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Faster Alpha Oscillations and Aperiodic Activity Predict Narrower Temporal Binding Windows in ADHD profiles

Poster Session D - Monday, March 9, 2026, 8:00 – 10:00 am PDT, Fairview/Kitsilano Ballroom

Gianluca Marsicano^1,2 (), David Melcher^1,2; ¹New York University Abu Dhabi, ²Center for Brain and Health, NYUAD Research Institute, New York University Abu Dhabi

Temporal integration enables the visual system to accumulate sensory evidence over time, ensuring perceptual stability despite uncertainty. Neural oscillations in the alpha band (8–13 Hz) have been proposed to define the temporal window of integration, yet their role and relationship with temporal perception atypicalities observed in neurodevelopmental conditions such as attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) remain unexplored. We developed a continuous-stream visual temporal integration task in which neurotypical participants (n = 83) viewed two orthogonal Gabor patches (±45°) alternating at different durations in counterphase for one second and reported whether they were perceived as fused (integration) or separate (segregation). Resting-state EEG was recorded in eyes-closed and eyes-open conditions to estimate individual alpha frequency (IAF) and aperiodic neural activity, which were linked to temporal binding performance and self-reported ADHD traits. Behaviourally, higher ADHD traits were associated with narrower temporal binding windows and finer temporal resolution. Temporal judgments were also influenced by perceptual history: individuals with lower ADHD traits showed stronger serial dependence toward prior integration responses, whereas those with higher traits relied less on previous experience. EEG–behavior correlations revealed that faster IAFs predicted lower temporal thresholds, and steeper aperiodic slopes (i.e., lower neural noise) were linked to greater perceptual precision. Importantly, faster IAFs were observed in individuals with higher ADHD traits, potentially explaining their narrower temporal integration window. These findings reveal a multilevel mechanism in which oscillatory and aperiodic neural dynamics jointly shape temporal integration, elucidating how individual differences in neural dynamics underlie atypical temporal perception in ADHD.

Topic Area: PERCEPTION & ACTION: Vision