Studies
The participants set a date and time with the researcher to carry out the study.
Upon arrival at the laboratory (how to get there) the participant is received by the experimenter who accompanies them to the testing room, explains the purpose of the study and the details of the procedure to be followed. If the participant agrees, they sign an "informed consent" and proceed with the test. It should be noted that: from the control area the experimenter accompanies the participant at all times and the participant can at any time decide to end the test.
The types of studies we carry out in our laboratories are:
- Behavioral: where participants respond with a keyboard or a microphone to the visual and / or auditory stimuli that are presented through a computer screen and speakers or headphones.
- Electroencephalogram EEG: In this type of study, the brain’s electrical activity is recorded in a non-intrusive way while the participant, seated comfortably, performs an activity such as: listening to stimuli, naming images ... To be able to record brain activity the participant is fitted with a "helmet" with 32 or 64 electrodes, which allow a system to capture, in the form of waves, the activity of each of the electrodes.
- Follow the eyes / gaze: These studies record, in a non-invasive and objective way, how a person looks at a scene or an image, recording where the attention is fixed, for how long and the trajectory of the visual exploration.
The eye-tracker, the equipment used in these studies, is composed of infrared lights and cameras that record the way in which the lights are reflected on the eye and, applying digital image processing and trigonometry, allows us to know the position of the eye, the fixation of the gaze and the size of the pupil. - Multisensory: In these studies, participants receive different stimuli: tactile, visual and / or auditory at the same time or slightly out of phase, and we measure how small variations in the presentation of stimuli influence the responses of the subjects.
- Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS): In these studies a stimulation of the cerebral cortex is performed using small, highly focused magnetic impulses. These impulses achieve the induction of small electrical currents that, indirectly, influence neuronal activity. To be able to obtain results and ensure that the technique is effective, generally, it is required that the participants have a cerebral magnetic resonance.
