**1. Introduction**

Academic learning requires a person to interact with other individuals [1]. Depression and anxiety may be good predictors of learning disabilities and academic underachievement [2] probably because the emotional state is a marker for an individual's ability to manage their psychosocial interactions [3]. There are numerous examples of brilliant persons with high intelligence quotients who do not do anything meaningful with their intelligence because of difficulties with psychosocial interactions. Such persons may be deficient in emotional intelligence or balance [4]. For medical students, overall health and wellness appear to be correlated with their

academic performance [5]. Academic achievement in medical school is a good example of a situation wherein stress can unmask latent mental or emotional imbalances which, in turn, lead to academic underachievement or failure [6]. Previous studies from our laboratory suggest that quantitative electroencephalographic (qEEG) measures of theta–beta ratio (TBR) and frontal alpha asymmetry (fAA) may be useful neurophysiological correlates of academic achievement and negative perceptions of psychosocial interactions in medical students [7–10]. TBR is reported to be a qEEG marker for a person's capacity to focus their attention on salient information [11]. Between a control human structure–function course introductory exam and a comparison structure–function exam on different topics, we have reported significant increments in voltage within the standard theta and beta frequencies combined with a significant decrement in TBR [7]. These findings were associated with no significant changes in the magnitude of voltages in the standard delta and alpha bandwidths and, therefore, suggest an overall increase in attention control for our pilot study cohort. Frontal (F8–F7) alpha asymmetry (fAA) is reported to be a qEEG marker for negative emotions. In our pilot study cohort, we previously reported a significant negative correlation between the magnitude of F8–F7 frontal alpha asymmetry and "depressed" score on an individualized self-inventory (ISI) of the cohort's perceptions of their psychosocial interactions, which purported to be indicative of negative perceptions of themselves [10].

This chapter is intended as a primer for neurophysiological evaluation of qEEG brain maps and demonstrates how qEEG technology is becoming a useful tool for probing the human brain. The relatively inexpensive qEEG brain maps showing electrical activity are analogous to the much more expensive functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) maps; therefore, validating qEEG as the "poor man's" fMRI. We will demonstrate the utility of qEEG by interpreting the qEEG maps of individual medical students exhibiting the highest and lowest TBRs and fAAs.
