TY - JOUR
T1 - Periodic and aperiodic contributions to theta‐beta ratios across adulthood
AU - Finley, Anna J.
AU - Angus, Douglas J.
AU - Reekum, Carien M. van
AU - Davidson, Richard J.
AU - Schaefer, Stacey M.
N1 - Funding Information:
The MIDUS Neuroscience Project was funded by: National Institute on Aging (P01‐AG020166, U19‐AG051426) and the Waisman Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Research Center (U54‐HD090256) awarded by the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development. Anna Finley was supported by funding from the National Institute of Mental Health (F32‐MH126537). Carien van Reekum was supported by funding from the European Community's Seventh Framework Programme under grant agreement n°208,572 and by a 2020 Fellowship granted by the University of Reading. Dr. Richard J. Davidson is the founder, president, and serves on the board of directors for the nonprofit organization, Healthy Minds Innovations, Inc. In addition, Dr. Davidson served on the board of directors for the Mind & Life Institute from 1992 to 2017
Funding Information:
The MIDUS Neuroscience Project was funded by: National Institute on Aging (P01-AG020166, U19-AG051426) and the Waisman Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Research Center (U54-HD090256) awarded by the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development. Anna Finley was supported by funding from the National Institute of Mental Health (F32-MH126537). Carien van Reekum was supported by funding from the European Community's Seventh Framework Programme under grant agreement n°208,572 and by a 2020 Fellowship granted by the University of Reading. Dr. Richard J. Davidson is the founder, president, and serves on the board of directors for the nonprofit organization, Healthy Minds Innovations, Inc. In addition, Dr. Davidson served on the board of directors for the Mind & Life Institute from 1992 to 2017
Publisher Copyright:
© 2022 The Authors. Psychophysiology published by Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of Society for Psychophysiological Research.
PY - 2022/11
Y1 - 2022/11
N2 - The ratio of fronto-central theta (4–7 Hz) to beta oscillations (13–30 Hz), known as the theta-beta ratio, is negatively correlated with attentional control, reinforcement learning, executive function, and age. Although theta-beta ratios have been found to decrease with age in adolescents and young adults, theta has been found to increase with age in older adults. Moreover, age-related decrease in individual alpha peak frequency and flattening of the 1/f aperiodic component may artifactually inflate the association between theta-beta ratio and age. These factors lead to an incomplete understanding of how theta-beta ratio varies across the lifespan and the extent to which variation is due to a conflation of aperiodic and periodic activity. We conducted a partially preregistered analysis examining the cross-sectional associations between age and resting canonical fronto-central theta-beta ratio, individual alpha peak frequency, and aperiodic component (n = 268; age 36–84, M = 55.8, SD = 11.0). Age was negatively associated with theta-beta ratios, individual peak alpha frequencies, and the aperiodic exponent. The correlation between theta-beta ratios and age remained after controlling for individual peak alpha frequencies, but was nonsignificant when controlling for the aperiodic exponent. Aperiodic exponent fully mediated the relationship between theta-beta ratio and age, although beta remained significantly associated with age after controlling for theta, individual peak alpha, and aperiodic exponent. Results replicate previous observations and show age-related decreases in theta-beta ratios are not due to age-related decrease in individual peak alpha frequencies but primarily explained by flattening of the aperiodic component with age.
AB - The ratio of fronto-central theta (4–7 Hz) to beta oscillations (13–30 Hz), known as the theta-beta ratio, is negatively correlated with attentional control, reinforcement learning, executive function, and age. Although theta-beta ratios have been found to decrease with age in adolescents and young adults, theta has been found to increase with age in older adults. Moreover, age-related decrease in individual alpha peak frequency and flattening of the 1/f aperiodic component may artifactually inflate the association between theta-beta ratio and age. These factors lead to an incomplete understanding of how theta-beta ratio varies across the lifespan and the extent to which variation is due to a conflation of aperiodic and periodic activity. We conducted a partially preregistered analysis examining the cross-sectional associations between age and resting canonical fronto-central theta-beta ratio, individual alpha peak frequency, and aperiodic component (n = 268; age 36–84, M = 55.8, SD = 11.0). Age was negatively associated with theta-beta ratios, individual peak alpha frequencies, and the aperiodic exponent. The correlation between theta-beta ratios and age remained after controlling for individual peak alpha frequencies, but was nonsignificant when controlling for the aperiodic exponent. Aperiodic exponent fully mediated the relationship between theta-beta ratio and age, although beta remained significantly associated with age after controlling for theta, individual peak alpha, and aperiodic exponent. Results replicate previous observations and show age-related decreases in theta-beta ratios are not due to age-related decrease in individual peak alpha frequencies but primarily explained by flattening of the aperiodic component with age.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85132549129&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1111/psyp.14113
DO - 10.1111/psyp.14113
M3 - Article
SN - 0048-5772
VL - 59
JO - Psychophysiology
JF - Psychophysiology
IS - 11
M1 - e14113
ER -
