Leeuwis Nikki, Paas Alissa, Alimardani Maryam
Department of Cognitive Science and Artificial Intelligence, Tilburg University, Tilburg, Netherlands.
Front Hum Neurosci. 2021 Apr 6;15:634748. doi: 10.3389/fnhum.2021.634748. eCollection 2021.
Brain-computer interfaces (BCIs) are communication bridges between a human brain and external world, enabling humans to interact with their environment without muscle intervention. Their functionality, therefore, depends on both the BCI system and the cognitive capacities of the user. Motor-imagery BCIs (MI-BCI) rely on the users' mental imagination of body movements. However, not all users have the ability to sufficiently modulate their brain activity for control of a MI-BCI; a problem known as BCI illiteracy or inefficiency. The underlying mechanism of this phenomenon and the cause of such difference among users is yet not fully understood. In this study, we investigated the impact of several cognitive and psychological measures on MI-BCI performance. Fifty-five novice BCI-users participated in a left- versus right-hand motor imagery task. In addition to their BCI classification error rate and demographics, psychological measures including personality factors, affinity for technology, and motivation during the experiment, as well as cognitive measures including visuospatial memory and spatial ability and Vividness of Visual Imagery were collected. Factors that were found to have a significant impact on MI-BCI performance were Vividness of Visual Imagery, and the personality factors of orderliness and autonomy. These findings shed light on individual traits that lead to difficulty in BCI operation and hence can help with early prediction of inefficiency among users to optimize training for them.
脑机接口（BCIs）是人类大脑与外部世界之间的通信桥梁，使人类能够在无需肌肉干预的情况下与环境进行交互。因此，它们的功能取决于脑机接口系统和用户的认知能力。运动想象脑机接口（MI-BCI）依赖于用户对身体运动的心理想象。然而，并非所有用户都有能力充分调节自己的大脑活动来控制MI-BCI；这是一个被称为脑机接口文盲或低效的问题。这种现象的潜在机制以及用户之间存在这种差异的原因尚未完全了解。在本研究中，我们调查了几种认知和心理测量指标对MI-BCI性能的影响。55名脑机接口新手用户参与了一项左手与右手运动想象任务。除了他们的脑机接口分类错误率和人口统计学数据外，还收集了心理测量指标，包括人格因素、对技术的亲和力以及实验期间的动机，以及认知测量指标，包括视觉空间记忆、空间能力和视觉表象生动性。发现对MI-BCI性能有显著影响的因素是视觉表象生动性，以及条理性和自主性等人格因素。这些发现揭示了导致脑机接口操作困难的个体特征，因此有助于早期预测用户的低效情况，以便为他们优化训练。
