Using phase shift Granger causality to measure directed connectivity in EEG recordings.

Abstract Cortical activity is maintained by neural networks working in tandem. Electroencephalographic (EEG) signals across two sites are said to be coherent with one another when they show consistent phase relations. However, periods of desynchrony beginning with a shift in phase relations are a necessary aspect of information processing. Traditional measures of EEG coherence lack the temporal resolution required to divide the relationship between two signals into periods of synchrony and desynchrony and are unable to specify the direction of information transmission (i.e., which site is leading and which is lagging), a goal referred to as directed connectivity. In this article, the authors introduce a novel method of measuring directed connectivity by applying the framework of Granger causality to phase shift events which are estimated with high temporal resolution. A simulation study is used to verify that the proposed method is able to identify connectivity patterns in situations similar to EEG record...