EEG Asymmetry Research Articles

Shaping infants' social brains through vicarious social learning: the importance of positive mother-father interactions.

This study is the first to assess whether infants' developing social brains may be susceptible to the vicarious social experience of interparental positivity. Specifically, we explored whether infants' exposure to interparental positivity may vicariously shape their neural substrates of social development. In a sample of 45 infants (M AgeMonths = 11.01; 48.9% girls), infant left-frontal resting alpha electroencephalogram (EEG) asymmetry was derived as a reliable indicator of neural substrates linked to adaptive social development. Moreover, positive characteristics of the mother-father couple relationship were assessed both by means of observation and self-report by mother and father. Importantly, various relevant covariates were considered, including interparental negativity (observed and self-reported), as well as infants' direct caregiving experiences and duration of infant exposure to mother-father relationship-dynamics (parent-report). Results indicated that higher levels of observed interparental positivity were associated with greater infant left-frontal alpha EEG asymmetry, even after accounting for covariates (β's > 0.422). The current study's results are first to suggest that positive vicarious social experiences in infants' day-to-day lives play a significant role for early neural development.

Prefrontal, Frontal, and Temporal Theta EEG Asymmetries and Self-Reports of Emotional Regulation.

Previous studies have shown thatright-sided frontal alpha asymmetry (fAA) is an electroencephalography (EEG) marker for negatively valenced emotions and a marker for negative self-perceptions of a person's psychosocial interactions. Alpha activity is affected by the changes in visual stimulation associated with eye-opening and eye-closing; theta activity is not so affected. Therefore, this analysis investigates the relationship between an individual's theta asymmetry and self-perceptions of their psychosocial interactions. We used quantitative electroencephalographic (qEEG) data from eight right-handed male medical students aged between 19 and 38 years, recorded under eyes-open (EO) and eyes-closed (EC) conditions. Significant correlations were found between self-reported measures of psychosocial interactions via the Interactive Self-Report Inventory (ISI). The main finding was that greater left-sided frontal temporal asymmetry (fTA) under both EO and EC conditions was associated with lower "regulated" ISI scores and lower "dependent" ISI scores. Greater left-sided temporal theta asymmetry (tTA), under EC conditions, was associated with higher "anxious" ISI scores. Greater left-sided prefrontal theta symmetry (pfTA), under EO conditions, was associated with lower "relaxed" ISI scores. These findings suggest that theta asymmetries in the frontal, prefrontal, and temporal cortices may be indicative of negative emotional states. The results of this study underscore the potential of pfTA, fTA, and tTA to be used as biomarkers for cognitive-emotional balance. The implications for mental health interventions, particularly personalized therapeutic approaches, are significant.

Maternal contingent responsiveness moderates temperamental risk to support adaptive infant brain and socioemotional development across the first year of life.

In the first few months of life, infants display intriguing individual differences in how they react to novel stimuli in their environment. Infant "negative reactive" tendencies have been robustly linked to resting brain activity profiles that confer risk for maladaptive socioemotional outcomes. The present study examines whether and how caregiver behavior in early infancy may interact with infant negative reactivity to alter the extent to which such tendencies predict risk-related brain activity profiles. In the present study, 51 mothers (all White; age M = 32 years, SD = 3; 70.8% monthly household income > 3,400 U.S. dollars) and their infants (39.2% female at birth) participated. We measured infant negative reactivity and maternal contingent responsiveness to infant's gaze during mother-infant interactions at age 4 months. At 10-11 months, we assessed infants' resting electroencephalographic (EEG) 6-9 Hz frontal asymmetry (a marker of risk for maladaptive regulatory behaviors and withdrawal), infant fearful withdrawal, and infant empathic behavior. We found that maternal contingent responsiveness to 4-month-old infant's gaze in naturalistic interactions moderated the relation between 4-month infant negative reactivity and 11-month resting EEG asymmetry. Results suggest that maternal contingent responsiveness alters the extent to which early reactive tendencies end up "embedded" in infant brain activity profiles. Exploratory analyses revealed that the interaction between maternal contingent responsiveness and infant reactivity predicting infant resting EEG asymmetry, in turn predicted infants' fearful withdrawal and empathic behaviors also assessed at 10-11 months. Findings demonstrate the critical buffering role of maternal contingent responsive behaviors in reducing potential maladaptive neural and socioemotional outcomes. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

The Effect of Long-Term Learning of BaduanJin on Emotion Regulation: Evidence from Resting-State Frontal EEG Asymmetry.

