Effects of SMR and Theta/Beta Neurofeedback on Reaction Times, Spatial Abilities, and Creativity

Abstract

Neurofeedback training (NFT) has been demonstrated to be a useful, inexpensive, nonpharmacological tool in the treatment of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and epilepsy in humans. Different neurofeedback training protocols have been associated with positive effects on performance in sports, creativity, memory, and simple reaction time tasks. During NFT, individuals receive visual or acoustic feedback of their brain oscillations, which are recorded by electroencephalogram (EEG). Through operant conditioning that employs this feedback, the individuals subsequently may be able to modulate the respective oscillations. The most widely used training protocols focus on either the enhancement of the sensorimotor rhythm (SMR; 12–15 Hz) or modulation of the theta/beta ratio (TBR; theta: 4.5–7.5 Hz, beta: 17–21 Hz). We investigated whether healthy individuals are able to learn, within 30 NFT sessions, how to modulate either the SMR (n = 13) or the TBR (n = 14), and whether such modulation can lead to an enh...