Abstract
Sixteen dextral subjects were presented auditory feedback (FBK) in the form of clicks, the frequency of which was inversely proportional to the surn of the skin resistance levels (SRLs) of the two hands. The FBK was presented in a two-ear changeover paradigm: FBK was presented for 10 minutes to one ear while a white noise masking stimulus was presented to the other; the ears of FBK and masking stimulus presentation were then reversed. Subjects were instructed to decrease the frequency of the clicking. An increase in the SRL of each hand was used as a measure of the activation of the contralateral hemisphere. Significant increases in right-hand SRL (on the order of 40% of baseline) were seen following FBK and obtained regardless of the ear to which FBK was presented, the order of FBK presentation, or the sex of the subjects. Also seen were small-magnitude changes in left-hand SRL, which were not statistically significant. These findings indicate that the left hemisphere was differentially active during acquisition of inhibitory control of SRL in dextrals receiving auditory FBK. Clinical implications of this finding are discussed.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Bell, I. R., & Schwartz, G. E. (1975). Voluntary control and reactivity of human heart rate.Psychophysiology, 12 339–348.
Brenner, J. (1974). Factors influencing the specificity of voluntary cardiac control. In L. V. DiCara (Ed.),Limbic and autonomic nervous system research (pp. 335–368). New York, Plenum.
Brown, B. (1975). Biological awareness as a state of consciousness.Journal of Altered States of Consciousness, 2 1–14.
Bucy, P. C., & Pribram, K. H. (1943). Localized sweating as part of a localized convulsive seizure.Archives of Psychiatry and Neurology, 50 456–461.
Davidson, R. J., & Schwartz, G. E. (1976). Patterns of cerebral lateralization during cardiac biofeedback versus the self-regulation of emotion: Sex differences.Psychophysiology, 13 62–68.
Davis, A. E., & Wada, J. A. (1974). Hemispheric asymmetry: Frequency analysis of visual auditory responses to non-verbal stimuli.Electroencephalography and Clinical Neurophysiology, 37 1–19.
Edelberg, R. (1972). Electrical activity of the skin. In M. Greenfield & R. Sternbach (Eds.),Handbook of psychophysiology (pp. 367–418). New York: Holt, Rinehart & Winston.
Galin, D. (1974). The two modes of consciousness and the two halves of the brain. In P. R. Lee, R. E. Ornstein, D. Galin, et al. (Eds.),Symposium on consciousness (pp. 26–52). New York: Viking.
Greenstadt, L., Schuman, M., & Shapiro, D. (1978). Differential effects of left versus right monaural biofeedback for heart rate increase.Psychophysiology, 15 233–238.
Grizzle, J. E. (1965). The two period change-over design and its use in clinical trials.Biometrics, 21 467–480.
Holloway, F., & Parsons, O. (1969). Unilateral brain damage and bilateral skin conductance levels in humans.Psychophysiology, 6 138–148.
Largen, J. W., Mathew, R. J., Dobbins, K., et al. (1978). Skin temperature self-regulation and non-invasive regional cerebral blood flow.Headache, 18 203–210.
Lowry, R. (1977). Active circuits for direct linear measurement of skin resistance and conductance.Psychophysiology, 14 329–331.
Mathew, R. J., Largen, J. W., Dobbins, K., et al. (1980). Biofeedback control of skin temperature and cerebral blood flow in migraine.Headache, 20 19–28.
Parsons, O., & Chandler, P. (1969). Electrodermal indicants of arousal in brain damage: Cross validating findings.Psychophysiology, 5 644–659.
Springer, S. P. (1971). Ear asymmetry in a dichotic detection task.Perception and Psychophysics, 10 239–241.
Wexler, B. E. (1980). Cerebral laterality and psychiatry: A review of the literature.American Journal of Psychiatry, 137 279–291.
Wilcott, R. C. (1967). Cortical control of skin potential, skin resistance and sweating.Psychophysiology, 4 500–518.
Wilcott, R. C. (1969). Electrical stimulation of the anterior cortex and skin potential responses in the cat.Journal of Comparative and Physiological Psychology, 69 465–472.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Bruno, R.L., Auerbach, C. Differential left hemisphere activation during the voluntary control of skin resistance level. Biofeedback and Self-Regulation 8, 505–516 (1983). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00998757
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00998757