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Increased left hemisphere connectivity during fine finger movements in pianists
Söhngen, Y. (2022) Increased left hemisphere connectivity during fine finger movements in pianists.
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| Abstract: | This paper is a new analysis of an existing dataset that aims to explore if previously observed behavioral differences between pianists and controls that an earlier ERP-related analysis could not explain can be explained with the help of EEG-Connectivity. In the dataset, pianists took significantly less time to perform fine finger movements and made fewer mistakes. The connectivity analysis focused on the alpha and beta bands, frequently described as the primary bandwidths that display changes during a movement's active part. The analysis found that pianists (n=12) had higher connectivity between the sensors FCz and C3 than controls (n=12) during the execution with both hands in the lower alpha band. Based on the behavioral differences that were previously found in this dataset and the connectivity pattern, it is suggested in this paper that pianists developed a left-hemispheric specialization that gives them an advantage in performing finger movements. Furthermore, since alpha waves are especially connected to inhibition, it seems likely that the specialization of the left hemisphere is for inhibiting unwanted finger movements. In conclusion, this paper found higher left-hemispheric connectivity (between FCz and C3) in pianists than in non-musicians, which is hypothesized to be showing a left-hemispheric specialization to inhibit unwanted finger movements in pianists. This specialization could explain the better performance since better inhibition could mean fewer wrong keys are pressed accidentally. |
| Item Type: | Essay (Master) |
| Faculty: | BMS: Behavioural, Management and Social Sciences |
| Subject: | 77 psychology |
| Programme: | Psychology MSc (66604) |
| Link to this item: | https://purl.utwente.nl/essays/90526 |
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