Correlation of risk-taking propensity with cross-frequency phase-amplitude coupling in the resting EEG
1Department of Bio and Brain Engineering, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), Daejeon 305-701, South Korea; Neuropsychiatry Research Laboratory, Department of Psychiatry, Gongju National Hospital, Chungcheongnam-do 314-200, South Korea; Addiction Brain Center, Eulji Addiction Institute, Gangnam Eulji Hospital, Seoul 135-010, South Korea.
Objective:
Recent evidence has suggested that the weak inhibitory influence of the prefrontal cortex on the subcortical structures may be responsible for risk-taking behaviour. The aim was to determine the possibility that this weakness in top-down control is reflected in changes in the cross-frequency phase-amplitude coupling (CFPAC) in the electroencephalography (EEG).
Methods:
Nineteen-channel EEGs were recorded from 50 healthy volunteers with their eyes closed before risk-taking propensity was assessed by behavioural measures, the domain-specific risk-taking (DOSPERT) scale and the Barrett impulsiveness scale (BIS). Correlation analyses between the CFPACs and the behavioural measures were performed.
Results:
The CFPACs were negatively correlated with the risk-taking DOSPERT and BIS scores in frontal (Fp2) and centro-parietal (C3, C4 and P4) regions. By contrast, the CFPACs were positively correlated with the risk-taking DOSPERT and BIS scores in the right hemisphere (T8 and P8).
Conclusions:
We suggest that frequent risk-taking behaviour is closely associated with the reduced interference of the cortical control network on the reward-oriented system. The CFPAC, which reflects the degree of interactions among functional systems, provides information about an individual's risk-taking propensity.
Significance:
The CFPAC may be a useful neurophysiological indicator of an individual's tendency towards risk-taking behaviours, which thus potentially contributes to evaluating the severity of the psychiatric diseases exhibiting abnormal risk-taking behaviours.
