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Chen J, Zou Y, Jia YC, Ding FY, Luo J, Cheng G. Characteristics of the time processing of adults' strongest sustained attentional bias toward neutral infant faces. J Exp Child Psychol 2024; 243:105928. [PMID: 38643735 DOI: 10.1016/j.jecp.2024.105928] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/30/2023] [Revised: 02/16/2024] [Accepted: 03/20/2024] [Indexed: 04/23/2024]
Abstract
Previous studies have shown that adults exhibit the strongest attentional bias toward neutral infant faces when viewing faces with different expressions at different attentional processing stages due to different stimulus presentation times. However, it is not clear how the characteristics of the temporal processing associated with the strongest effect change over time. Thus, we combined a free-viewing task with eye-tracking technology to measure adults' attentional bias toward infant and adult faces with happy, neutral, and sad expressions of the same face. The results of the analysis of the total time course indicated that the strongest effect occurred during the strategic processing stage. However, the results of the analysis of the split time course revealed that sad infant faces first elicited adults' attentional bias at 0 to 500 ms, whereas the strongest effect of attentional bias toward neutral infant faces was observed at 1000 to 3000 ms, peaking at 1500 to 2000 ms. In addition, women and men had no differences in their responses to different expressions. In summary, this study provides further evidence that adults' attentional bias toward infant faces across stages of attention processing is modulated by expressions. Specifically, during automatic processing adults' attentional bias was directed toward sad infant faces, followed by a shift to the processing of neutral infant faces during strategic processing, which ultimately resulted in the strongest effect. These findings highlight that this strongest effect is dynamic and associated with a specific time window in the strategic process.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jia Chen
- School of Psychology, Guizhou Normal University, Guiyang 550025, China; Center for Rural Children and Adolescents Mental Health Education, Guizhou Normal University, Guiyang 550025, China
| | - Yan Zou
- Department of Women and Children, The Second People's Hospital of Guizhou Province, Guiyang 550000, China
| | - Yun Cheng Jia
- School of National Culture and Cognitive Science, Guizhou Minzu University, Guiyang 550029, China
| | - Fang Yuan Ding
- School of National Culture and Cognitive Science, Guizhou Minzu University, Guiyang 550029, China
| | - Jie Luo
- School of Psychology, Guizhou Normal University, Guiyang 550025, China
| | - Gang Cheng
- School of Psychology, Guizhou Normal University, Guiyang 550025, China; Center for Rural Children and Adolescents Mental Health Education, Guizhou Normal University, Guiyang 550025, China.
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2
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Firth J, Torous J, López-Gil JF, Linardon J, Milton A, Lambert J, Smith L, Jarić I, Fabian H, Vancampfort D, Onyeaka H, Schuch FB, Firth JA. From "online brains" to "online lives": understanding the individualized impacts of Internet use across psychological, cognitive and social dimensions. World Psychiatry 2024; 23:176-190. [PMID: 38727074 PMCID: PMC11083903 DOI: 10.1002/wps.21188] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/13/2024] Open
Abstract
In response to the mass adoption and extensive usage of Internet-enabled devices across the world, a major review published in this journal in 2019 examined the impact of Internet on human cognition, discussing the concepts and ideas behind the "online brain". Since then, the online world has become further entwined with the fabric of society, and the extent to which we use such technologies has continued to grow. Furthermore, the research evidence on the ways in which Internet usage affects the human mind has advanced considerably. In this paper, we sought to draw upon the latest data from large-scale epidemiological studies and systematic reviews, along with randomized controlled trials and qualitative research recently emerging on this topic, in order to now provide a multi-dimensional overview of the impacts of Internet usage across psychological, cognitive and societal outcomes. Within this, we detail the empirical evidence on how effects differ according to various factors such as age, gender, and usage types. We also draw from new research examining more experiential aspects of individuals' online lives, to understand how the specifics of their interactions with the Internet, and the impact on their lifestyle, determine the benefits or drawbacks of online time. Additionally, we explore how the nascent but intriguing areas of culturomics, artificial intelligence, virtual reality, and augmented reality are changing our understanding of how the Internet can interact with brain and behavior. Overall, the importance of taking an individualized and multi-dimensional approach to how the Internet affects mental health, cognition and social functioning is clear. Furthermore, we emphasize the need for guidelines, policies and initiatives around Internet usage to make full use of the evidence available from neuroscientific, behavioral and societal levels of research presented herein.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joseph Firth
- Division of Psychology and Mental Health, University of Manchester, Manchester Academic Health Science Centre, Manchester, UK
- Greater Manchester Mental Health NHS Foundation Trust, Manchester Academic Health Science Centre, Manchester, UK
| | - John Torous
- Division of Digital Psychiatry, Department of Psychiatry, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - José Francisco López-Gil
- One Health Research Group, Universidad de las Americas, Quito, Ecuador
- Department of Environmental Health, T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Harvard University, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Jake Linardon
- School of Psychology, Deakin University, Geelong, VIC, Australia
| | - Alyssa Milton
- Central Clinical School, Faculty of Medicine and Health, University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia
- Australian Research Council, Centre of Excellence for Children and Families over the Life Course, Sydney, NSW, Australia
| | | | - Lee Smith
- Centre for Health Performance and Wellbeing, Anglia Ruskin University, Cambridge, UK
| | - Ivan Jarić
- Laboratoire Ecologie, Systématique et Evolution, Université Paris-Saclay, Gif-sur-Yvette, France
- Biology Centre, Czech Academy of Sciences, České Budějovice, Czech Republic
| | - Hannah Fabian
- Division of Psychology and Mental Health, University of Manchester, Manchester Academic Health Science Centre, Manchester, UK
| | - Davy Vancampfort
- Department of Rehabilitation Sciences, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
- University Psychiatric Center, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Henry Onyeaka
- Department of Psychiatry, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Felipe B Schuch
- Department of Sports Methods and Techniques, Federal University of Santa Maria, Santa Maria, Brazil
- Institute of Psychiatry, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
- Institute of Health Sciences, Universidad Autônoma de Chile, Providência, Chile
| | - Josh A Firth
- Department of Biology, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
