Frontocentral brain networks amplify action-oriented temporal prediction errors

Abstract

Successful sensorimotor behavior depends on anticipating when a tactile event will occur and translating it into rapid action, yet it remains unclear how action requirements shape temporal prediction in the human cortex. Here, we combined Magnetoencephalography (MEG), multivariate decoding and computational modeling to contrast temporally jittered finger stimulations under passive versus action-oriented conditions. We characterized a distributed frontal sensorimotor network that was linked to fast tactile-motor associations and predicted reaction-time variability. We found that trial-by-trial deviations from expected stimulus timing modulated behavior, with stronger frontocentral prediction-error encoding when an overt response was required. Temporal prediction errors were primarily encoded in a motor rather than sensory reference frame. These results reveal that action demands dynamically amplify temporal error signaling in sensorimotor circuits, in line with predictive coding frameworks postulating that the brain preferentially encodes task-relevant and goal-directed sensory prediction errors.