Electroencephalogram Recording in Humans
This chapter provides an elementary introduction to the theory and practical application of electroencephalogram (EEG) recording for the purpose of studying neurocognitive processes. It is aimed at readers who have had little or no experience in EEG data collection, and would like to gain a better understanding of scientific papers employing this methodology or start their own EEG experiment. We begin with a definition of EEG, and a summary of the strengths and limitations of EEG-based techniques. Following this is a description of the basic theory concerning the cellular mechanisms underlying EEG, as well as two types of data generated by EEG recording. We then present a brief summary of the equipment necessary for EEG data acquisition and important considerations for presentation software. Finally, we provide an overview of the protocol for data acquisition and processing, as well as methods for quantifying both EEG and event-related potentials data.