- School of Biology, University of Leeds, Leeds, UK
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Loizou P, Panagiotou G, Zanos P, Paraskevopoulos E. Exploring the neurofunctional impairments and cognitive biases concerning food and body related stimuli in anorexia nervosa: An integrated EEG and eye-tracking study protocol. PLoS One 2024; 19:e0299529. [PMID: 38547188 PMCID: PMC10977685 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0299529] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/01/2023] [Accepted: 02/13/2024] [Indexed: 04/02/2024] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Patients with Anorexia Nervosa (AN) exhibit significant cognitive and neural disturbances compared to healthy individuals when processing food and body-related stimuli. These disturbances not only contribute to the manifestation and chronification of their pathological eating behaviour but also underscore the complex interplay of cognitive, emotional, and neurobiological factors in AN. However, the precise underlying cognitive and neural mechanisms of these disturbances remain a compelling area of investigation. METHODS This study presents a protocol developed for conducting a cross-sectional quasi-experimental study using a mixed model ANOVA approach with a crossover design. Our participants will consist of 20 patients with an active diagnosis of AN, 20 Overweight/obese individuals, and 20 Healthy Controls (HCs) with a normal BMI. An integrated eye-tracking and EEG methodology will be used in conjunction, with the primary aim of assessing participants' cognitive and neural processing towards high and low-calorie food stimuli. On an exploratory level, by utilizing the same methods, the present study will also investigate AN patients' responses towards high weight, normal weight, low weight, and self-body pictures, as well as towards images from the International Affective Picture System (IAPS) characterized by elevated valence and arousal levels. Additionally, behavioural methods such as yes or no questions, and self-reported questionnaires will be administered. The EEG and eye-tracking data will be analysed at early (50-300 ms) and late (350-500 ms) time intervals. DISCUSSION The investigation of the underlying cognitive and neural processes employed by patients with AN during the processing of food and body-related stimuli can help us develop a better understanding of the cognitive and neural mechanisms that contribute to the manifestation and maintenance of the disorder and assist in the development of more effective screening methods. ETHICAL APPROVAL AND CONSENT TO PARTICIPATE Ethical approval for the study has been obtained by the Cyprus National Bioethics Committee on 27.04.2023 (ΕΕΒΚ/ΕΠ/2023/19), and by the University of Cyprus (20.02.2023). Written informed consent will be obtained from all participants.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Panos Zanos
- Department of Psychology, University of Cyprus, Nicosia, Cyprus
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Pelzer M, Werthmann J, Fleischhaker C, Svaldi J, Tuschen-Caffier B. Mirror Exposure Training for Adolescents With Anorexia Nervosa (MIRADAN): Cognitive Mechanisms of Body Disturbance - A Study Protocol. CLINICAL PSYCHOLOGY IN EUROPE 2023; 5:e11277. [PMID: 38357429 PMCID: PMC10863679 DOI: 10.32872/cpe.11277] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/03/2023] [Accepted: 08/28/2023] [Indexed: 02/16/2024] Open
Abstract
Background Anorexia Nervosa (AN) is a severe mental illness, which typically develops in adolescence and, if left untreated, often becomes chronic. Body dissatisfaction is a core characteristic of AN. Mirror exposure (ME) is an effective therapeutic technique to tackle body dissatisfaction in adult patients with eating disorders, but there is limited evidence for the effects of ME in adolescence. One potential mechanism underlying effects of ME on body dissatisfaction is change in body-related attention bias. However, this mechanism remains to be empirically tested. Accordingly, the aim of the current study is twofold: primarily, we aim to test if ME can reduce body dissatisfaction and associated symptoms in adolescent patients with AN. Additionally, we aim to investigate whether change in biased body-related attention due to ME is a possible mechanism of action. Method Adolescent patients with AN are randomized to either 12 sessions of ME (3 ME-sessions/week) or wait-list within four weeks. Main outcomes include body dissatisfaction and associated symptoms of AN. Moreover, body-related attention bias is assessed at baseline and post-treatment by means of eye-tracking with two paradigms. Further, process variables are collected weekly. In addition, 12 weeks after end of the study, the acceptability of the ME is assessed. Discussion The main aim of the study is to evaluate high-frequency and high-intense ME for treating body dissatisfaction in adolescents with AN. In addition, we would like to clarify whether change in attentional bias for body stimuli is a mechanism underlying change in body dissatisfaction due to ME.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maarit Pelzer
- Department of Psychology, Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
| | - Jessica Werthmann
- Department of Psychology, Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
| | - Christian Fleischhaker
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, Freiburg University Hospital, Freiburg, Germany
| | - Jennifer Svaldi
- Faculty of Science, Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, Eberhard Karls University Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Brunna Tuschen-Caffier
- Department of Psychology, Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
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5
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Meregalli V, Tenconi E, Cardi V, Bonifanti A, Meneguzzo P, Favaro A, Collantoni E. Strategic avoidance of food stimuli in patients with restrictive anorexia nervosa: An eye-tracking evaluation. EUROPEAN EATING DISORDERS REVIEW 2023; 31:813-821. [PMID: 37408111 DOI: 10.1002/erv.3011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/02/2023] [Revised: 06/15/2023] [Accepted: 06/22/2023] [Indexed: 07/07/2023]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE A biased attentional processing of food stimuli may represent a disorder maintenance factor in patients with anorexia nervosa (AN). The present study aimed at investigating the temporal course of attentional deployment towards both high-calorie and low-calorie foods in patients with AN using eye-tracking. METHOD Fifty-two patients with restrictive AN and 54 healthy controls (HC) performed a dot-probe task while their gaze was recorded with an eye-tracking system. The direction bias (percentage of trials in which the gaze was directed towards the food at first fixation, 500, and 1500 ms), and the duration bias (percentage of time spent looking at the food) were extracted. RESULTS Regarding the direction bias, a group by time interaction emerged (F = 3.29, p = 0.038): while in the control group the bias continued to increase over the course of the trial, patients with AN showed a reduction of the bias between the 500 and 1500 ms. No group differences were observed on the duration bias. CONCLUSIONS In advanced stages of attentional deployment patients with AN start to differ from HC by diverting their attention away from food stimuli, a strategic process that may contribute to food avoidance and calorie restriction.
