Monitoring of attentional oscillations through Spectral Similarity Analysis predicts reading comprehension.

Monitoring of attentional oscillations through Spectral Similarity Analysis predicts reading comprehension.
Brain Lang. 2019 Nov 09;200:104709
Authors: Zhou P, Prat C, Yamasaki BL, Stocco A
Abstract
Deviations of attention from the task at hand are often associated with worse reading performance (Schooler, Reichle, & Halpern, 2004). Ironically, current methods for detecting these shifts of attention typically generate task interruptions and further disrupt performance. In the current study, we developed a method to (1) track shifts of attention away from the reading task by examining the similarity between 5 min of eyes-closed-resting-state EEG and 5 min reading EEG; and (2) investigate, during reading, how the ratio between attention shifts and focused reading relates to readers' comprehension. We performed a Spectral Similarity Analysis (SSA) that examined the spectral similarity between EEG recorded during reading and at rest on a moment-by-moment basis. We then recursively applied the algorithm to the resting-state data itself to obtain an individual baseline of the stability of brain activation recorded during rest. We defined any moment in which SSA during reading was greater than the mean correlation between resting-state EEG and itself as an "attentional shift." The results showed that the proportion of such attentional shifts recorded over the left visual region (O1) significantly predicted reading comprehension, wit...

Source: Brain and Language - November 8, 2019 Category: Neurology Authors: Zhou P, Prat C, Yamasaki BL, Stocco A Tags: Brain Lang Source Type: research