Th e paper describes the power spectra of EEG and coherence during the process of metaphorical and non-metaphorical
expressions’ comprehension. Two independent variables with two levels each (“metaphoricity” and “complexity”) were
manipulated (“primary” and “complex” metaphors were presented, as well as metaphors and non-metaphors. Th e stimuli design
was borrowed from C. Lachaud (Lachaud, 2013).
Th e participants were the 34 students of the Department of Psychology of St. Petersburg State University (29 women), mean
age 21 years. We used 19 monopolar leads EEG (10–20).
Th e main hypotheses were: 1) functional brain state during metaphors’ comprehension diff ers from the functional brain
state during non-metaphors’ comprehension, 2) functional brain state during complex metaphors’ comprehension diff ers from
the functional brain state during primary metaphors’ comprehension.
Overall, the hypotheses were confi rmed. It can be argued that complex metaphors’ comprehension is mostly accompanied by
an increase of coherence in the left hemisphere, and non-metaphors’ comprehension is mostly accompanied by a slight increase
of coherence in the right hemisphere. We also observed the alteration of slow and high frequency bands activity in the process
of comprehension of the verbal expressions. Th e functional brain state during the process of primary and complex metaphors’
comprehension does diff er: the latter involves less brain resources taking into consideration the task of the current study. Th is
could be revealed via the increase in the power spectra. At the same time the complex metaphors comprehension is accompanied
with the larger amount of coherence in general, and in particular — in the increase of interhemispheric connections. Primary
metaphors comprehension involves frontal lobes coherence increase.