Current trends and opportunities in the methodology of electrodermal activity measurement

Abstract

Electrodermal activity (EDA) has been measured in the laboratory since the late 1800s. Although the influence of sudomotor nerve activity and the sympathetic nervous system on EDA is well established, the mechanisms underlying EDA signal generation are not completely understood. Owing to simplicity of instrumentation and modern electronics, these measurements have recently seen a transfer from the laboratory to wearable devices, sparking numerous novel applications while bringing along both challenges and new opportunities. In addition to developments in electronics and miniaturization, current trends in material technology and manufacturing have sparked innovations in electrode technologies, and trends in data science such as machine learning and sensor fusion are expanding the ways that measurement data can be processed and utilized. Although challenges remain for the quality of wearable EDA measurement, ongoing research and developments may shorten the quality gap between wearable EDA and standardized recordings in the laboratory. In this topical review, we provide an overview of the basics of EDA measurement, discuss the challenges and opportunities of wearable EDA, and review recent developments in instrumentation, material technology, signal processing, modeling and data science tools that may advance the field of EDA research and applications over the coming years.

Physiological reactions to acute stressors and subjective stress during daily life: A systematic review on ecological momentary assessment (EMA) studies

“…Whereas one study examining pregnant women [ 80 ] and one study examining working adults [ 81 ] found positive relationships between global subjective stress and current cortisol levels, other studies with working adults [ 82 ] and women with fibromyalgia [ 83 ] found no such association. Furthermore, one study among healthy adults suggests that several subjective responses to stress attenuate a positive effect of global subjective stress on momentary cortisol levels [ 42 ]. Positive relationships between cortisol and acute stressor severity during social interactions among school children [ 84 ] and women [ 76 ] were found.…”

“…EDA reflects only the sympathetic nervous system activity of the ANS [ 40 ]. It has been used in the laboratory for a long time but due to advances in technology may be used in real world environments [ 34 , 41 ], making it an option for EMA studies [ 42 ]. Measurement is done e.g.…”

Electrodermal signal analysis using continuous wavelet transform as a tool for quantification of sweat gland activity in diabetic kidney disease

“…Palm is chosen as the region of examination because it has wider (greater than 1 cm 2 as recommended by Tronstad et al 27 ) area of skin contact with the electrodes and density of SG is also relatively higher. 26,27 Specifically thenar and hypothenar region of palm offers higher skin conductance and response to electrical stimuli. 28 This system primarily consists of two Ag-AgCl electrodes placed on the palm at a 3 cm distance.…”

“…A simple system is designed to acquire an EDA signal by applying an electrical stimulus. Palm is chosen as the region of examination because it has wider (greater than 1 cm 2 as recommended by Tronstad et al 27 ) area of skin contact with the electrodes and density of SG is also relatively higher. 26,27 Specifically thenar and hypothenar region of palm offers higher skin conductance and response to electrical stimuli.…”

Ontological Modeling for Contextual Data Describing Signals Obtained From Electrodermal Activity for Emotion Recognition and Analysis

“…• there is a substantial increase in the usability and accessibility of devices that measure EDA [3], [67], [69], [70]; • wearable technologies provide more opportunities to measure EDA in real-world settings [18], [41], [45]; • it is one of the most commonly used methods to measure physiological arousal [20], [46], [53].…”