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Affiliation(s)
- Valentina Meregalli
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Padua, Padova, Italy
- Padua Neuroscience Center, University of Padua, Padova, Italy
| | - Elena Tenconi
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Padua, Padova, Italy
- Padua Neuroscience Center, University of Padua, Padova, Italy
| | - Valentina Cardi
- Department of General Psychology, University of Padua, Padova, Italy
- Department of Psychological Medicine, Institute of Psychology, Psychiatry and Neuroscience, King's College London, London, UK
| | | | - Paolo Meneguzzo
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Padua, Padova, Italy
- Padua Neuroscience Center, University of Padua, Padova, Italy
| | - Angela Favaro
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Padua, Padova, Italy
- Padua Neuroscience Center, University of Padua, Padova, Italy
| | - Enrico Collantoni
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Padua, Padova, Italy
- Padua Neuroscience Center, University of Padua, Padova, Italy
- Department of Medicine, University of Padua, Padova, Italy
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Bektas S, Natali L, Rowlands K, Valmaggia L, Di Pietro J, Mutwalli H, Himmerich H, Treasure J, Cardi V. Exploring Correlations of Food-Specific Disgust with Eating Disorder Psychopathology and Food Interaction: A Preliminary Study Using Virtual Reality. Nutrients 2023; 15:4443. [PMID: 37892518 PMCID: PMC10609698 DOI: 10.3390/nu15204443] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/13/2023] [Revised: 10/02/2023] [Accepted: 10/12/2023] [Indexed: 10/29/2023] Open
Abstract
The emotion of disgust is thought to play a critical role in maintaining restrictive eating among individuals with anorexia nervosa. This exploratory cross-sectional study examined correlations between food-specific trait and state disgust, eating disorder psychopathology, illness severity (body mass index: BMI), and interactions with virtual foods in people with anorexia nervosa. Food-specific trait disgust and eating disorder symptoms were measured before exposure to virtual foods in one of three virtual reality (VR) kitchens to which participants were randomly allocated. Food interactions (eye gaze and reaching towards virtual foods) were measured during the VR exposure. Food-specific state disgust ratings were collected after the VR exposure. In the entire sample, eating disorder symptoms correlated positively with food-specific trait disgust (rs (68) = 0.45, p < 0.001). We also found a significant association between food-specific state disgust and eating disorder symptoms in each virtual kitchen scenario: virtual kitchen only (rs (22) = 0.40, p = 0.05), virtual kitchen plus pet (rs (22) = 0.80, p < 0.001), and virtual kitchen plus avatar (rs (20) = 0.78, p < 0.001). No significant correlation was observed for the link between food-specific disgust measures and food-related touch. Correlations between food-specific trait disgust and food-related eye gaze differed across scenarios. The current experimental paradigm needs to be improved to draw firm conclusions. Both food-specific trait and state disgust are associated with eating disorder psychopathology, and therefore, effective strategies are warranted to attenuate food-specific disgust.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sevgi Bektas
- Centre for Research in Eating and Weight Disorders (CREW), Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King’s College London, London SE5 8AF, UK; (K.R.); (H.M.); (H.H.); (J.T.); (V.C.)
- Department of Psychology, Hacettepe University, Ankara 06800, Türkiye
| | - Ludovica Natali
- Department of General Psychology, University of Padova, 35122 Padova, Italy
| | - Katie Rowlands
- Centre for Research in Eating and Weight Disorders (CREW), Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King’s College London, London SE5 8AF, UK; (K.R.); (H.M.); (H.H.); (J.T.); (V.C.)
| | - Lucia Valmaggia
- Department of Psychology, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience, King’s College London, London SE5 8AF, UK; (L.V.); (J.D.P.)
- South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust, London SE5 8AB, UK
- Department of Psychiatry, KU Leuven, 3000 Leuven, Belgium
| | - Jerome Di Pietro
- Department of Psychology, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience, King’s College London, London SE5 8AF, UK; (L.V.); (J.D.P.)
| | - Hiba Mutwalli
- Centre for Research in Eating and Weight Disorders (CREW), Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King’s College London, London SE5 8AF, UK; (K.R.); (H.M.); (H.H.); (J.T.); (V.C.)
- Department of Clinical Nutrition, College of Applied Medical Sciences, Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University, Dammam 34212, Saudi Arabia
| | - Hubertus Himmerich
- Centre for Research in Eating and Weight Disorders (CREW), Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King’s College London, London SE5 8AF, UK; (K.R.); (H.M.); (H.H.); (J.T.); (V.C.)
- South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust, London SE5 8AB, UK
| | - Janet Treasure
- Centre for Research in Eating and Weight Disorders (CREW), Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King’s College London, London SE5 8AF, UK; (K.R.); (H.M.); (H.H.); (J.T.); (V.C.)
- South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust, London SE5 8AB, UK
| | - Valentina Cardi
- Centre for Research in Eating and Weight Disorders (CREW), Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King’s College London, London SE5 8AF, UK; (K.R.); (H.M.); (H.H.); (J.T.); (V.C.)
- Department of General Psychology, University of Padova, 35122 Padova, Italy
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Mendoza-Medialdea MT, Meschberger-Annweiler FA, Ascione M, Rueda-Pina A, Rabarbari E, Porras-Garcia B, Ferrer-Garcia M, Gutiérrez-Maldonado J. Body Dissatisfaction and Body-Related Attentional Bias: Is There a Causal Relationship? J Clin Med 2023; 12:5659. [PMID: 37685726 PMCID: PMC10488727 DOI: 10.3390/jcm12175659] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/26/2023] [Revised: 08/21/2023] [Accepted: 08/30/2023] [Indexed: 09/10/2023] Open
Abstract
Previous research has shown an association between body dissatisfaction and attentional biases toward the body, but the nature of this relationship is not clear. It is possible that dissatisfaction causes attentional bias or that dissatisfaction is a result of such bias. To clarify the causal relationship between these two variables, this study manipulated dissatisfaction in a sample of healthy women by exposing them to images of "ideal" bodies and observed whether this manipulation increased attentional biases toward different body parts. Fifty-seven women took part in a pre-post experimental design in which they observed an avatar representing themselves in a virtual mirror before and after being exposed to "thin ideal" photographs. Eye-tracking technology was employed to quantify the frequency and duration of fixations on weight-related and weight-unrelated body parts. The outcomes revealed a successful induction of body dissatisfaction, leading participants to display a heightened number of fixations and prolonged fixation durations on unrelated-weight body parts. These findings remained significant after controlling for the effects of trait body dissatisfaction and body mass index. The results imply that heightened body dissatisfaction fosters the aversion of attention from weight-related body parts, which may function as a protective mechanism for preserving self-esteem and promoting psychological well-being.
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Affiliation(s)
- María Teresa Mendoza-Medialdea
- Department of Psychology, Universidad de Jaén, Paraje las Lagunillas s/n, 23071 Jaén, Spain;
- Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychobiology, Faculty of Psychology, University of Barcelona, Passeig de Vall d’Hebron 175, 08035 Barcelona, Spain (E.R.)
| | - Franck-Alexandre Meschberger-Annweiler
- Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychobiology, Faculty of Psychology, University of Barcelona, Passeig de Vall d’Hebron 175, 08035 Barcelona, Spain (E.R.)
| | - Mariarca Ascione
- Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychobiology, Faculty of Psychology, University of Barcelona, Passeig de Vall d’Hebron 175, 08035 Barcelona, Spain (E.R.)
| | - Alejandra Rueda-Pina
- Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychobiology, Faculty of Psychology, University of Barcelona, Passeig de Vall d’Hebron 175, 08035 Barcelona, Spain (E.R.)
| | - Elisa Rabarbari
- Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychobiology, Faculty of Psychology, University of Barcelona, Passeig de Vall d’Hebron 175, 08035 Barcelona, Spain (E.R.)
| | - Bruno Porras-Garcia
- Brain, Cognition, and Behavior Research Group, Consorci Sanitari de Terrassa (CST), Ctr. Torrebonica, s/n, 08227 Terrassa, Spain
- Department of Basic Sciences, Universitat Internacional de Catalunya, Josep Trueta Street, s/n, 08195 Sant Cugat del Vallès, Spain
| | - Marta Ferrer-Garcia
- Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychobiology, Faculty of Psychology, University of Barcelona, Passeig de Vall d’Hebron 175, 08035 Barcelona, Spain (E.R.)
| | - José Gutiérrez-Maldonado
- Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychobiology, Faculty of Psychology, University of Barcelona, Passeig de Vall d’Hebron 175, 08035 Barcelona, Spain (E.R.)
