We investigated event-related potentials (ERPs) elicited by chord changes using a custom-built electroencephalography-based decoding system. An oddball paradigm was employed to examine how harmonic structures influence auditory deviance detection, extending the previous work on pure tones. To quantify the neural responses, we used a discriminant score based on linear discriminant analysis, offering an objective measure of response strength. Experiments with healthy adults revealed that pitch changes in minor chords, particularly from lower to higher ranges, elicit the strongest ERP responses, suggesting a saliency effect of pitch height. Mode changes (e.g., major to minor) showed greater variability, possibly because of individual differences in perception and musical background. Importantly, compared to single tones, chords engage higher-level auditory processing, owing to their harmonic complexity. This study demonstrates the utility of ERP-based measures for investigating neural responses to structured auditory stimuli and highlights how harmonic features contribute to attentional modulation in music perception.

This study investigated the influence of cultural environmental scents on individual perceptions, and constructed professional aromatic proficiency test for the Chinese population. Familiarity and intensity of aroma are the human perception metrics that would influence the hedonic dimensions. Experiment 1 explored both cultural and gender dimensions, where 30 participants rated both Chinese and Western aromas on their perceived familiarity and intensity of the aromas. The findings revealed a preference for culturally familiar and low-intensity aromas, with a different perception on a common Western aroma scale. Both genders were found to favor Chinese aromas that are perceived to be feminine. Experiment 2 tested the differences in aroma identification among 32 participants, which highlighted a gap between the perceived and actual aromatic proficiency. The findings contributed to the understanding of aroma perception in China, offering valuable insights for developing culturally dependent aroma marketing strategies targeted at the younger Chinese consumers.

This study aimed to determine the EOG interface that can be used for ALS, which can be used without preparation. Thus, eye movement detection was proposed using the RMS of the active threshold (AT) and K-NN methods. The AT method is dynamically performed using the RMS. In this study the combined use of both methods was described. Experiments on waveform detection accuracy were conducted on 19 healthy subjects between the ages of 20 and 29 years. The hit rate of the proposed method was 94%, and the false alarm rate was 9%. Next, we calculated the information transfer rate (ITR), a popular evaluation index for BCI. Using the proposed method, the ITR was bits/min. A P300 Speller is one of the bio-signal interfaces, that its ITR is 11 bits/min. Therefore, the ITR of the proposed method was higher than that of other bio-signal interfaces. Furthermore, the proposed method has shown great application potential as an interface.

Sense of agency refers to the perception that one is the initiator of an action. The impact of prediction error on sense of agency has not been thoroughly explored. Sense of agency in machine operation is influenced by noise; thus, uncertainty cannot be overlooked. Our study aimed to elucidate the effects of prediction error and uncertainty on sense of agency. Previous study has shown that prediction error and uncertainty interact to influence the sense of agency. However, the interaction has not been examined in continuous operations. In the steering task, prediction error was manipulated through expected delays, and prediction uncertainty was altered by the variance in delays. Our results revealed an interaction between prediction error and uncertainty. Thus, sense of agency is preserved with large uncertainty when facing large prediction errors. This finding suggests that precision-weighted prediction errors significantly affect sense of agency.

Healthcare information technology (IT) is expected to improve the cost-efficiency of national healthcare. Meanwhile, cross-border M&A are increasingly active in the IT field. In this context, this study addressed the country-of-origin (COO) and COO fit between acquiring and acquired firms regarding cross-border acquisition (CBA) of IT vendors. A unified theory of acceptance and use of technology was applied for psychological assessment. Through two studies based on 308 samples, the data showed significant associations of tech-related COO with individuals’ acceptance of healthcare IT. The results implied CBA is a psychological risk driver in healthcare IT development, suggesting that medical practitioners and policymakers should consider users’ psychological dimension, while they tend to focus on the medical effects. Few researchers have reported on the relationships between CBA and the use of healthcare IT from a psychological approach. Thus, this research is relevant to the practical, social, and theoretical fields.

Mode (major/minor) and tempo are key features shaping emotional responses in Western music, such as classical music loved worldwide. This study examined their independent and combined effects using “Sister Pieces,” systematically modified classical compositions designed to isolate the pure effects of mode and tempo by preserving melody and other elements while varying only these two. Nineteen participants rated 16 stimuli across 23 emotional descriptors. Multiple regression analysis reproduced established associations-mode with valence (e.g., brightness), tempo with arousal (e.g., activeness)-and also revealed cross-dimensional effects: mode influenced arousal, and tempo affected valence. Both dimensions shaped several emotions and did not necessarily align with either axis, consistent with the circular structure of Russell’s valence-arousal model. These findings highlight the utility of Sister Pieces for isolating musical effects with high precision. This approach offers a structured method for psychological and neuroscientific research on affective responses to music, including cross-cultural comparisons.