Analysis of Equivalent EEG Dipoles During Cooperation and Competition in a Computer Game

In everyday life, our interactions with others could involve both cooperative and competitive states. The computer game was used to study these brain processes where participants would play in different modes of interactions which were competition, cooperation or individual type of game. The independent components analysis was used to separate electroencephalography bioelectrical activity and its localization using specialized software packages. Analysis of equivalent electroencephalography dipoles identified significant differences between game modes in clusters which were located in postcentral gyrus, cuneus and left middle frontal gyrus. The most pronounced alpha and beta desynchronization was revealed during cooperative game in postcentral gyrus and visual cortical areas suggesting that these cortical areas of the brain could be engaged in the processes of understanding the counterpart intentions during the collaborative construction of the figure. The study revealed a significantly larger theta and beta rhythm during competitive game compared to other game modes. The highest theta synchronization found in the competition game could be related to attention processes and the fact that participants need to exert cognitive efforts in order to win the competition. Higher beta spectral power during competition may indicate possible tension during competition with another player and processes of maintaining a cognitive state requiring focused attention and responsiveness.