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8
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Puttevils L, De Bruecker M, Allaert J, Sanchez-Lopez A, De Schryver N, Vervaet M, Baeken C, Vanderhasselt MA. Attentional bias to food during free and instructed viewing in anorexia nervosa: An eye tracking study. J Psychiatr Res 2023; 164:468-476. [PMID: 37437319 DOI: 10.1016/j.jpsychires.2023.06.039] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/12/2022] [Revised: 06/05/2023] [Accepted: 06/27/2023] [Indexed: 07/14/2023]
Abstract
Previous research has shown that patients with anorexia nervosa (AN) show an attentional bias to food. However, due to different conceptualizations of attentional bias and the use of various paradigms, results are inconclusive and more precise insights into the exact nature of this attentional bias are needed. Therefore, an eye-tracking paradigm with food (low and high caloric) and non-food (objects) pictures was used to investigate biases in AN patients (n = 25) compared to healthy controls (n = 22). Several indices of visual attention were examined, both during free (initial orientation, fixation frequency, fixation time) and explicitly instructed (engagement, disengagement) viewing. Our results during the free viewing phase indicated that AN patients (as compared to healthy matched controls) looked less frequently and spent less time fixating on food stimuli, compared to the comparison group. No differences between both groups (n = 47) in initial orientation could be observed. Interestingly, during the instructed viewing phase, no differences between the patient and the comparison group were observed in engagement or disengagement to food stimuli. These results suggest an (initial) attentional avoidance of food in AN patients when closely investigating spontaneous attentional processes, while this could not be observed during gaze behaviour when receiving clear instructions. Hence, future research should look into how attentional bias during spontaneous gaze patterns could serve as a potential marker of AN, and how targeting this bias could be applied in treatment interventions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Louise Puttevils
- Department of Head and Skin, Ghent University, Belgium; Ghent Experimental Psychiatry (GHEP) Lab, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium.
| | - Marie De Bruecker
- Department of Head and Skin, Ghent University, Belgium; Ghent Experimental Psychiatry (GHEP) Lab, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium
| | - Jens Allaert
- Department of Head and Skin, Ghent University, Belgium; Ghent Experimental Psychiatry (GHEP) Lab, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium; Department of Experimental-Clinical and Health Psychology, Ghent University, Belgium
| | | | - Nele De Schryver
- Department of Psychiatry, Center for Eating Disorders, Ghent University Hospital, K12F, C. Heymanslaan 10, 9000, Ghent, Belgium
| | | | - Chris Baeken
- Department of Head and Skin, Ghent University, Belgium; Ghent Experimental Psychiatry (GHEP) Lab, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium; Department of Psychiatry, University Hospital (UZ Brussel), Brussels, Belgium
| | - Marie-Anne Vanderhasselt
- Department of Head and Skin, Ghent University, Belgium; Ghent Experimental Psychiatry (GHEP) Lab, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium; Department of Experimental-Clinical and Health Psychology, Ghent University, Belgium
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9
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Kirby AS, Jenks R, Walsh F, Duncan M. Attentional Biases Towards Body-Related Stimuli in Healthy Males: A Systematic Review. Psychol Rep 2023:332941231177243. [PMID: 37211416 DOI: 10.1177/00332941231177243] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/23/2023]
Abstract
Recent literature has discussed the role of attentional biases towards body-related stimuli. Specific foci have been on those with high levels of body image concerns and female samples. Unfortunately, there has been limited focus on male samples within existing literature. The aim of the current study was to provide a critical synthesis of the findings of existing studies exploring attentional biases in adult males towards body-related stimuli. Critical synthesis of the findings of 20 studies explored four key methodologies: eye-tracking, dot-probe, visual search, and other methodologies (e.g. ARDPEI task). The current review provides evidence of specific attentional biases towards body-related stimuli in adult males experiencing body image concerns. Similar patterns of attentional biases are also demonstrated in males with body image pathologies. However, there appears to be distinct patterns of attentional biases for male and female participants. It is recommended that future research considers these findings and utilises measures developed specifically for male samples. Furthermore, additional variables require further attention, i.e. reasons for engaging in social comparison and/or engaging in physical activity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexandra S Kirby
- Centre for Sport, Exercise and Life Sciences, Coventry University, Coventry, UK
- Department of Arts, Humanities and Human Sciences, Newman University, Bartley Green, UK
| | - Rebecca Jenks
- School of Psychological, Social and Behavioural Sciences, Coventry University, Coventry, UK
| | - Francesca Walsh
- School of Psychological, Social and Behavioural Sciences, Coventry University, Coventry, UK
| | - Michael Duncan
- Centre for Sport, Exercise and Life Sciences, Coventry University, Coventry, UK
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10
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Miquel-Nabau H, Briseño-Oloriz N, Porras-Garcia B, Ascione M, Meschberger-Annweiler FA, Ferrer-Garcia M, Moreno-Sanchez M, Serrano-Troncoso E, Carulla-Roig M, Gutiérrez Maldonado J. Modification of Body-Related Attentional Bias through Virtual Reality and Eye-Tracking in Healthy Participants: Implications for Anorexia Nervosa Treatments. Brain Sci 2023; 13:brainsci13050764. [PMID: 37239236 DOI: 10.3390/brainsci13050764] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/21/2023] [Revised: 05/02/2023] [Accepted: 05/04/2023] [Indexed: 05/28/2023] Open
Abstract
Cognitive biases have a significant impact on the etiology and treatment of eating disorders (EDs). These biases, including selective attentional bias (AB) to disliked body parts, may reinforce concerns about body shape, fear of gaining weight and body image disturbances and may contribute to dietary restriction and restraint. Decreasing AB could reduce core symptoms in anorexia nervosa (AN). This study represents a preliminary exploration aiming to assess whether AB towards weight-related (WR) and non-weight-related (NW) body parts could be reduced through an AB modification task in a virtual reality (VR) environment in healthy participants. A total of 54 female participants, aged 22.98 ± 1.89, were recruited. The task consisted of directing the participants' attention towards all body parts equally in a VR setting. Eye-tracking (ET) measurements (complete fixation time [CFT] and number of fixations [NF]) were made before and after the task. The results showed a significant reduction of the AB in the two groups with an initial AB towards WR body parts or towards NW body parts. Participants showed a tendency to more balanced (non-biased) attention after the intervention. This study provides evidence of the usefulness of AB modification tasks in a non-clinical sample.