Baduanjin, as a Chinese traditional fitness exercise, can help people regulate emotions and promote their physical and psychological health. However, the underlying neural mechanisms have not been thoroughly explored. This study aimed to examine the effects of differences in the level of Baduanjin learning on individuals' brain and psychological response related to emotion regulation. Twenty-two participants with long-term Baduanjin learning (for more than one year), and 21 participants with short-term Baduanjin learning (for approximately three months) were recruited. All participants were asked to do a complete 12-minute set of Baduanjin. Before and after doing Baduanjin, their resting-state EEG signals were collected, besides, the Emotion Regulation Questionnaire (ERQ) and the Profile of Mood States-Short Form (POMS-SF) were used to assess participants' emotion regulation strategies and abilities. The results of psychological measurement indicated that participants in the long-term group were more likely to use cognitive reappraisal as an emotion regulation strategy compared to participants in the short-term group (p<0.05). Moreover, the analysis of the frontal alpha asymmetry (FAA) showed that participants in the long-term group rather than the short-term group exhibited significant left lateralization after doing Baduanjin (p<0.05). The findings provide preliminary evidence for the neural mechanism underlying how long-term Baduanjin learning promotes individuals' emotion regulation indexed by FAA. The study provides a new paradigm for research on how Baduanjin affects emotional regulation.

Examining Conduct Problems in a Community Sample during Middle Childhood: The Role of Frontal EEG Asymmetry, Temperament, and Working Memory

Previous literature shows that aspects of temperament, executive functioning, and EEG frontal asymmetry are related to externalizing behaviors in children. We examined whether frontal EEG asymmetry measured at age 6 would moderate the impact of negative affectivity, attentional control, and working memory at age 6 on conduct problems at age 9. Behavioral tasks were given to assess children’s attentional control and working memory. Parents completed questionnaires about their children’s negative affectivity and conduct problems. Results showed that greater negative affectivity reported at age 6 predicted for more conduct problems reported at age 9, regardless of EEG frontal asymmetry. Lower levels of attentional control and working memory at age 6 predicted for more conduct problems reported at age 9 when children also exhibited greater left EEG frontal asymmetry, which has been linked to approach motivation. These findings illustrate the importance of assessing multiple intrinsic factors, both independent and interactive, that contribute to children’s conduct problems.

Frontal P300 asymmetry and congruence judgment: Retroactive switching is impaired during school day mornings in female adolescents

Investigating frontal EEG asymmetry as a possible biomarker of cognitive control abilities is especially important in ecological contexts such as school and work. We used a novel approach combining judgment performance and hemispheric frontal event-related potential (ERP) P300 asymmetry (fP3As) to evaluate aspects of cognitive control (i.e., repetition and switching) in adolescent females over a two-week ordinary school period. While undergoing electroencephalographic recording, students performed a word-colour “Stroop-like” congruence judgment task during morning and afternoon sessions, on Mondays and Wednesdays. Proportion of incongruence and congruence trials was 75% and 25%, respectively. ERP analysis revealed larger “novelty” right hemispheric fP3As amplitude for infrequent congruence but equivalent or significantly smaller than left hemispheric fP3As amplitude for frequent incongruence. RTs increased with extent of right fP3As shift. Behaviorally, repeat trial pairs (i.e., congruent followed by congruent, incongruent followed by incongruent) generally did not differ by time or day and were associated with near-ceiling accuracy. In contrast, switch trial pairs (i.e., congruent followed by incongruent, incongruent followed by congruent) in the afternoon were slower and associated with lower accuracy at the expected 75% criterion rate (i.e., judging incongruence by default), dropping significantly below 75% in the mornings. Crucially, compared to afternoon, morning fP3As patterns did not change adaptively with switch trial pairs. Although retroactive switching during congruence judgment was affected at all testing times, we conclude it was most impaired in the mornings of both early and mid school weeks, supporting misalignment between adolescent circadian cycle and school start time. We discuss some implications for optimal learning of adolescents at school.

