Intentionality in frontal asymmetry research

Dispositional factors in the explanation of symptoms of depression, anxiety, health anxiety and COVID-19 Phobia

Maladaptive personality, the motivational systems, and intolerance of uncertainty play important roles in the statistical explanation of depression and anxiety. Here, we notably examined for the first time whether symptoms of depression, anxiety, health anxiety, and fear of COVID-19 share similar associations (e.g., variance explained) with these important dispositional dimensions. For this cross-sectional study, data from 1001 participants recruited in Germany (50% women; mean age = 47.26) were collected. In separate models, we examined the cross-sectional associations of the symptoms of depression, anxiety, health anxiety, and fear of COVID-19 with the Personality Inventory for DSM Short Form Plus scales, the Behavioral Inhibition System / Flight-Fight-Freeze System / Behavioral Activation System scales, and Intolerance of Uncertainty scales. Relative weight analyses were used to determine the within-model importance of the different scales in the prediction of the symptoms. All in all, our study showed that maladaptive personality and intolerance of uncertainty dimensions are more important sets of predictors of the studied outcomes (with which depressive and anxious symptomatology feature very similar associations) than are the motivational system dimensions. Within predictor sets, the scales with the most important predictors were: Negative Affectivity, the Behavioral Inhibition System, and Burden due to Intolerance of Uncertainty. Our findings highlight the relevance of focusing behavioral targets of psychotherapy on these within-set traits and identify potential research priorities (maladaptive personality and intolerance of uncertainty) in relation to the symptoms of interest.

The Effect of Induced Regulatory Focus on Frontal Cortical Activity

The motivation-direction model has served as the primary framework for understanding frontal cortical activity. However, research on the link between approach/avoidance motivation and left/right frontal cortical activity has produced inconsistent findings. Recent studies suggest that regulatory systems may offer a more accurate explanation than the motivational direction model. Despite being regulatory systems, the relationship between regulatory focus and frontal cortical activity has received limited attention. Only one experimental study has explored this connection through correlational analysis, yet it lacks causal evidence. The present study aimed to address this gap by manipulating regulatory focus and measuring frontal cortical activity in 36 college students. Our results revealed that induced promotion focus led to increased left frontal cortical activity, whereas induced prevention focus led to increased right frontal cortical activity. These findings enhance our physiological understanding of regulatory focus and offer a deeper explanation of how regulatory focus influences alterations in psychology and behavior.

Hypnotizability-related risky experience and behavior

Risk is the probability of an adverse event. The proneness to take a risk and the risk taking behavior differ among the general population. Hypnotizability is a stable psychophysiological trait expressing the individual proneness to modify perception, memory and behavior following specific suggestions also in the ordinary state of consciousness. Some hypnotizability-related neurophysiological and behavioral correlates suggest that hypnotizability level, measured by standard scales classifying individuals as low (lows), medium (mediums) and high hypnotizable (highs) subjects, can be related to risk propensity and risk-taking. To study whether hypnotizability modulates risk propensity and behavior, we recruited healthy participants, classified through the Standford Hypnotic Susceptibility scale, form A, and compared lows' (n = 33), mediums' (n = 19) and highs'(n = 15) experiential and behavioral risk perception and propensity variables through the Domain-specific risk-taking scale and the Balloon Analogue Risk Task. MANOVA results indicated that different hypnotizability levels are not associated with different risky behavior and experience, except for higher expected financial benefits from risky behavior in lows. However, hypnotizability-related risk profiles were identified through correlational analyses. In fact, highs exhibited a negative association between risk perception and propensity to risk-taking, whereas mediums and lows displayed a positive association between risk propensity and expected benefit. In conclusion, the highs' profile indicates a more automatic behavior with respect to mediums and lows.

Inhibition of midfrontal theta with transcranial ultrasound explains greater approach versus withdrawal behavior in humans