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Affiliation(s)
- Helena Miquel-Nabau
- Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychobiology, Institute of Neurosciences, University of Barcelona, 08035 Barcelona, Spain
| | - Natalia Briseño-Oloriz
- Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychobiology, Institute of Neurosciences, University of Barcelona, 08035 Barcelona, Spain
| | - Bruno Porras-Garcia
- Department of Population Health Science, University of Utah School of Medicine, 295 Chipeta Way, Salt Lake City, UT 84112, USA
| | - Mariarca Ascione
- Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychobiology, Institute of Neurosciences, University of Barcelona, 08035 Barcelona, Spain
| | | | - Marta Ferrer-Garcia
- Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychobiology, Institute of Neurosciences, University of Barcelona, 08035 Barcelona, Spain
| | - Manuel Moreno-Sanchez
- Department of Cognition, Development and Educational Psychology, University of Barcelona, Passeig de la Vall d'Hebron 171, 08035 Barcelona, Spain
| | - Eduardo Serrano-Troncoso
- Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychology Department, Hospital Sant Joan de Déu of Barcelona, 08950 Esplugues de Llobregat, Spain
| | - Marta Carulla-Roig
- Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychology Department, Hospital Sant Joan de Déu of Barcelona, 08950 Esplugues de Llobregat, Spain
| | - José Gutiérrez Maldonado
- Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychobiology, Institute of Neurosciences, University of Barcelona, 08035 Barcelona, Spain
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11
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Sfärlea A, Radix AK, Schulte-Körne G, Legenbauer T, Platt B. Attention Biases for Eating Disorder-Related Stimuli Versus Social Stimuli in Adolescents with Anorexia Nervosa - An Eye-Tracking Study. Res Child Adolesc Psychopathol 2023; 51:541-555. [PMID: 36418631 PMCID: PMC10017650 DOI: 10.1007/s10802-022-00993-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 11/01/2022] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
Anorexia nervosa (AN) is characterized by attention biases for eating disorder-related information as well as altered attentional processing of social information. However, little is known about the interplay between the altered attentional processing of these two types of information. The present study investigates attention biases for eating disorder-related information (pictures of bodies) versus social information (pictures of faces), in adolescents with AN. Attention biases were assessed via eye-tracking during a passive-viewing task in which female bodies and faces were presented simultaneously and thus competed directly for attention. Female adolescents (13-18 years) with AN (n = 28) were compared to a clinical comparison group (adolescents with major depression; n = 20) and a comparison group of adolescents with no mental illness (n = 24). All groups looked longer at bodies than at faces, i.e., showed attention biases for bodies in maintenance of attention. These biases were more pronounced in adolescents with AN than in both comparison groups, particularly for underweight bodies, at the expense of looking less at social stimuli. The results indicate "dual" attention biases in adolescents with AN (i.e., towards bodies and away from emotional faces) which could have a twofold negative impact on eating disorder psychopathology: increased attention to eating disorder-related information might directly influence eating disorder symptoms while less attention to social information might have an indirect influence through the amplification of interpersonal difficulties.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anca Sfärlea
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Psychosomatics and Psychotherapy, University Hospital, LMU Munich, Research Department, Nussbaumstr. 5, 80336, Munich, Germany.
| | - Anne Kathrin Radix
- LWL-University Clinic of the RUB Bochum, Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Psychotherapy, Psychosomatics, Hamm, Germany
| | - Gerd Schulte-Körne
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Psychosomatics and Psychotherapy, University Hospital, LMU Munich, Research Department, Nussbaumstr. 5, 80336, Munich, Germany
| | - Tanja Legenbauer
- LWL-University Clinic of the RUB Bochum, Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Psychotherapy, Psychosomatics, Hamm, Germany
| | - Belinda Platt
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Psychosomatics and Psychotherapy, University Hospital, LMU Munich, Research Department, Nussbaumstr. 5, 80336, Munich, Germany
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12
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Yang X, Fridman AJ, Unsworth N, Casement MD. Pupillary motility responses to affectively salient stimuli in individuals with depression or elevated risk of depression: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2023; 148:105125. [PMID: 36924842 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2023.105125] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/29/2022] [Revised: 02/16/2023] [Accepted: 03/08/2023] [Indexed: 03/17/2023]
Abstract
Elaborative affective processing is observed in depression, and pupillary reactivity, a continuous, sensitive, and reliable indicator of physiological arousal and neurocognitive processing, is increasingly utilized in studies of depression-related characteristics. As a first attempt to quantitively summarize existing evidence on depression-related pupillary reactivity alterations, this review and meta-analysis evaluated the direction, magnitude, and specificity of pupillary indices of affective processing towards positively, negatively, and neutrally-valenced stimuli among individuals diagnosed with depression or with elevated risk of depression. Studies on pupillary responses to affective stimuli in the target groups were identified in PsycINFO and PubMed databases. Twenty-two articles met inclusion criteria for the qualitative review and 16 for the quantitative review. Three-level frequentist and Bayesian models were applied to summarize pooled effects from baseline-controlled stimuli-induced average changes in pupillary responses. In general, compared to non-depressed individuals, individuals with depression or elevated risk of depression exhibited higher pupillary reactivity (d =0.15) towards negatively-valenced stimuli during affective processing. Pupillary motility towards negatively-valenced stimuli may be a promising trait-like marker for depression vulnerability.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xi Yang
- Department of Psychology, University of Oregon, 1451 Onyx St, Eugene, OR US 97403, USA.
| | - Andrew J Fridman
- Department of Psychology, University of Oregon, 1451 Onyx St, Eugene, OR US 97403, USA.
| | - Nash Unsworth
- Department of Psychology, University of Oregon, 1451 Onyx St, Eugene, OR US 97403, USA.
| | - Melynda D Casement
- Department of Psychology, University of Oregon, 1451 Onyx St, Eugene, OR US 97403, USA.
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13
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Meschberger-Annweiler FA, Ascione M, Porras-Garcia B, Ferrer-Garcia M, Moreno-Sanchez M, Miquel-Nabau H, Serrano-Troncoso E, Carulla-Roig M, Gutiérrez-Maldonado J. An Attentional Bias Modification Task, through Virtual Reality and Eye-Tracking Technologies, to Enhance the Treatment of Anorexia Nervosa. J Clin Med 2023; 12:jcm12062185. [PMID: 36983186 PMCID: PMC10054656 DOI: 10.3390/jcm12062185] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/21/2023] [Revised: 03/07/2023] [Accepted: 03/09/2023] [Indexed: 03/14/2023] Open
Abstract
Mirror exposure therapies (METs) have been shown to be effective in reducing body image disturbances through the habituation process. Virtual reality (VR) combined with eye-tracking techniques can provide innovative solutions to some of METs’ limitations reported with patients with anorexia nervosa (AN), especially the negative influence of body-related attentional bias (AB). This pilot study aimed to assess the preliminary efficacy of a new VR-based AB modification task (ABMT) among healthy women and the procedure’s user experience. AB levels towards weight- and non-weight-related body parts, using complete fixation time (CFT) and number of fixations (NF), were assessed throughout the ABMT procedure (300 trials). The user experience was evaluated at the end of the procedure. The results showed that VR-based ABMT was effective in reducing AB significantly after 150 trials for both CFT- and NF-based measures, although 225 trials were necessary to get the same result for women with an NF initially more oriented towards weight-related body parts. Overall, the software received a “C-rating” on a scale from “A” (most usable) to “F” (least usable). These results provide evidence of the opportunity to use a VR-based ABMT procedure to reduce AB and improve existing treatments for AN.