Efficacy of increasing levels of exposure therapy in the treatment of maladaptive behaviors and anxiety.

The present study examined the effectiveness of increasing levels of exposure therapy, which is applied for the treatment of maladaptive behaviors and anxiety. A total of 16 sessions were applied to the study group in the experimental group three times a week for 10 weeks. Patients aged ≥18 years whom the referring clinician evaluated as meeting the criteria for the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, fourth edition (DSM-V-TR) Generalized Anxiety Disorder were included in the study. For the control group, demographic characteristics and Spielberger's State-Trait Anxiety Inventory were applied in the first session, followed by Spielberger's State-Trait Anxiety Inventory as a post-test and follow-up. Electroencephalography (EEG) recordings of the study group were obtained at the cortical level. Electrodes for EEG measurements were recorded using the International 10/20 Electrode Placement System. EEG data were obtained using the EEG Analysis Program software. Following the data collection phase, all data were entered into cells based on items using SPSS 25 software. When the findings obtained in the study were examined, it was determined that the increasing levels of exposure and behavioral therapy applied for maladaptive anxiety decreased the anxiety levels compared to those before therapy. This finding can be interpreted as that the cortical function-oriented application method for anxiety effectively reduced the anxiety levels of the study group. However, EEG asymmetry revealed a change in the data before and after the application. These findings demonstrate that the application affects the EEG asymmetry changes at the cortical level.

Studies of EEG Asymmetry and Depression: To Normalise or Not?

A brief review of 50 studies from the last 10 years indicated that it is often accepted practice to apply log transformation processes to raw EEG data. This practice is based upon the assumptions that (a) EEG data do not resemble a normal distribution, (b) applying a transformation will produce an acceptably normal distribution, (c) the logarithmic transformation is the most valid form of transformation for these data, and (d) the statistical procedures intended to be used are not robust to non-normality. To test those assumptions, EEG data from 100 community participants were analysed for their normality by reference to their skewness and kurtosis, the Kolmogorov–Smirnov and Shapiro–Wilk statistics, and shapes of histograms. Where non-normality was observed, several transformations were applied, and the data again tested for normality to identify the most appropriate method. To test the effects of normalisation from all these processes, Pearson and Spearman correlations between the raw and normalised EEG alpha asymmetry data and depression were calculated to detect any variation in the significance of the resultant statistic.

Serotonin and emotion regulation: the impact of tryptophan depletion on emotional experience, neural and autonomic activity.

The involvement of serotonin in emotion and psychopathology has been extensively examined. Studies using acute tryptophan depletion (ATD) have found limited effects on mood and aggression, and one of the explanations suggests that serotonin may be involved in higher-order functions, such as emotion regulation. However, there is very limited evidence for this hypothesis. The present study investigated the impact of ATD on emotion regulation in a double-blind, placebo-controlled, crossover design. A sample of psychiatrically healthy men (N = 28) completed a cognitive task assessing reappraisal ability (i.e., the success of using reappraisal, an emotion regulation strategy, to modulate emotional responses), following ATD and placebo. EEG frontal activity and asymmetry, as well as heart-rate variability (HRV), also were assessed in the reappraisal task. Both frequentist and Bayesian methods were employed for statistical analysis. Results indicated that ATD reduced plasma tryptophan, and reappraisal was effective in modulating emotional experience in the emotion regulation task. However, ATD had no significant effect on reappraisal ability, frontal activity, and HRV. These results offer direct and compelling evidence that decreasing serotonin synthesis through ATD does not alter an emotion regulation ability that is considered crucial in mood and aggression and has been linked with transdiagnostic risk of psychopathology.

