), we characterized the spatiotemporal alpha-band dynamics underlying feature-based (color, orientation) and object-based (left, right) retro-cues that direct internal attention within WM. Behaviorally, both cue types improved performance relative to neutral conditions, with object-based cues yielding a modest advantage. Neurally, both formats elicited robust modulations of induced alpha-band (8 to 14 Hz) activity distributed across visual, frontoparietal control, and memory-related networks. These effects followed a common temporal progression from early weak modulation to mid-latency reconfiguration and sustained late activity. However, object-based cueing produced more sustained and spatially widespread alpha suppression than feature-based cueing, indicating format-dependent differences in the dynamics of internal selection. Although neural effects closely tracked behavioral benefits at the condition level, no reliable brain–behavior correlations were observed across individuals. Together, these findings suggest that internal attention operates through a shared large-scale control architecture while flexibly adapting its temporal dynamics to representational format, with alpha-band activity playing a central role in the prioritization of WM content.