Recent reviews highlighted low-intensity transcranial focused ultrasound (TUS) as a promising new tool for non-invasive neuromodulation in basic and applied sciences. Our preregistered double-blind within-subjects study (N = 152) utilized TUS targeting the right prefrontal cortex, which, in earlier work, was found to positively enhance self-reported global mood, decrease negative states of self-reported emotional conflict (anxiety/worrying), and modulate related midfrontal functional magnetic resonance imaging activity in affect regulation brain networks. To further explore TUS effects on objective physiological and behavioral variables, we used a virtual T-maze task that has been established in prior studies to measure motivational conflicts regarding whether participants execute approach versus withdrawal behavior (with free-choice responses via continuous joystick movements) while allowing to record related electroencephalographic data such as midfrontal theta activity (MFT). MFT, a reliable marker of conflict representation on a neuronal level, was of particular interest to us since it has repeatedly been shown to explain related behavior, with relatively low MFT typically preceding approach-like risky behavior and relatively high MFT typically preceding withdrawal-like risk aversion. Our central hypothesis is that TUS decreases MFT in T-maze conflict situations and thereby increases approach and reduces withdrawal. Results indicate that TUS led to significant MFT decreases, which significantly explained increases in approach behavior and decreases in withdrawal behavior. This study expands TUS evidence on a physiological and behavioral level with a large sample size of human subjects, suggesting the promise of further research based on this distinct TUS-MFT-behavior link to influence conflict monitoring and its behavioral consequences. Ultimately, this can serve as a foundation for future clinical work to establish TUS interventions for emotional and motivational mental health.

Older and Wiser? Age-related Change in State and Trait Boredom During Adolescence and Associations with Neural Correlates of Self-regulation

Purpose

The purpose of the current study was to examine age-related change in state and trait boredom in 12- to 17-year-old adolescents and test whether neurophysiological correlates of self-regulation relate to boredom during adolescence in the same way that has been found in adults.

Methods

Eighty-nine 12- to 17-year-old adolescents participated. Three types of trait boredom were measured: boredom proneness, leisure boredom, and boredom susceptibility. State boredom was also measured after completing a boredom induction task while EEG was recorded. Slopes in frontal alpha asymmetry (FAA) were extracted from the EEG as a measure of approach (leftward shifts) or avoidance (rightward shifts).

Results

A curvilinear relationship between age and boredom proneness and age and boredom susceptibility was observed, indicating trait boredom rises and falls across adolescence. State boredom, by contrast, increased linearly with age. Slopes in FAA inversely related only to boredom proneness, indicating higher levels of this type of trait boredom related to an avoidant response as a state of boredom ensues.

Conclusion

We suggest the rise and fall of trait boredom across adolescence may be due to changes in person-environment fit during middle adolescence, whereas state boredom may increase with age due to improvements in attentional processes that mundane lab tasks do not satisfactorily engage. The link between FAA and only one type of trait boredom indicates self-regulatory processes and boredom are not yet strongly coupled in adolescence. Implications for prevention of negative behavioral health outcomes associated with high levels of trait boredom are discussed.

A systematic review of the prediction of consumer preference using EEG measures and machine-learning in neuromarketing research

Introduction

The present paper discusses the findings of a systematic review of EEG measures in neuromarketing, identifying which EEG measures are the most robust predictor of customer preference in neuromarketing. The review investigated which TF effect (e.g., theta-band power), and ERP component (e.g., N400) was most consistently reflective of self-reported preference. Machine-learning prediction also investigated, along with the use of EEG when combined with physiological measures such as eye-tracking.

Methods

Search terms ‘neuromarketing’ and ‘consumer neuroscience’ identified papers that used EEG measures. Publications were excluded if they were primarily written in a language other than English or were not published as journal articles (e.g., book chapters). 174 papers were included in the present review.

Results

Frontal alpha asymmetry (FAA) was the most reliable TF signal of preference and was able to differentiate positive from negative consumer responses. Similarly, the late positive potential (LPP) was the most reliable ERP component, reflecting conscious emotional evaluation of products and advertising. However, there was limited consistency across papers, with each measure showing mixed results when related to preference and purchase behaviour.

Conclusions and implications

FAA and the LPP were the most consistent markers of emotional responses to marketing stimuli, consumer preference and purchase intention. Predictive accuracy of FAA and the LPP was greatly improved through the use of machine-learning prediction, especially when combined with eye-tracking or facial expression analyses.

Scarcity Enhances Outcome Evaluation in the Present: Electroencephalography Evidence

Scarcity goods have generally been perceived as high in value in real-world and empirical studies. However, few studies have investigated this value over time, such as performance in intertemporal decision making. This study’s chief objective was to determine how scarcity evaluation changes temporally. We used the electroencephalogram technique and an outcome evaluation task with the valuation of scarcity and ordinary rewards delivered at different times to explore the effect of scarcity on delay discounting. The feedback-related negativity (FRN) results show that ordinary goods were associated with a more negative amplitude than scarcity goods, and that rewards delivered in the future evoked more negative deflection compared to those delivered immediately. The prominent FRN effect was derived mainly from ordinary trials rather than scarcity trials in the immediate condition and in the future rather than only in the immediate condition. The Frontal Asymmetry Index (FAI) results show that the scarcity condition was associated with greater relative left frontal cortical activity than the ordinary condition when delivered immediately. The frontal asymmetry indicated greater approach motivation. Our electrophysiology data indicate that scarcity goods have a perceived high value, particularly when delivered immediately.

