“…Support vector machines, in particular, are robust to the inclusion of noninformative channels, hence avoiding the arbitrary selection of channels of interest (McGettigan et al, 2012). Although fNIRS has fewer channels compared to fMRI voxels, multivariate analysis methods have been used successfully in studies in both adults and children (Bogler, Mehnert, Steinbrink, & Haynes, 2014;Gu et al, 2018;Heger, Mutter, Herff, Putze, & Schultz, 2013;Hosseini et al, 2011;Ichikawa et al, 2014;Luu & Chau, 2008;Misawa, Shimokawa, & Hirobayashi, 2014). Applying MVPA to infant fNIRS data is challenging given the low trial numbers, variability, and noise in the data.…”