body posture

EEG patterns under positive/negative body postures and emotion recall tasks

Introduction: Erect and slouch body postures affect access to positive and negative emotions. In an erect sitting posture participants reported more positive emotion and thoughts, while in a slouch position they reported more negative emotion and thoughts. This study explored the electroencephalogram (EEG) patterns under erect and slouch body postures while recalling positive and negative events. Methods: Twenty-eight healthy college students were instructed to sit quietly with their eyes closed for 1 min, and then to sit in erect or slouch postures while recalling happy or depressive events for 1 min each. EEG, with linked-ear references, was recorded at Cz and analyzed under five conditions. Results: There were significantly higher amplitudes of beta2, beta3, and beta4 in a slouch posture while recalling happy events than in an erect posture while recalling happy or depressive events. There was no significant difference between body posture and emotional recall on lowfrequency oscillatory activity. The reaction time was significantly longer to access positive event in the slouched position as compared to the erect position. Conclusion: Evoking positive thoughts in a slouch body position takes more effort or arousal than other positions as indicated by the significant increase in high-frequency oscillatory activities. The implication for cognitive behavior therapy is that body posture matters; clients have more difficulty shifting to evoking a positive emotional state when sitting in a collapsed position than when sitting in an erect position