Play with Mom: Insights into Regulatory Processes at Work during Baseline and Parent-infant Play

Frontal alpha asymmetry (FAA) is a neural correlate of approach and avoidance motivational processes. This study examined the shift in FAA from baseline to play, associations to parent-reported regulatory abilities, and parent and infant behaviors during play. Infants exhibited greater left frontal alpha activity (more approach) during baseline relative to play. Shifts in FAA toward greater left frontal alpha activity (more approach) from baseline to play were associated with parent ratings of infants' regulatory behaviors and object exploration exhibited during play. These results highlight ongoing regulatory processes involved in positively valenced tasks typical in infants' daily life.

Library for universal virtual reality experiments (luVRe): A standardized immersive 3D/360° picture and video database for VR based research

Virtual reality is a promising tool for experimental psychology, enhancing the ecological validity of psychological science. The advantage of VR is that it enables researchers to study emotional and cognitive processes under realistic conditions while maintaining strict experimental control. To make it easier for scientists to get into the world of VR research and to improve the comparability of scientific results, we have created and validated a standardized set of 3D/360° videos and photos. Study 1 investigated the electrophysiological differences between motivational and emotional reactions exhibited under immersive VR and conventional 2D conditions. The obtained frontal alpha asymmetries show diverge patterns between the two conditions giving rise to further speculations that associated psychological processes exhibit more natural functional properties under immersive conditions. The feeling of being at the center of a realistic VR environment creates a sense of self-relevance. In VR, motivational tendencies and emotional reactions are related to objects or persons within the vicinity of the participant and not to the stimuli presented on a screen. Study 2, investigating the memory performance for VR videos as opposed to a conventional 2D screen presentation, provides evidence that memory formed under immersive conditions created more profound memory traces. This so-called memory superiority effect for the VR conditions might again result from the feeling of being in a scene, thus facilitating the formation of autobiographical memory. The implementation of VR experiments using the database is straightforward as it does neither require much technical equipment nor a high level of VR expertise.

The Relation Between Consumers' Frontal Alpha Asymmetry, Attitude, and Investment Decision

The frontal alpha asymmetry (FAA) is a neurophysiological measure of motivation and preference. Despite the FAA is associated to commercial pleasantness, conflicting evidence emerged in the literature regarding its relationship with behavior. To study the association between FAA and consumers' decision, we manipulated a commercial script to elicit diverse consumers' attitudes and decisions and to evaluate whether the FAA score is associated to their final investment. A little informative script (S1) was used to polarize consumers' attitudes and investments toward unfavorable scores, while a more personalized message (S2) to elicit in customers a favorable attitude and higher investments. Twenty-one participants listened to the scripts, and their FAA, attitude, and monetary investment were measured. In S1, the FAA did not correlate with neither attitude nor the investment decision, while a robust negative correlation between these variables was found in S2. No other peripheral body and neural measures associated with attitude or final decision. Our data suggest that the FAA correlates with attitude and decision, when a commercial script is customized and provides an adequate information, likely leading the consumer to a more reasoned and planned decision-making process. When facilitating a favorable attitude toward an offer, the negative correlation of FAA and behavior may reflect the involvement of a control system, whose role is to monitor and govern possible conflicts between approach and avoidance motivations. This observation provides additional indication on the value of FAA as a marker of consumer behaviors, and how it could be affected by experimental and contextual bias.

Methods matter: An examination of factors that moderate predictions of the capability model concerning the relationship of frontal asymmetry to trait measures

The capability model of anterior asymmetry integrates trait-related and state-related frontal asymmetry research by proposing that frontal asymmetry is dependent on relevant traits if they are activated by a situation. However, differences in experimental design and EEG recording methods haven't been fully explored. We investigated 56 participants under three different situational paradigms (virtual T-maze, mental imagery, movies), varying the stimulus and type of measurement concerning frontal asymmetry. We predicted that "strong" situational manipulations (virtual T-maze, frontal asymmetry measured as event-related desynchronization) would eclipse relationships between frontal asymmetry and relevant traits, whereas "weaker" task manipulations, measured during longer time periods, would enhance relationships to relevant traits compared to frontal asymmetry at rest. The results confirmed these expectations, stressing the importance of stimulus characteristics, trait measures and recording methods with respect to the capability model. Additionally, a revision of the capability model to an inverse U-shaped quadratic relationship might be appropriate.

