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The (un)connected brain. A preliminary investigation of effective connectivity as a measure of mental fatigue

Poster Session A - Saturday, March 7, 2026, 3:00 – 5:00 pm PST, Fairview/Kitsilano Ballrooms

Ben Rattray¹ (ben.rattray@canberra.edu.au), Tomasz Ligeza², Jelle Habay³, Joe Northey¹, Kristy Martin¹, Andrew Flood¹, Miroslaw Wyczesany², Bart Roelands³; ¹University of Canberra, Australia, ²Jagiellonian University, Poland, ³Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Belgium

Mental fatigue (MF) is omnipresent in society and can impair productivity and safety in various settings, yet its objective assessment, and our understanding of the phenomena is limited. Our aim in this pilot investigation was to evaluate if electroencephalography (EEG) measures of effective connectivity within the frontoparietal network are disrupted after a prolonged cognitive task. Data from 82 participants (40 females, 33.5±8.6y) who participated in a larger randomised crossover trial, consisting of a familiarization, intervention and control visit were used for this analysis. MF was induced using a 45 min Stroop task, while the control condition consisted of a documentary of the same duration. A 32-electrode EEG was captured during a pre/post GoNoGo task. Effective connectivity in the theta band was estimated using directed transfer function between F3, F4, P3, and P4 electrodes, as a proxy for the frontoparietal network. ANOVA’s were conducted to evaluate changes in connectivity and cognitive performance from pre to post in control and intervention conditions. Of the 24 potential connectivity directions analysed, four revealed significant interaction effects with connectivity increasing from pre- to post-test in the control but remaining stable or decreasing in the mental fatigue condition. These results mirrored the worsening of Go stimuli reaction time/accuracy and MVAS values from pre to post in the intervention group, with no specific changes to these variables in the control group. This pilot work provides initial evidence that mental fatigue impacts frontoparietal networks, and that effective connectivity may provide a useful objective marker of fatigue.

Topic Area: EXECUTIVE PROCESSES: Monitoring & inhibitory control