Psychophysiology
Psychophysiology examines the relationship between physiological responses and the underlying psychological (mental) processes.
Psychophysiological measurements offer a direct approach to cognitive and emotional processes. In contrast to other methods in psychological research (e.g. interviews or questionnaires), these measurements are objective. That is, the examined person is usually not able to voluntarily manipulate any results. Additionally, psychophysiological measurements can deliver insights into automatic and unconscious processes. In contrast to many methods used by physicians, psychophysiological recording is non-invasive, since physiological signals are received through electrodes, attached to the surface of the body. As a result, recording is neither uncomfortable nor painful.
Examples for somatic responses being related to psychological processes:
- Electrical brain activity / brainwaves (measurable by the electroencephalogram)
- Cardiovascular activity (measurable by electrocardiogram and skin blood-flow by means of plethysmography)
- Electrodermal activity (galvanic skin response) as an expression of the activity of the sweat glands, observable by skin conductance measurements
- Fine-grained tension differences within various muscles, such as facial or neck muscles (recordable by electromyogram
In former times, psychophysiological measurements could only be performed in specially shielded laboratories. Modern equipment allows for recording under less restrained conditions and is thus more suitable for practical applications, such as product evaluation and neurofeedback as offered by psyrecon
