The brain under pressure: Exploring neurophysiological responses to cognitive stress

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Psychophysiology
• Biomedical Engineering

Background:

• Modern life presents increasing performance demands, impacting physiological stress responses.
• Electroencephalogram (EEG) and heart rate (HR) are reliable indicators of elevated stress levels.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the impact of an arithmetic stress-inducing task on EEG and HR.
• To establish correlations between behavioral data and physiological recordings during stress.

Main Methods:

• Thirty-one healthy participants performed timed arithmetic tasks.
• EEG and HR were recorded, alongside stress questionnaires.
• Linear mixed effects modeling generated topographical association maps.

Main Results:

• Task difficulty correlated with decreased theta and increased alpha power in specific brain regions.
• Error rate and response time showed associations with increased frontal delta, theta, and alpha activity.
• HR positively correlated with frontal delta, theta, and alpha power, and negatively with frontal gamma power.

Conclusions:

• The study enhances understanding of EEG/ECG-based mental stress detection.
• Findings are crucial for early interventions, personalized treatment, and objective stress assessment.
• Results support the development of neuroadaptive systems for stress management.