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Affiliation(s)
- Franck-Alexandre Meschberger-Annweiler
- Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychobiology, Institute of Neurosciences, University of Barcelona, Passeig de la Vall d’Hebron 171, 08035 Barcelona, Spain
| | - Mariarca Ascione
- Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychobiology, Institute of Neurosciences, University of Barcelona, Passeig de la Vall d’Hebron 171, 08035 Barcelona, Spain
| | - Bruno Porras-Garcia
- Department of Population Health Science, University of Utah School of Medicine, 295 Chipeta Way, Salt Lake City, UT 84112, USA
| | - Marta Ferrer-Garcia
- Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychobiology, Institute of Neurosciences, University of Barcelona, Passeig de la Vall d’Hebron 171, 08035 Barcelona, Spain
| | - Manuel Moreno-Sanchez
- Department of Cognition, Development and Educational Psychology, University of Barcelona, Passeig de la Vall d’Hebron 171, 08035 Barcelona, Spain
| | - Helena Miquel-Nabau
- Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychobiology, Institute of Neurosciences, University of Barcelona, Passeig de la Vall d’Hebron 171, 08035 Barcelona, Spain
| | - Eduardo Serrano-Troncoso
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychology, Hospital Sant Joan de Déu of Barcelona, Passeig de Sant Joan de Déu, 2, Esplugues de Llobregat, 08950 Barcelona, Spain
| | - Marta Carulla-Roig
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychology, Hospital Sant Joan de Déu of Barcelona, Passeig de Sant Joan de Déu, 2, Esplugues de Llobregat, 08950 Barcelona, Spain
| | - José Gutiérrez-Maldonado
- Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychobiology, Institute of Neurosciences, University of Barcelona, Passeig de la Vall d’Hebron 171, 08035 Barcelona, Spain
- Correspondence:
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14
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Vankayalapati HD, Kuchibhotla S, Chadalavada MSK, Dargar SK, Anne KR, Kyandoghere K. A Novel Zernike Moment-Based Real-Time Head Pose and Gaze Estimation Framework for Accuracy-Sensitive Applications. SENSORS (BASEL, SWITZERLAND) 2022; 22:8449. [PMID: 36366147 PMCID: PMC9658879 DOI: 10.3390/s22218449] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/29/2022] [Revised: 10/02/2022] [Accepted: 10/28/2022] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
A real-time head pose and gaze estimation (HPGE) algorithm has excellent potential for technological advancements either in human-machine or human-robot interactions. For example, in high-accuracy advent applications such as Driver's Assistance System (DAS), HPGE plays a crucial role in omitting accidents and road hazards. In this paper, the authors propose a new hybrid framework for improved estimation by combining both the appearance and geometric-based conventional methods to extract local and global features. Therefore, the Zernike moments algorithm has been prominent in extracting rotation, scale, and illumination invariant features. Later, conventional discriminant algorithms were used to classify the head poses and gaze direction. Furthermore, the experiments were performed on standard datasets and real-time images to analyze the accuracy of the proposed algorithm. As a result, the proposed framework has immediately estimated the range of direction changes under different illumination conditions. We obtained an accuracy of ~85%; the average response time was 21.52 and 7.483 ms for estimating head poses and gaze, respectively, independent of illumination, background, and occlusion. The proposed method is promising for future developments of a robust system that is invariant even to blurring conditions and thus reaching much more significant performance enhancement.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hima Deepthi Vankayalapati
- Department of Electronics and Communication Engineering, Kalasalingam Academy of Research and Education, Krishnankovil 626126, India
| | - Swarna Kuchibhotla
- Department of Computer Science and Engineering, Koneru Lakshmaiah Education Foundation, Vaddeswaram 522302, India
| | - Mohan Sai Kumar Chadalavada
- Department of Electronics and Communication Engineering, VelTech Rangarajan Dr. Sagunthala R&D Institute of Science and Technology, Chennai 600062, India
| | - Shashi Kant Dargar
- Department of Electronics and Communication Engineering, Kalasalingam Academy of Research and Education, Krishnankovil 626126, India
| | - Koteswara Rao Anne
- Department of Computer Science and Engineering, Kalasalingam Academy of Research and Education, Krishnankovil 626126, India
| | - Kyamakya Kyandoghere
- Institute for Smart Systems Technologies, University Klagenfurt, 9020 Klagenfurt am Wörthersee, Austria
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15
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Rowlands K, Beaty T, Simic M, Grafton B, Hirsch C, Treasure J, Cardi V. Cognitive bias modification training of attention and interpretation to reduce expectations of social rejection in adolescents with eating disorders: A small efficacy randomized controlled trial. Int J Eat Disord 2022; 55:1506-1520. [PMID: 36147018 PMCID: PMC9825839 DOI: 10.1002/eat.23809] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/08/2022] [Revised: 08/23/2022] [Accepted: 08/23/2022] [Indexed: 01/11/2023]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE This study aimed to investigate whether a computerized cognitive bias modification training delivered remotely would reduce expectations of rejection in adolescents with eating disorders. METHOD Sixty-seven adolescents aged 12-18 (99.5% female) with an eating disorder diagnosis (94% anorexia nervosa) and receiving specialist treatment were recruited. Participants were randomized to an intervention condition (n = 37) which included treatment as usual (TAU) supplemented by nine sessions of online cognitive bias modification training for social stimuli (CBMT + TAU), or a control condition (n = 30), which included TAU only. Participants were invited to complete assessments at baseline and post-intervention. RESULTS In the intervention condition, 22/37 participants completed six or more training sessions and post-intervention measures, the pre-defined criteria to be considered "completers." In the control condition, 28/30 participants completed the post-intervention measures. Participants who completed the intervention displayed a significantly greater reduction in negative interpretations of ambiguous social scenarios, with a medium effect size (p = .048, ηp2 = .090), and eating disorder psychopathology, with a medium effect size (p = .027, ηp2 = .105), compared to participants in the control condition. No significant between-group differences were found on emotional response to criticism, and anxiety and depression symptoms post-intervention (ps > .05; small effect sizes). DISCUSSION Enhancing treatment as usual with CBMT targeting expectations of social rejection might be feasible and effective to reduce expectations of social rejection and eating disorder psychopathology in adolescents with eating disorders. Training adaptations might be necessary to impact on emotional processing and comorbid psychological distress. PUBLIC SIGNIFICANCE Adolescents with eating disorders who completed a brief (4-week) online cognitive training intervention, alongside their usual treatment, reported greater reductions in expectations of social rejection and eating disorder psychopathology after the intervention, compared to a separate group of patients who received their usual treatment only. This brief and accessible intervention may be a helpful treatment adjunct for adolescents with eating disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Katie Rowlands
- Department of Psychological MedicineInstitute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King's College LondonLondonUK
| | - Taryn Beaty
