Mapping EEG Alpha Activity: Assessing Concentration Levels during Player Experience in Virtual Reality Video Games

Gomez Romero Borquez, Jesus Alberto; Del-Puerto-Flores, J. Alberto; Del-Valle-Soto, Carolina

doi:10.3390/fi15080264

Mapping EEG Alpha Activity: Assessing Concentration Levels during Player Experience in Virtual Reality Video Games

Journal

Future Internet

ISSN

1999-5903

Date Issued

2023

Author(s)

Type

Resource Types::text::journal::journal article

DOI

10.3390/fi15080264

URL

https://scripta.up.edu.mx/handle/20.500.12552/4949

Abstract

This work presents a study in which the cognitive concentration levels of participants were evaluated using electroencephalogram (EEG) measures while they were playing three different categories of virtual reality (VR) video games: Challenging Puzzlers, Casual Games, and Exergames. Thirty-one voluntary participants between the ages of 17 and 35 were recruited. EEG data were processed to analyze the brain’s electrical activity in the alpha band. The values of power spectral density (PSD) and individual alpha frequency (IAF) of each participant were compared to detect changes that could indicate a state of concentration. Additionally, frontal alpha asymmetry (FAA) between the left and right hemispheres of the brain was compared. The results showed that the Exergame category of video games elicited higher average cognitive concentration in players, as indicated by the IAF and FAA values. These findings contribute to understanding the cognitive effects of VR video games and their implications for designing and developing VR experiences to enhance cognitive abilities.