Bilateral electrodermal activity: reliability, laterality and individual differences.

A first aim of the present study was to estimate the short- and long-term stability of individual response patterns in bilateral electrodermal activity (EDA). A second aim was to examine the relationship of individual brain laterality to both peak amplitude and peak time based electrodermal asymmetry. Additionally, subjects were presented with verbal and spatial tasks to estimate the balance of left/right asymmetry in cerebral activation at time of testing. Finally, the influence of smoking, coffee consumption and subjective circadian phase (morningness/eveningness, subjects' rise time) on bilateral asymmetry and EDA lability was examined. Results indicated moderate to high short-term reliabilities of EDA laterality coefficients, but insufficient long-term stability. Handedness and conjugate lateral eye movements (CLEMs) were not related to asymmetry of EDA, but a significant interaction between CLEM tendency and smoking/nonsmoking on laterality of both EDA parameters was observed. Amount of coffee consumption was also significantly related to electrodermal asymmetry. Analysis of performance data demonstrated that intraindividual shifts of EDA laterality from one recording session to a following one were associated with corresponding shifts in accuracy of verbal/spatial performance. Degree of subjects' electrodermal lability differentiated significantly between speed and accuracy of performance in both verbal and spatial tasks, and was substantially related to subjects' rise time.

Associations between EEG asymmetries and electrodermal lability in low vs. high depressive and anxious normal individuals.

In order to investigate one aspect of cortical-autonomic control, cortical activation asymmetries, measured by EEG, were related to activity of the sympathetic nervous system, measured by EDA (electrodermal lability, number of spontaneous fluctuations), in two large samples. Since it may help to explain the participation of psychological factors in the development of various somatic complaints and disorders, we examined whether inter-individual differences in autonomic nervous system regulation may exist that are related to stress/anxiety and depression within the normal range. Results demonstrate substantial modifications of functional hemisphere asymmetries in the modulation of EDA by these emotional factors and suggest that activation asymmetries in orbital and dorsolateral frontal regions reflect two different cortical sub-systems regulating electrodermal activity. The findings may, to some extent, provide an explanation for contradictory results in previous studies and may encourage research in psychosomatics and other clinical fields (e.g. schizophrenia).

Bilateral electrodermal activity: relationships to state and trait characteristics of hemisphere asymmetry.

Influences of trait and state characteristics of individual brain lateralization on bilateral electrodermal activity (EDA) were examined. EDA was observed in two different recording conditions: (1) non-specific skin conductance responses (ns.SCRs) were obtained during a stimulus-free recording period of 5 min; and (2) stimulus evoked skin conductance responses (SCRs) were elicited by 80 dichotically presented pairs of pure tones which--at the same time--constituted the items of a test to estimate subject's lateral ear dominance. In addition to ear dominance, degree of right-handedness and hemispheric preference, i.e. preferred direction of conjugate lateral eye movements (CLEMs) were assessed as trait-like characteristics of individual laterality. With respect to asymmetry of ns.SCRs, no effects of the laterality variables were observed. Analysis of SCRs, however, resulted in significant interactions of ear dominance and hemispheric preference with degree of right-handedness indicating higher SCR amplitudes on the hand contralateral to the preferred hemisphere in strong dextrals. Weak right-handers showed a different pattern of bilateral asymmetries, partly in the opposite direction. Additionally, phasic effects of cortical asymmetry on SCRs seem to be modified by trait characteristics of individual laterality. Results underline the importance of precisely controlling degree of handedness in studies of bilateral electrodermal activity. Furthermore, the observed effects support the assumption of cortical influences on EDA, but argue against the existence of a single cortical mechanism modulating asymmetries in the electrodermal system.

Lateral eye movements as an indication of hemispheric preference: an EEG validation study.

The hemispheric asymmetry model of lateral eye movements (LEM), hypothesizing a relation between a predominance of lateral gazes to one side with a predominance of activity in the hemisphere contralateral to the preferred direction of gaze, was tested in male, right-handed subjects. During presentation of cognitive tasks (verbal synonym tasks and spatial orienting tasks) the decrease in alpha-power from a reference period to each of four activation periods (anticipation, task-presentation, first LEM, answer) for 6 derivations from each hemisphere was calculated using the method of 'Event-related desynchronisation'. Evidence for the hypothesis was found only during the EEG-epoch one second before the answer. Discrimination between subjects with a predominance of left vs right eye movements (left- vs right-movers) was best at temporal (T3, T4) and central (C3, C4) sites. These results were significant for the entire alpha-band (8-12 Hz) and--even more pronounced--for the alpha-2-band (10-12 Hz). The alpha-1-band (8-10 Hz) did not produce significant differences. Comparing the two types of tasks, synonym tasks yielded results which were more congruent with the hypothesis. The results suggest that lateral eye movements indicate individual differences in hemispheric EEG-asymmetries under certain experimental conditions (task, segment of EEG-analysis, site, frequency band).

