Automated Anxiety Detection System Integrating a Brain-Computer Interface for Neurofeedback Applications.

Overview

1. Information Technology Department, College of Computer and Information Sciences, King Saud University, Riyadh 11543, Saudi Arabia
2. Computer Science Department, College of Computer and Information Sciences, Imam Mohammad Ibn Saud Islamic University (IMSIU), Riyadh 11432, Saudi Arabia

Abstract

Anxiety disorders pose an increasing challenge to the mental health of individuals, particularly in regions with limited healthcare access. This study investigated the potential of integrating a brain–computer interface for processing electroencephalography (EEG) data with deep learning models to accurately classify anxious and non-anxious states. In the first phase, a convolutional neural network (CNN) was developed and validated on the public GAMEEMO dataset, achieving a classification accuracy of 95.72%. In the second phase, we conducted a separate experimental validation with seven participants (aged 18–60 years) using a within-subjects design. The protocol comprised a custom Stroop test to elicit acute cognitive stress and anxiety-related arousal, followed by a guided 4–7–8 breathing exercise to induce relaxation. EEG data from this experiment were used to classify anxious versus non-anxious states with the same CNN architecture after domain adaptation. On this self-collected dataset, the CNN achieved an accuracy of 86.58%. These results demonstrate proof-of-concept transferability while highlighting the performance gap between controlled benchmark data and real-world, small-sample recordings. The deep learning model can subsequently be coupled with neurofeedback techniques to manage anxiety levels. Overall, the findings support the potential of the developed automated system for detecting stress-induced anxious states, with possible future integration into neurofeedback-based management systems.

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Data

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Data Availability Statement

The project code can be found on Google Collab at: https://colab.research.google.com/drive/1aCKfhTosbYnPZmgZFYYJyDxCeREygdRT?usp=sharing (accessed on 3 June 2026), https://colab.research.google.com/drive/1bWge17lZZZBqpqy--YjyLY8GKNiStDup?usp=sharing (accessed on 3 June 2026), https://colab.research.google.com/drive/18uQ_00ynr0mOT1D6NhArwoxO9RwavTNY?usp=sharing (accessed on 3 June 2026).

Reproduced under the paper's license (CC BY), from the paper cited above.

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Version 1, 27 September 2026: the first record

Recorded: type, language, journal, volume, issue, pages, dates, 2 authors, 5 keywords, 13 MeSH terms, 1 funder, 37 references.

Cite

This paper

Aldayel, M., & Al-Nafjan, A. (2026). Automated Anxiety Detection System Integrating a Brain-Computer Interface for Neurofeedback Applications. Sensors (Basel, Switzerland), 26(13), 4004. https://doi.org/10.3390/s26134004

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