Muscle Relaxation Training: A Comparison of EMG Biofeedback with Verbal Instruction

The effectiveness of two muscle relaxation modalities, EMG biofeedback and verbal relaxation instruction, were compared. Fifteen college students were assigned to two experimental groups and a non-treatment control condition. Measurements of frontalis muscle activity were taken prior to, during and following three 20-minute training sessions. Results based on a set of non-orthogonal contrasts indicated significant relaxation effects for relaxation instruction when pre-training levels were compared to training completion and post-training levels. Experimental groups differed only at training completion where relaxation instruction was superior to EMG biofeedback. The necessity of careful scientific research of biofeedback techniques to be used in clinical applications was discussed. It was concluded that the two relaxation procedures should be combined to maximize treatment when developing a program for conditioning muscle relaxation