- Department of Psychological MedicineInstitute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King's College LondonLondonUK
| | - Mima Simic
- Child and Adolescent Eating Disorders ServiceSouth London and Maudsley NHS Foundation TrustLondonUK
| | - Ben Grafton
- Centre for the Advancement of Research on EmotionSchool of Psychological Science, University of Western AustraliaCrawleyAustralia
| | - Colette Hirsch
- Psychology DepartmentInstitute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King's College LondonLondonUK
| | - Janet Treasure
- Department of Psychological MedicineInstitute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King's College LondonLondonUK
| | - Valentina Cardi
- Department of Psychological MedicineInstitute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King's College LondonLondonUK,Department of General PsychologyUniversity of PadovaItaly
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16
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Baur J, Krohmer K, Naumann E, Svaldi J. Attentional processing of body images in women with overweight and obesity. Eat Weight Disord 2022; 27:2811-2819. [PMID: 35781634 PMCID: PMC9556367 DOI: 10.1007/s40519-022-01419-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/24/2022] [Accepted: 05/07/2022] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
PURPOSE Despite the claim to integrate body image interventions in obesity treatment, little is known about the mechanisms involved in maintaining body dissatisfaction in persons with overweight and obesity. Therefore, the present study sought to investigate attentional processing of body stimuli in women with overweight and obesity (OW). METHODS Women with OW (n = 82) and normal weight controls (NW; n = 44) conducted two eye-tracking paradigms. In the first paradigm, fixation duration on the subjectively most beautiful and ugliest body part of one's own and a weight-matched control body were analyzed. In the second paradigm, picture pairs including the own and a control body or object were presented and initial fixation orientation was measured. Automatic and intentional processing of the body pictures was manipulated by either indicating on which side which stimuli would appear or not. RESULTS Women with OW displayed a bias towards the ugliest as opposed to the most beautiful body part, whereas women with NW showed a balanced viewing pattern. Furthermore, both groups showed a preference for bodies relative to the object. However, only women with OW preferred their own relative to the control body during intentional processing. CONCLUSION Taken together, results point towards a self-focused and deficit-oriented gaze pattern in women with overweight and obesity. Targeting these processes might help to improve obesity treatment outcomes. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE Level I, experimental study.
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Affiliation(s)
- Julia Baur
- Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, University of Tuebingen, Schleichstraße 4, 72076, Tübingen, Germany.
| | - Kerstin Krohmer
- Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, University of Tuebingen, Schleichstraße 4, 72076, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Eva Naumann
- Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, University of Tuebingen, Schleichstraße 4, 72076, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Jennifer Svaldi
- Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, University of Tuebingen, Schleichstraße 4, 72076, Tübingen, Germany
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17
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Affective cognition in eating disorders: a systematic review and meta-analysis of the performance on the "Reading the Mind in the Eyes" Test. Eat Weight Disord 2022; 27:2291-2307. [PMID: 35384555 PMCID: PMC9556412 DOI: 10.1007/s40519-022-01393-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/20/2021] [Accepted: 03/13/2022] [Indexed: 12/19/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND The Reading the Mind in the Eyes Test (RMET) is listed in the National Institute of Mental Health's Research Domain Criteria as a tool apt to measure the understanding of others' mental states. People diagnosed with anorexia nervosa (AN) showed poorer performances on the RMET than healthy controls. Less data are available concerning other eating disorders. METHODS Systematic review of four major databases from inception to July 15, 2021 following the PRISMA guidelines. Meta-analysis of cross-sectional observational studies comparing the scores of the RMET between patients with eating disorders and age- and-gender matched control groups. RESULTS Out of 21 studies, we retrieved 29 independent samples of patients diagnosed with an eating disorder. Patients with active AN (n = 580) showed worse performances on the RMET than controls (n = 1019). Year of publication accounted for 61% of the (substantial: I2 = 81%) heterogeneity in the meta-analysis. Earlier studies were more likely to find worse performances on the RMET of patients with active AN than later studies. Patients with bulimia nervosa (n = 185) performed poorly as compared to controls (n = 249), but the results were not statistically significant on the random-effect model. Obese patients with binge-eating disorder (n = 54) did not differ on the RMET from obese controls (n = 52). Patients with eating disorder not otherwise specified (n = 57) showed minimal differences compared to controls (n = 96). Study quality was good in six studies only. CONCLUSIONS Patients with eating disorders do not suffer from an impaired understanding of others' mental states, except for a still-to-be-identified subgroup of patients with active AN. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE I, systematic review and meta-analysis.
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18
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Sensor Technology and Intelligent Systems in Anorexia Nervosa: Providing Smarter Healthcare Delivery Systems. BIOMED RESEARCH INTERNATIONAL 2022; 2022:1955056. [PMID: 36193321 PMCID: PMC9526573 DOI: 10.1155/2022/1955056] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/20/2022] [Accepted: 09/06/2022] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
Ubiquitous technology, big data, more efficient electronic health records, and predictive analytics are now at the core of smart healthcare systems supported by artificial intelligence. In the present narrative review, we focus on sensing technologies for the healthcare of Anorexia Nervosa (AN). We employed a framework inspired by the Interpersonal Neurobiology Theory (IPNB), which posits that human experience is characterized by a flow of energy and information both within us (within our whole body), and between us (in the connections we have with others and with nature). In line with this framework, we focused on sensors designed to evaluate bodily processes (body sensors such as implantable sensors, epidermal sensors, and wearable and portable sensors), human social interaction (sociometric sensors), and the physical environment (indoor and outdoor ambient sensors). There is a myriad of man-made sensors as well as nature-based sensors such as plants that can be used to design and deploy intelligent systems for human monitoring and healthcare. In conclusion, sensing technologies and intelligent systems can be employed for smarter healthcare of AN and help to relieve the burden of health professionals. However, there are technical, ethical, and environmental sustainability issues that must be considered prior to implementing these systems. A joint collaboration of professionals and other members of the society involved in the healthcare of individuals with AN can help in the development of these systems. The evolution of cyberphysical systems should also be considered in these collaborations.