Разработка AUC-диаграмм для анализа межполушарной асимметрии амплитудно-частотных характеристик ЭЭГ для выявления отсроченной ишемии головного мозга вследствие нетравматического субарахноидального кровоизлияния

The article describes a new type of AUC diagrams intended for the analysis of interhemispheric asymmetry of amplitude-frequency characteristics of electroencephalograms (EEG) of patients with subarachnoid hemorrhage, as well as a new type of head maps named maps of interhemispheric asymmetry of EEG. AUC diagrams are a new statistical tool for identifying regularities in biomedical signals. The idea of AUC diagrams is to visually represent the dependence of the area under the ROC curve (AUC) when comparing data samples from the bounds of the range of given characteristic of this data, for example, frequency or amplitude, etc. The article demonstrates that this principle of data analysis allows us to identify some signs of postoperative complications that may occur in patients undergoing intensive care unit. It is known that the signs of such complications are changes in the amplitude and frequency of EEG oscillations in the neurophysiological frequency ranges delta, theta, alpha, and beta; however, amplitude changes can be caused by other reasons including the state of sleep and exposure to pharmacological drugs. Changes in the amplitude caused by postoperative complications can be revealed by analysis of the interhemispheric asymmetry of the patient's EEG. The developed type of AUC diagrams and interhemispheric EEG asymmetry maps help to automate such EEG analysis. The effectiveness of the developed statistical tools was demonstrated by the analysis of data in two patients with clinically confirmed delayed cerebral ischemia induced by subarachnoid hemorrhage.

EEG Frontal Asymmetry in Unipolar and Bipolar Depression

Background: given the similarity of clinical manifestations of depressive disorder and depressive episodes within the framework of bipolar affective disorder, diagnostic errors are inevitable. Both overdiagnosis and underdiagnosis of bipolar affective disorder are too common, and it may take several years to establish a correct diagnosis. Despite the fact that it is impossible to completely eliminate diagnostic errors, it is important to reduce their likelihood by better understanding diagnostic criteria.The aim of this study was to study the indicators of frontal EEG asymmetry in patients with unipolar and bipolar depression, as well as to identify possible correlations with the severity of clinical symptoms. Patients and methods: we examined 30 patients with affective disorder in the framework of a single depressive episode or recurrent depressive disorder and 30 patients with bipolar affective disorder, the current episode of mild or moderate depression. The bioelectric activity of the brain was recorded and analyzed with the calculation of the spectral power of beta and alpha rhythm in the frontal cortex and the beta/alpha ratio was calculated.Results: it was found that patients with bipolar affective disorder had left-sided frontal asymmetry, the beta/alpha ratio was lower on the right than on the left (0.57 [0.41; 0.87] vs. 0.67 [0.43; 1.08], p = 0.007), while patients with unipolar depression had a bilateral pattern of frontal beta/alpha ratio (0.67 [0.45; 1.01] vs. 0.69 [0.45; 0.98], p = 0.441). Statistically significant negative associations were also found between the beta/alpha ratio in the right leads in patients with bipolar affective disorder and the duration of the disease (rs=–0.419, p=0.033).Conclusion: the study clearly showed that quantitative EEG indicators can be used as an additional tool for differentiating bipolar and unipolar depression.

To the problem of intersystem correlations: anxiety by Spielberger, EEG asymmetry, somatic dollchomorphy

To the problem of intersystem correlations: anxiety by Spielberger, EEG asymmetry, somatic dollchomorphy

Effects of Vehicle Air Temperature on Drivers’ Cognitive Abilities Based on EEG

Vehicle air temperature affects drivers’ physiology, psychology, and cognitive abilities. However, the effects are difficult to quantify, especially for jobs related to driving tasks. In this research, 10 male subjects were directly exposed to four different vehicle air temperatures of 20, 23, 26, and 30 °C for 160 min. They were asked to perform cognitive tasks and subjective questionnaires, and 16 channels of EEG signals were monitored in a vehicle cabin. Based on the assessment of the EEG characteristics, the impacts of vehicle air temperature on cognitive abilities and EEG were investigated. The results showed that the cognitive ability of drivers decreased with the rising of the ambient temperature. The subjective questionnaire scores for thermal sensation, thermal comfort and brain load increased as ambient temperature rose; meanwhile, the scores for environmental acceptance, job satisfaction and willingness to work declined. As the ambient temperature rose, the normalized power of θ activity and α activity elevated, and the vigilance and frontal EEG asymmetry decreased. At 20 °C, the completion time of cognitive ability test was the shortest, the number of errors was the smallest, and the drivers could maintain high cognitive ability. At this time, the β activity component of the EEG signal increased, and the level of alertness (AL) and prefrontal asymmetry (FEA) also increased. At 23 °C, drivers’ subjective thermal comfort reached its peak: the EEG wavelet entropy values of the two segments before and after the experiment were the largest, and the wavelet entropy difference was also the largest. A suitable vehicle air temperature aroused β activity and motivation, increased driver alertness and thus enhanced cognitive performance. Therefore, to achieve high cognitive ability and thermal comfort, the vehicle air temperature should be maintained between 20 °C and 23 °C. The research results can provide a reference for the design standards of vehicle air temperature and improve the safety of driving.

