the root of repairing trust

Authors: Cailee Nelson and Britney Donovan

This week the B-RAD lab compared how different neuroimaging modalities (e.g., electroencephalography, functional near-infrared spectroscopy) are inclusive of minoritized populations, particularly individuals with afro-textured hair. More specifically, our discussion was centered around a recorded webinar from NIRx, a leading functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) company, that presented research findings from a study focused on improving inclusivity of individuals with afro-textured hair.

fNIRS, like electroencephalography (EEG), situates a cap fitted with optodes over a participant’s head. Unlike EEG, however, fNIRS shines infrared light on the scalp which is absorbed by hemoglobin in the brain. Depending on the amount of light absorbed, researchers can determine how certain brain regions were activated during a task.  As such, fNIRS data quality can be impacted by hair thickness and texture, hair color, and skin color. Therefore, individuals with thicker hair, afro-textured hair, and darker skin tones are excluded from fNIRS studies more often than individuals with thinner, lighter hair and lighter skin tones.

The webinar first touched on how fNIRS research under-reports demographic information and reasons for excluding individuals. For example, many studies report excluding participants due to poor data quality which could be problematic if they are systematically excluding participants of color.  Additionally, the webinar demonstrated how interventions like cornrowing hair can improve fNIRS inclusivity for individuals with afro-textured hair.

​As a group, we determined that an overall solution to improving inclusivity in fNIRS research and neuroscience research, more generally, is to design neuroimaging technology in a way that is inclusive of all races and ethnicities. However, given the number of resources it may take to improve technology, researchers should focus on shorter-term solutions they can immediately implement in their own lab (e.g., cornrowing hair, hiring hair specialists, compensating participants for hair care). While these shorter-term solutions may require researchers to extend the amount of time a participant is in a session and how they compensate participants, it is a necessary step toward repairing the rift between science and Black and other minority communities. These solutions will also allow researchers to include more representative samples in their studies—ultimately improving the quality of the science.