Education Level is Associated with Specific N200 and P300 Profiles Reflecting Higher Cognitive Functioning

Background: While different colors are commonly used during neuropsychological assessments, there is a general lack of information about the influence of education on color processing, which could affect the results of neuropsychological testing. Higher education is directly related to higher cognitive functions. Therefore, we investigated educational influences on color processing in different tasks using reaction times (RTs) in an event-related potential (ERP) study.

Methods: A 128-sensor net was used for the ERP study with participants from low (G1), medium (G2) and high (G3) educational groups (n=17 per group). Participants were asked by pressing button to indicate whether they ‘liked’ or ‘disliked’ colors displayed to them for consideration in the RT analysis. A 10-20 system (19 electrode channels) was used to analyze the amplitudes and latencies of the N200 and P300 ERP components.

Results: The mean differences for the like and dislike choices were calculated in terms of the amplitudes and latencies of the both components. RTs were significantly shortest in G3, then G2, and G1 reflected significantly longer RTs. Seven (out of 19) electrode locations clearly expressed N200 and P300 components. The G3 evoked the highest amplitudes (significant at T6) of both components at most of the electrode locations. The next highest amplitudes were in G2 and then G1. There was a trend toward the shortest latencies of both components being represented in G3, with G1 holding the longest latencies at most electrode sites, but this did not quite reach significance.

Conclusion: Faster RTs, higher amplitudes and shorter latencies of the N200 and P300 ERP components in G3 suggest that higher education improves attention, enables faster decision-making and facilitates cognitive function that is important for improved quality of life.