Ear dominance and laterality of cortical activation identified by event-related desynchronization mapping.

Lateralized cortical functioning was assumed to be involved in ear dominance for pitch information. Left ear dominant (LED), right ear dominant (RED) subjects and individuals with no distinct ear preference (NED) were examined by means of the event-related desynchronization-mapping method during stimulation with a dichotic listening test. Contrary to expectations ED-groups did not systematically show greater involvement of the hemisphere contralateral to the dominant ear. RED were characterized by a response-dependent cortical activation pattern, LED exhibited a marked ipsilateral desynchronization focus if they showed preference for the dominant ear. In the NED group an early asymmetrical activation distribution was observed during the perception interval, which was concentrated ipsilaterally to the preferred ear.

EEG correlates of behavioural laterality: right-handedness.

Among right-handers, the magnitude of differences in proficiency between the left and right hands varies considerably. Yet significance of the extent of right-handedness is still a controversial issue. To examine whether individual differences in asymmetry of hand skill can partly be attributed to individual differences in asymmetrical hemispheric activation, handedness and electroencephalographic (EEG) laterality were correlated in two large samples (ns = 60 and 128). Analysis indicated that part of the variability in right-handedness may arise from activation asymmetries in the cortex, but whether this relation becomes apparent depends on the cortical area examined and on the experimental condition under which the EEG measures are taken.

[Acoustic evoked driving reactions in the EEG and their conditioning related to the personality factor extraversion-introversion (author's transl)]. / Akustisch evozierte Driving-Reaktionen im EEG und ihre Konditionierung in Abhängigkeit von dem persönlichkeitsfaktor Extraversion-Introversion.

Clicks were delivered in trains of 2,5 s duration at click repetition rates of 5 or 8/s to provoke rhythmical activity in the vertex-EEG ('driving response') and to condition the driving response to neutral stimuli in a discrimination paradigm. The Eysenck Personality Inventory was administered to define an independent personality variable, i.e. extraversion-introversion; the interaction of background activity, driving and conditioned driving response with the personality dimension was analyzed. In the background EEG there was a significant difference in the absolute power of the fast alpha-band between introverts and extraverts. Driving was only observed in the fundamental frequency of acoustic stimulation, not in the first harmonic. There was no interaction between driving response and extraversion-introversion or resting EEG activity. Classical conditioning of the driving response was successful with introverts only. Results were interpreted within the framework of Eysenck's personality theory. The possibility to study neurophysiological correlates of memory processes in humans by means of conditioned driving responses is discussed.

Different temporal stability and partial independence of EEG asymmetries from different locations: implications for laterality research.

In order to investigate a possible regional specificity of activation asymmetries of different parts of the cortex and the stability of these asymmetries across time and conditions, EEG was recorded during rest and stimulation conditions in a large sample of right-handed university students (n = 60). Recordings were made in two sessions (interval between sessions 2-4 weeks). In the first session two rest periods were conducted (interval 30 min) and one under stimulation. In the second session EEG was again recorded at rest. Reliability analyses show that the long-term stability of orbitofrontal asymmetries is markedly lower than that of dorsolateral, temporal, and parietal scores. Intercorrelations of EEG asymmetries at different electrode positions suggest that anterior and posterior EEG asymmetries are largely independent measures of cortical laterality. Both this partial independence of activation asymmetries and the differences in temporal stability underscore the significance of the anterior-posterior dimension in laterality research and may be one reason for several contradictory observations in studies on brain laterality.

Quantitative assessment of five behavioural laterality measures: distributions of scores and intercorrelations among right-handers.

Five behavioural laterality measures (degree of right-handedness, ear dominance, ocular dominance, line bisection performance, and lateral preference as assessed by preferred direction of conjugate lateral eye movements) were analysed in 1171 right-handers by merging data from 15 different samples. All laterality aspects were assessed quantitatively by using well controlled performance measures instead of questionnaires. The distributions and intercorrelations of the measures as well as their test-retest reliabilities were examined. Results show moderately high reliabilities for all measures, and clearly demonstrate considerable variability among dextrals in the direction and magnitude of the obtained behavioural laterality measures. Most importantly, independence of the different measures questions some common assumptions in laterality research. It seems unlikely, for instance, that handedness and other aspects of laterality may be a product of one single underlying mechanism of brain lateralisation.

Hemispheric asymmetry and the processing of harmonies in music.

The purpose of the present study was to investigate to what extent the concept of hemispheric specialization is of importance for the perception and processing of harmonies in music. The method involves presenting mistuned intervals monaurally, which have to be tuned with a joy-stick. Subjects were divided according to their previous musical training and according to their ear and eye dominance. The accuracy of the tuning-performance yields data for an univariate analysis of variance. From the results the conclusion is drawn that the right hemisphere is more sensitive to the dimension of musical harmony. This superiority is discussed with respect to different theories of hearing and the question, if the observed differences are the expression of an innate or a learned ability.