This investigation was concerned with the effects of electromyographic biofeedback on the muscular tension of patients diagnosed in a particular personality state. These personality traits were manic, agitated, depressed, and a comparison group.

An important clinical research question to be answered in the field of neurofeedback (NF) is whether amplitude training affects connectivity between cortical sites. This study hypothesizes that, following NF amplitude training, there will be a difference in QEEG coherence and phase measures between NF training done using referential montages and using sequential montages. The study examined case files of 16 adult clients from the University of North Texas Neurotherapy Lab who had received NF training that consisted of either referential or sequential placement amplitude training (no coherence training) and who received both pre- and post- treatment QEEGs. Sixty-eight percent of the cases consisted of referential placements, while 34% of the cases consisted of sequential placements. All frontal site phase and coherence abnormal z-scores at pre-treatment were converted to deviation scores and compared by general linear model analysis of variance to post-treatment deviation scores. Effect size r-values and eta square values indicate that differences between referential and sequential electrode placements after NF amplitude training are moderately high. This study shows that referential placements tend to increase phase scores and decrease coherence scores, while sequential placements tend to decrease phase scores and increase coherence scores.

This study investigated the use of electromyographic feedback in regulating the frequency of part-word repetitions. Two adult stutterers, one female (Subject A) and one male (Subject B) were employed. The frequency of part-word repetitions during baserate, EMG uV raising, and EMG uV lowering conditions was assessed for Subject B. As hypothesized, results indicate that there was a notable decline in the frequency of part-word repetitions during the EMG uV lowering sessions. However, contrary to the second hypothesis, (i.e. that an increase in EMG uV would correspond with an increase in part-word repetitions) there was also a decline in the frequency of part-word repetitions during the EMG raising sessions.

This experiment attempted to study the effectiveness of biofeedback training on an individual's peak performance while performing a stress-provoking task. In a between subjects design 30 individual college students were divided into 2 groups. One group received auditory biofeedback and relaxation training, and the other group received no training. Both groups met the researcher for 1 hour a week for seven weeks. During each session the participant completed a ten-minute Competition and Coaction (C & C) computer software program (Shea, 1992). The biofeedback equipment recorded the physiological state of each of the participants while he/she performed the C & C task. Both groups' physiological values and C & C scores were compared using the SPSS software. The biofeedback group had statistically lower stress values than the non-biofeedback group (Schwartz, 1995). There was no statistical difference between the 2 groups' C & C scores. The STAI Y-1 and Y-2 anxiety inventories were given to each of the participants at the 1st and 7th session to examine the anxiety differences between the 2 groups. There were no statistical differences between the 2 groups' STAI scores. This study's findings show that individuals can be taught to lower their stress response while performing a computer task.

This experiment examined the effects of EMG biofeedback and relaxation training as compared with biofeedback alone. The following.dependent variables were examined: manifest anxiety, perceived pain, perceived relaxation, EMG activity, and locus of control. Back pain patients were assigned to one of two treatment groups. Group 1 was treated with both EMG biofeedback and relaxation training. Group 2 was treated with biofeedback alone. It appears that both biofeedback combined with progressive relaxation and biofeedback training alone are effective in lowering muscle activity and perceived pain, and in increasing perceived relaxation. However, from the results of this study, it is impossible to conclude that one treatment method is more effective than the other. Suggestions for future research are discussed.

No description available.

No description available.

Ten college students serving as volunteer subjects were randomly assigned to one of two groups. One group received EMG biofeedback training using feedback from the frontalis muscle only, and the other group received EMG biofeedback training using feedback from several muscle sites. It was hypothesized that subjects who were given EMG biofeedback relaxation training sequentially from several muscle sites would be able to lower EMG levels at these sites to a significantly greater degree than subjects who received EMG biofeedback relaxation training using feedback from the frontalis muscle only. Both groups were given a pre-training baseline session, nine training sessions, and a post-training baseline session. Comparing the mean pre- training and post- training baseline EMG levels of each group at each muscle site using t-tests showed that there was no significant reduction of EMG muscle activity at any monitored muscle site due to either frontalis feedback training only or multiple muscle feedback training. This failure to obtain significant training effects may have resulted from using college students as subjects since they were not trying to relieve a stress related disorder and they exhibited low initial baseline EMG levels. It is suggested that future research on the generalization of EMG biofeedback training be done using a clinical population having elevated EMG levels.

This study compared biofeedback assisted cue-controlled skin temperature training with skin temperature biofeedback training in subjects attempting to raise the digital skin temperature of their dominant hand. In addition to classification according to training, the subjects were also divided into two diagnostic groups. One group was composed of subjects with cold hands and Raynaud's disease while the other group consisted of nonRaynaud's disease cold handed subjects. The treatment and diagnostic groups were compared along the dimensions of amount of posttreatment digital skin temperature change and degree of generalization of digital skin temperature control to a cold room challenge task.

This study investigates the status of biofeedback treatment and locus of control (LOC) affiliation on the reduction of tension headache. Three LOC groups designated as internals, powerful-other externals and chance externals (using Wallston and Wallston's, 1978, Multidimensional Health Locus of Control Scale) were administered an eight week electromyogram (EMG) frontalis muscle biofeedback training program using an Autogen 1700 biofeedback unit. Subjects were 12 female and four male undergraduate students who had a history of tension headache. Results indicated no significant difference in frontalis muscle tension between the beginning and end of sessions in either a biofeedback or self-control condition for any of the LOC groups. Further, there was no significant difference among LOC groups in ability to reduce muscle tension in either the training or self-control condition. Finally, neither biofeedback training nor LOC groups were significant predictors of headache reduction. Extreme within-group variability and small sample size affected study findings and these and other implications for future research are discussed.