The impact of conversational interaction on users’ cognitive absorption in mobile news reading context: evidence from EEG

ABSTRACT From the perspective of the user experience of media products, the study primarily focuses on the influence of users’ interaction mode on cognitive absorption. Specifically, 80 participants were recruited and randomly assigned to different interactive modes: a conversational interactive news interface and a webpage-based interactive news interface. They needed to be recorded with an EEG during the interaction and completion of the cognitive absorption (CA) scale after the interaction. The results demonstrated that there were significant differences in CA between the webpage-based interaction group and the conversational interaction group. Meanwhile, the PSD of theta and delta bands under the conversational interaction group appeared to be significantly higher. Besides, the frontal EEG asymmetry in the conversational interaction group was significantly higher than in the webpage-based interaction group. In contrast, the individual alpha frequency of the webpage-based interaction group was higher than that of the conversational interaction group. These results suggest that conversational interaction reduces the user’s reading difficulty while also reduces the cognitive load in the process of task. This helps improve user’s level of being immersed, enjoyment, sense of control, and curiosity while also improving users’ cognitive absorption as they also exhibit stronger positive emotional experiences.

EEG Asymmetry Characteristics in Relation to Childhood Anxiety Subtypes: A Dimensional Approach.

Introduction: Right frontal EEG asymmetry has been a commonly neurophysiological marker of anxiety and depressive symptoms throughout development. Method: In the current study, EEG asymmetry measures in frontal and parietal regions were examined as markers for specific subtypes of childhood anxiety disorder (eg, panic, generalized, social, separation, and school avoidance). Results: Notably, panic trait levels were significantly associated with prefrontal and lateral frontal alpha asymmetry, general anxiety was predicted by parietal beta asymmetry measures, and social anxiety levels were associated with mid-frontal alpha and beta asymmetry. School avoidance was significantly correlated with prefrontal and lateral frontal beta asymmetry scores; however, no significant findings were detected relating to separation anxiety which is considered unique to childhood anxiety. Discussion: In all cases, increased anxiety subtype scores related to a rightward shift in asymmetry, signifying this trait as a key neurophysiological marker of childhood anxiety symptoms. Conclusion: Overall, biomarker research of specific subtypes of broad conditions like anxiety could be highly useful for facilitating a deeper understanding of the mechanisms involved, as well as customizing treatment approaches.

Child emotion inhibition mediates the effect of parent's adaptive cognitive emotion regulation on child frontal EEG asymmetry during reappraisal.

Cognitive reappraisal is considered an adaptive emotion regulation strategy, but little is known regarding children's ability to effectively implement cognitive reappraisal. Some research indicates that parenting contributes to child cognitive reappraisal ability, with parent's own adaptive cognitive emotion regulation strategies playing a role. Minimal research attempts to examine how child and parenting factors work together to affect child cognitive reappraisal. We examined this association through mediation analyses to determine whether child emotion coping and emotion inhibition would mediate the relation between parent's adaptive cognitive emotion regulation and children's cognitive reappraisal implementation. Children were instructed to implement cognitive reappraisal during a sad film, while electroencephalogram (EEG) was collected. Left frontal EEG asymmetry was conceptualized as effective cognitive reappraisal implementation. Our model supported full mediation for child emotion inhibition. Parent's adaptive cognitive emotion regulation was positively associated with children's emotion inhibition, which was then positively linked to children's left frontal EEG asymmetry during cognitive reappraisal. The model with child emotion coping as a mediator was not supported. Our findings highlight the importance of examining multiple pathways that may impact children's adaptive cognitive reappraisal ability.

