Affective brain-computer interfaces: neuroscientific approaches to affect detection

The brain is involved in the registration, evaluation, and representation of emotional events and in the subsequent planning and execution of appropriate actions. Novel interface technologies—so-called affective brain-computer interfaces (aBCI)—can use this rich neural information, occurring in response to affective stimulation, for the detection of the user’s affective state. This chapter gives an overview of the promises and challenges that arise from the possibility of neurophysiology-based affect detection, with a special focus on electrophysiological signals. After outlining the potential of aBCI relative to other sensing modalities, the reader is introduced to the neurophysiological and neurotechnological background of this interface technology. Potential application scenarios are situated in a general framework of brain-computer interfaces. Finally, the main scientific and technological challenges that have yet to be solved on the way toward reliable affective brain-computer interfaces are discussed.