Using different methods for calculating frontal alpha asymmetry to study its development from infancy to 3 years of age in a large longitudinal sample

Abstract

Frontal electroencephalography (EEG) alpha asymmetry (FAA), defined as the difference in frontal alpha power observed over the right and left frontal scalp regions, has been widely used in developmental research as a measure of multiple aspects of child behavior, such as temperament. Studies have used different equations to calculate FAA, which renders comparison of results across studies challenging. Furthermore, few studies have examined FAA's longitudinal stability across infancy and early childhood, which is a desirable feature of a temperament measure. We investigated the cross‐sectional and the longitudinal correlations of FAA values from four different equations to calculate FAA used in the literature. We used baseline EEG data from a longitudinal sample of 321 infants and 168 3‐year‐old children (149 of whom had data at both timepoints). Consistent with previous work, FAA values calculated using two commonly used equations were highly correlated with each other cross‐sectionally but not with values from a different equation that used log‐transformed relative power. The log‐transformed relative power FAA values were the only values that showed significant longitudinal stability. These findings suggest that researchers interested in FAA as a trait‐like measure in children should consider using the relative power equation that renders stability across ages.

Methods and metrics for EEG/ERP assessment of emotion and cognition in young children

“…(2022) extend the large time domain literature on error monitoring by examining time–frequency dynamics in young children, including comparing reliability of EEG/ERP components across scoring approaches. Results from at least two studies (Morales et al., 2022; Vincent et al., 2021) support the possibility that measures are normatively stabilizing, demonstrating increasingly reliable and coherent patterns of neural response, as children age and developing brains mature. Together, these studies have the potential to advance best practices in developmental EEG/ERP research and ensure rigorous methodology across disciplines.…”

“…A second issue with which studies of developing populations often contend is the apparently high degree of within‐ and between‐person variation in nearly all commonly used measures of neural activity relative to adults samples. Several articles in this special issue note a high degree of within‐person variability in neural metrics at the earliest ages of measurement (Brooker et al., 2021; Guy, Conte, et al., 2021; Vincent et al., 2021), with additional findings of increasing stability over time (Brooker et al., 2021; Morales et al., 2022). In this way, an element of data collection that is often considered noise may in fact be consistent with expectations for healthy, developing population and may be usefully considered rather than discarded.…”

“…To the benefit of novice and experienced ERP researchers, they address the benefits and drawbacks for each approach and a demonstration of one possible tool that can be used for latency jitter correction. Similarly, Vincent and colleagues (2021) compared stability across four different metrics of alpha asymmetry in infants from 5 months to 3 years of age. They report differences in the putative stability of alpha asymmetry from infancy to toddlerhood based on the method of calculation used and note the potential utility of different strategies across different contexts.…”

“…Several papers in this issue advance that effort, but additional issues remain. For example, given variation in developmental trajectories and the presence of moderating variables, stability over time can be quite low for both EEG (Brooker et al., 2017; Vincent et al., 2021) and ERP (Brooker, 2018) measures. Just how low is acceptable or useful in studies of trait‐like development remains unclear.…”

Frontal Alpha Asymmetry in Response to Stressor Moderates the Relation Between Parenting Hassles and Child Externalizing Problems

“…In a study of preschool children, inattentive and shy temperamental dispositions predicted externalizing problems, and higher inattentiveness strengthened the relationship between parenting hassles and externalizing problems ( Coplan et al, 2003 ). Frontal alpha asymmetry (FAA), an EEG measure of hemispheric asymmetry in the activity of the prefrontal cortex under resting or emotionally challenging conditions, is a potential demand characteristic that is also a marker of children’s temperamental dispositions ( Howarth et al, 2016 ; Anaya et al, 2021 ; Vincent et al, 2021 ). However, FAA has not yet been studied as a factor that might moderate the association between parenting daily hassles and children’s externalizing problems.…”