Microstates-based resting frontal alpha asymmetry approach for understanding affect and approach/withdrawal behavior

The role of resting frontal alpha-asymmetry in explaining neural-mechanisms of affect and approach/withdrawal behavior is still debatable. The present study explores the ability of the quasi-stable resting EEG asymmetry information and the associated neurovascular synchronization/desynchronization in bringing more insight into the understanding of neural-mechanisms of affect and approach/withdrawal behavior. For this purpose, a novel frontal alpha-asymmetry based on microstates, that assess quasi-stable EEG scalp topography information, is proposed and compared against standard frontal-asymmetry. Both proposed and standard frontal alpha-asymmetries were estimated from thirty-nine healthy volunteers resting-EEG simultaneously acquired with resting-fMRI. Further, neurovascular mechanisms of these asymmetry measures were estimated through EEG-informed fMRI. Subsequently, the Hemodynamic Lateralization Index (HLI) of the neural-underpinnings of both asymmetry measures was assessed. Finally, the robust correlation of both asymmetry-measures and their HLI’s with PANAS, BIS/BAS was carried out. The standard resting frontal-asymmetry and its HLI yielded no significant correlation with any psychological-measures. However, the microstate resting frontal-asymmetry correlated significantly with negative affect and its neural underpinning’s HLI significantly correlated with Positive/Negative affect and BIS/BAS measures. Finally, alpha-BOLD desynchronization was observed in neural-underpinning whose HLI correlated significantly with negative affect and BIS. Hence, the proposed resting microstate-frontal asymmetry better assesses the neural-mechanisms of affect, approach/withdrawal behavior.

Does frontal brain activity mediate the effect of depression prevention in adolescents? A pilot study

We investigated whether (a) depression prevention was associated with depressive symptoms and medial-frontal alpha asymmetry in adolescents; (b) alpha asymmetry mediated the association between participation in a prevention program and depressive symptoms; and (c) gender affects these associations. In our randomised control group study, we compared a universal prevention program (n = 40 adolescents, 14 females) with a non-intervention control condition (n = 39 adolescents, 20 females) in German secondary school students (mean age: 13.53 years, SD = 0.53). We collected data at baseline, post-intervention, 6-month, and 12-month follow-up using the Self-Rating Questionnaire for Depressive Disorders (SBB-DES) and resting medial-frontal alpha activity on F3 and F4. We found that girls benefitted from participating in the prevention program in regards to their depressive symptoms at 12-month follow-up but not alpha asymmetry. In boys, participation in the prevention program was associated with their alpha asymmetry at 6-month follow-up but not their depressive symptoms. Alpha asymmetry did not mediate the effects of the prevention program on depressive symptoms in either gender. Although participation in the prevention program was associated with both depressive symptoms and alpha asymmetry, those associations seem independent from each other. Possible explanations for this result pattern are discussed.

Eight-month-old infants' behavioral responses to peers' emotions as related to the asymmetric frontal cortex activity

Infants are sensitive to and converge emotionally with peers' distress. It is unclear whether these responses extend to positive affect and whether observing peer emotions motivates infants' behaviors. This study investigates 8-month-olds' asymmetric frontal EEG during peers' cry and laughter, and its relation to approach and withdrawal behaviors. Participants observed videos of infant crying or laughing during two separate sessions. Frontal EEG alpha power was recorded during the first, while infants' behaviors and emotional expressions were recorded during the second session. Facial and vocal expressions of affect suggest that infants converge emotionally with their peers' distress, and, to a certain extent, with their happiness. At group level, the crying peer elicited right lateralized frontal activity. However, those infants with reduced right and increased left frontal activity in this situation, were more likely to approach their peer. Overall, 8-month-olds did not show asymmetric frontal activity in response to peer laughter. But, those infants who tended to look longer at their happy peer were more likely to respond with left lateralized frontal activity. The link between variations in left frontal activity and simple approach behaviors indicates the presence of a motivational dimension to infants' responses to distressed peers.