Frontal EEG theta/beta ratio during mind wandering episodes

Van Son, Dana; De Blasio, Frances M.; Fogarty, Jack S.; Angelidis, Angelos; Barry, Robert J.; Putman, Peter · 2018 · OpenAlex-citations

DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsycho.2018.11.003

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Summary

This study investigates the relationship between frontal electroencephalographic (EEG) theta/beta ratio (TBR) and mind wandering (MW), aiming to determine if MW episodes explain previously observed links between TBR and attentional control. Prior research established that higher resting-state frontal TBR correlates with lower attentional control and that MW is associated with increased theta and decreased beta power. The authors hypothesized that elevated TBR during MW might drive the average resting-state TBR in individuals with poor attentional control, thereby mediating the TBR–attention relationship. The researchers recruited 54 female participants, of whom 26 remained after excluding those with insufficient clean EEG data. Participants completed the Attentional Control Scale (ACS) and State-Trait Anxiety Inventory, followed by a 10-minute baseline EEG recording and a 40-minute breath-counting task. During the task, participants pressed a button upon realizing their mind had wandered. EEG data were segmented into epochs surrounding these button presses: the period from 8 to 2 seconds before the press represented MW, while the period from 2 to 8 seconds after represented focused attention. Spectral analysis calculated power in delta, theta, alpha, and beta bands, as well as TBR. Results confirmed that frontal TBR was significantly higher during MW episodes than during on-task periods, driven by increased theta power and decreased beta power. Similar patterns were observed for delta (higher during MW) and alpha (lower during MW). Topographical analysis revealed that the TBR effect was strongest in midline regions, particularly posterior areas, rather than exclusively frontal. However, the study found no significant correlation between baseline frontal TBR and self-reported attentional control (ACS), nor between baseline TBR and the magnitude of TBR changes during MW. Consequently, the hypothesis that MW mediates the relationship between TBR and attentional control could not be supported. Additionally, the number of MW episodes did not correlate with TBR changes, suggesting the findings were not confounded by meta-attentional awareness. The study confirms that frontal TBR serves as a reliable marker for shifts between mind wandering and focused attention, reflecting changes in top-down executive control versus bottom-up automatic processing. However, the absence of a baseline TBR–attentional control correlation in this sample contradicts previous literature and prevents validation of the mediation hypothesis. The authors suggest that methodological differences, such as eyes-closed baseline recordings, or the specific introspective nature of the MW detection method, may have influenced these null findings. Future research should explore whether experimenter-controlled probing methods yield different results regarding the link between spontaneous TBR and attentional traits.

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• mind wandering