Baseline eeg asymmetries and performance on neuropsychological tasks

Abstract

Thirty-two participants were tested for both resting electroencephalography (EEG) and neuropsychological function. Eight one-minute trials of resting EEG were recorded from 14 channels referenced to linked ears, which was rederived to an average reference. Neuropsychological tasks included Verbal Fluency, the Tower of London, and Corsi fn1 fn1 s Island, NY; and the Department of Psychiatry, New York University School of Medicine, New York, NY. Richard J. Davidson is in the Departments of Psychology and Psychiatry, University of Wisconsin—Madison, Madison, WI. s Recurring Blocks. Asymmetries in EEG alpha activity were correlated with performance on these tasks. Similar patterns were obtained for delta and theta bands. Factor analyses of resting EEG asymmetries over particular regions suggested that asymmetries over anterior scalp regions may be partly independent from those over posterior scalp regions. These results support the notions that resting EEG asymmetries are specified by multiple mechanisms along the rostral⧹caudal plane, and that these asymmetries predict task performance in a manner consistent with lesion and neuroimaging studies.