Personality and the Alpha Rhythm
GEORGE W. FENTON M.B., M.R.C.P., M.R.C.P.E., D.P.M.1 and
LEILA SCOTTON 2
1 Lecturer, Academic Department of Psychiatry, Middlesex Hospital Medical School, London, W.1., Senior Lecturer, Institute of Psychiatry, Maudsley Hospital, London, S.E.5
2 Senior EEG Technician, Academic Department of Psychiatry, Middlesex Hospital Medical School, London, W.1
EEG examinations were performed on 54 healthy subjects. The alpha index, mean alpha amplitude and the alpha blocking responses to serial paired flashes of light were determined for each subject. No significant correlation was found between any of these variables and extraversion or neuroticism as measured by the Maudsley Personality Inventory. The degree of habituation of the alpha blocking responses to the serial visual stimulation was examined in those subjects with high and low extraversion scores. There was no difference in the rate or extent of habituation in these two groups. The previous literature on the relation between personality and the alpha rhythm is reviewed.
Submitted on September 5, 1966
