Advances in mobile and wireless technology have expanded the scope of electrodermal research. Since traditional electrodermal measurement sites are not always suitable for laboratory research and are rarely appropriate for ambulatory measurements, there is a need to explore and contrast alternate measurement locations. We evaluated bilateral electrodermal activity (EDA) from five measurement sites (fingers, feet, wrists, shoulders, and calves). In a counterbalanced, randomized, within‐subjects design study, participants (N = 115) engaged in a 4‐min‐long breathing exercise and were exposed to emotionally laden and neutral stimuli. High within‐subject correlations were found between the EDA measured from fingers bilaterally (r = .89), between the left fingers and both feet (r = .72). Moderate correlations were found between EDA measured from the left fingers and wrists (r = .30 and r = .33), low correlations between the left fingers and the shoulders (r = −.03 and r = −.06) or calves (r = .05 and r = .14). Response latency was the shortest on the fingers while it was the longest on the lower body. Short response windows would miss some of the responses from the palmar surfaces and a substantial number from other evaluated locations. The fingers and the feet are the most reliable locations to measure from, followed by the wrists. We suggest setting site‐specific response windows for different measurement locations. An investigation of repeatability showed that within‐subject correlations, response frequencies, response amplitudes show a similar pattern from the first measurement time to a later one.
Increasing number of students struggle with test anxiety. Evidence based, online, affordable, and accessible solutions for test anxiety are scarce. The purpose of this study was to evaluate an online delivered, assisted intervention (REST-TA) in a randomized controlled trial.Participants (N = 178) were recruited through a university course and were randomized into a treatment group and waitlist control group. The treatment group completed an 8-week program which consisted of relaxation, skill training and cognitive behavioral methods. Both treatment and control group filled out a battery of questionnaires (TAMC-SF, STAI, DASS, MBI-SS, Resilience) pre and post-treatment.According to our results there was a significant reduction in test anxiety between pre and post intervention. We found a significant increase in trait anxiety, negative affectivity, and burnout in the control group, while no change or slight decrease in these scores in the treatment group. Our analyses also yielded a significant increase in resilience scores in the treatment group while resilience scores did not change for the control group.We conclude that REST-TA was successful at reducing test anxiety. Moreover, it helped to maintain the subjective well-being of students, while increasing resilience. Online solutions are a scalable option for universities to implement, therefore programs such as REST-TA could be of great help to improve the mental health of university students.
Hypnosis has proven to be an effective treatment in disorders that affect the autonomic nervous system (ANS). However, the studies investigating the nature of its effect on the ANS have reported contradictory results. Measurement of electrodermal activity (EDA) is an objective way to assess the activity of the sympathetic branch of the ANS. We aim to elucidate the effects of hypnosis on EDA. Here, we report the results of two studies, both investigating the psychophysiological effects of hypnosis.In the first experiment, subjects engaged in an HGSHS:A group hypnosis session to measure their hypnotizability. EDA was measured bilaterally from their wrists. We found a significant reduction in EDA levels and the number of nonspecific responses during the hypnotic induction phase. This effect was observed in all three hypnotizability groups-high, medium, and low hypnotizables. A three-way interaction confirmed that EDA patterns on the left and right sides were characteristically different in these three groups. Left-side dominance was typical in high hypnotizables, whereas low hypnotizables were characteristically right-sided. EDA levels of
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