Being watched by a humanoid robot and a human: Effects on affect-related psychophysiological responses

Eye contact with a humanoid robot has been shown to evoke similar affect and affiliation related psychophysiological responses as eye contact with another human. In this pre-registered study, we investigated whether these effects are dependent on the experience of being “watched”. Psychophysiological responses (SCR, zygomatic and corrugator facial EMG, frontal EEG asymmetry) to a humanoid robot’s or a human model’s direct vs. averted gaze were measured while manipulating the participants’ belief of whether the robot/human model could see them or not. The results showed greater autonomic arousal responses and facial responses related to positive affect both to the robot’s and the human model’s direct vs. averted gaze, regardless of the belief condition. The belief condition influenced the overall magnitude of these responses to both stimulus models, however, to a lesser extent for the robot than for the human model. For the frontal EEG asymmetry, the effect of gaze direction was non-significant in both belief conditions. The results lend further support for the importance of eye contact in human-robot interaction and provide insights into people’s implicit attributions of humanoid robots’ mental capacities.

EEG asymmetry detection in patients with severe acquired brain injuries via machine learning methods

Lateral brain symmetry indexes, detected by electroencephalography (EEG), are markers of rehabilitative recovery widely used in patients with severe acquired brain injury (sABI). In this study, Machine Learning algorithms were cross-validated to detect consistent asymmetries, starting from a completely automated features extraction pipeline in the EEG recordings of 54 patients with sABI, classified by two expert neurophysiologists. Raw data were filtered and segmented in two-seconds non-overlapping epochs. Low data quality in frontal electrodes caused up to 40% of epochs rejection, whilst central and posterior electrodes contributed with the greatest number of artefacts-free epochs. Out of more than 3000 extracted features, ∼300 significantly differentiated symmetric and asymmetric EEG recordings, most of them extracted from pairs and lines of electrodes. The best performing solution (nested-cross-validated and optimized Support Vector Machine classifier) detected asymmetry with a test accuracy of 85% (sensitivity 92%, specificity 80%). The application of the proposed approach to our sample size supports the generalizability of our model and its translation to clinical practice. The algorithm, heading to automatic EEG analysis, has the potential to speed up analysis of long recordings and, to improve quality of care in settings lacking skilled staff.

Investigating the short-term cognitive abilities under local strong thermal radiation through EEG measurement

Local Strong Thermal Radiant environment is widely present in industrial buildings, resulting in reduced cognitive abilities and thermal comfort for workers who perform monitoring operations. However, the effect is difficult to quantify, especially for jobs that are near hyperthermal radiant sources. In this study, ten young male subjects were directly exposed to five different radiation panel temperatures for 60 min, i.e., 100, 150, 200, 250, and 300 °C, at 0.8 m from the radiant panel. Subjects were asked to perform cognitive tasks and subjective questionnaires and monitor 16 channels of EEG signals in a chamber. Based on the assessment of the EEG characteristics, the impacts of Local Strong Thermal Radiant on cognitive abilities and EEG are investigated. The results indicated that cognitive abilities were improved while the radiant temperature was below 250 °C. As the radiation temperature increases, the normalized power of β activity and α activity increases, and the vigilance and frontal EEG asymmetry increase. When it reaches 300 °C, all these features decrease and show an inverted “U” shape. The Local Strong Thermal Radiant arouses β activity and motivation for a short period and enhances cognitive abilities. The thermal comfort scores and thermal sensation scores rise with increasing temperature. Several international standards and literature can verify the findings of this study. This study's findings provided a foundation for assessing the cognitive abilities and inducing the mental states of hyperthermal radiant environment young workers to advance effective safety management in the industrial workshop.

One Phenomenon with Many Interpretations: Asymmetry of the Frontal EEG α Rhythm in Healthy People. Part II

One Phenomenon with Many Interpretations: Asymmetry of the Frontal EEG α Rhythm in Healthy People. Part II