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Abstract
Over the past 30 years, attentional bias for body shape and weight content has been implicated in the precipitation and maintenance of body dissatisfaction and eating disorders. Although the existence of this bias toward body stimuli is well-established in female populations, it is comparatively understudied in men. This review aimed to examine the nature of this visual attentional bias toward male bodies in male samples across a range of different attentional paradigms, including eye-tracking, dot-probe, and the visual search task. Results were heterogenous, finding some evidence that men with higher body dissatisfaction and eating disorder symptoms demonstrated an attentional bias toward desirable bodies of other men, and undesirable features of their own bodies. These results suggest that schematic cognitive models of body dissatisfaction and eating disorders body may also be applicable to men, however more research is needed.
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20
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Krohmer K, Naumann E, Tuschen-Caffier B, Svaldi J. Taking a closer look at body processing in binge eating disorder – Influence of BMI and eating pathology. Behav Res Ther 2022; 156:104106. [DOI: 10.1016/j.brat.2022.104106] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/14/2021] [Revised: 04/22/2022] [Accepted: 05/02/2022] [Indexed: 12/25/2022]
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21
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Navas-León S, Sánchez-Martín M, Tajadura-Jiménez A, De Coster L, Borda-Más M, Morales L. Eye movements and eating disorders: protocol for an exploratory experimental study examining the relationship in young-adult women with subclinical symptomatology. J Eat Disord 2022; 10:47. [PMID: 35395955 PMCID: PMC8991955 DOI: 10.1186/s40337-022-00573-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/05/2022] [Accepted: 03/24/2022] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Recent research indicates that patients with anorexia (AN) show specific eye movement abnormalities such as shorter prosaccade latencies, more saccade inhibition errors, and increased rate of saccadic intrusions compared to participants without AN. However, it remains unknown whether these abnormal eye movement patterns, which may serve as potential biomarkers and endophenotypes for an early diagnosis and preventive clinical treatments, start to manifest also in people with subclinical eating disorders (ED) symptomatology. Therefore, we propose a protocol for an exploratory experimental study to investigate whether participants with subclinical ED symptomatology and control participants differ in their performance on several eye movement tasks. METHODS The sample will be recruited through convenience sampling. The Eating Disorder Examination Questionnaire will be administered as a screening tool to split the sample into participants with subclinical ED symptomatology and control participants. A fixation task, prosaccade/antisaccade task, and memory-guided task will be administered to both groups. Additionally, we will measure anxiety and premorbid intelligence as confounding variables. Means comparison, exploratory Pearson's correlations and discriminant analysis will be performed. DISCUSSION This study will be the first to elucidate the presence of specific eye movement abnormalities in participants with subclinical ED symptomatology. The results may open opportunities for developing novel diagnostic tools/therapies being helpful to the EDs research community and allied fields.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sergio Navas-León
- Department of Psychology, Universidad Loyola Andalucía, Sevilla, Spain
| | | | - Ana Tajadura-Jiménez
- DEI Interactive Systems Group, Department of Computer Science and Engineering, Universidad Carlos III de Madrid, Leganés, Spain
- UCL Interaction Centre (UCLIC), University College London, University of London, London, UK
| | - Lize De Coster
- UCL Interaction Centre (UCLIC), University College London, University of London, London, UK
| | | | - Luis Morales
- Department of Psychology, Universidad Loyola Andalucía, Sevilla, Spain
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22
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Couton C, Gorwood P, Pham-Scottez A, Poupon D, Duriez P. Pupil psychosensory reflex in response to own and standardised silhouettes in patients with anorexia nervosa. EUROPEAN EATING DISORDERS REVIEW 2022; 30:135-145. [PMID: 34984760 DOI: 10.1002/erv.2881] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/04/2021] [Revised: 12/23/2021] [Accepted: 12/24/2021] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE This study aimed to assess the physiological response of patients with anorexia nervosa (AN) to different types of silhouettes using pupillometry. METHODS We measured the pupil psychosensory reflex (PSR) of 42 patients with AN and 35 healthy controls in response to standardised body silhouettes and to pictures of their own silhouettes digitally modified to represent different body mass indices (BMI). Perceptual distortion and body dissatisfaction were assessed using Anamorphic Micro Software©. Twenty-three of the recruited patients were tested up to four times during an inpatient treatment programme to assess the impact of weight gain. RESULTS PSR correlated with the subjective rating of emotional arousal in controls but not in patients. Own silhouettes and standardised silhouettes triggered a different pupil response both in patients with AN and in controls. With pictures of their own silhouettes, pupil response to underweight stimuli differed from pupil response to normal weight or overweight stimuli in both groups. Weight gain was associated with an increase in PSR, an improvement of ideal BMI and a decrease of body dissatisfaction, but no change in perceptual distortion. CONCLUSION Our findings support the idea that pupillometry could be a useful tool to assess the physiological state of patients with AN.
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Affiliation(s)
- Céline Couton
- Institute of Psychiatry and Neuroscience of Paris, Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale U1266, Université de Paris, Paris, France.,GHU Paris Psychiatrie et Neurosciences, Clinique des Maladies Mentales et de l'Encéphale, Hôpital Sainte-Anne, Paris, France.,Hôpital Fernand Widal AP-HP, Paris, France
| | - Philip Gorwood
- Institute of Psychiatry and Neuroscience of Paris, Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale U1266, Université de Paris, Paris, France.,GHU Paris Psychiatrie et Neurosciences, Clinique des Maladies Mentales et de l'Encéphale, Hôpital Sainte-Anne, Paris, France
| | - Alexandra Pham-Scottez
- GHU Paris Psychiatrie et Neurosciences, Clinique des Maladies Mentales et de l'Encéphale, Hôpital Sainte-Anne, Paris, France
| | - Daphnée Poupon
- GHU Paris Psychiatrie et Neurosciences, Clinique des Maladies Mentales et de l'Encéphale, Hôpital Sainte-Anne, Paris, France
| | - Philibert Duriez
- Institute of Psychiatry and Neuroscience of Paris, Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale U1266, Université de Paris, Paris, France.,GHU Paris Psychiatrie et Neurosciences, Clinique des Maladies Mentales et de l'Encéphale, Hôpital Sainte-Anne, Paris, France
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23
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Aberrant neural representation of food stimuli in women with acute anorexia nervosa predicts treatment outcome and is improved in weight restored individuals. Transl Psychiatry 2021; 11:532. [PMID: 34657121 PMCID: PMC8520531 DOI: 10.1038/s41398-021-01630-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/04/2021] [Revised: 08/18/2021] [Accepted: 09/14/2021] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Anorexia nervosa (AN) has been associated with altered reward processing. We recently reported greater neural response in secondary visual areas when processing visual food stimuli in acutely underweight AN patients (acAN). In order to examine whether the observed alterations are indicative of acute undernutrition or a potential trait marker of AN, we set out to assess neural responses in acAN and in individuals weight-recovered from AN (recAN). FMRI data were collected from a total of 126 female volunteers, 35 acAN, 33 recAN, and 58 age-matched healthy controls (HC) while they viewed streams of food, social and neutral stimuli. A standard general linear model (GLM) was used to interrogate neural responses to the different stimuli in recAN vs. age-matched HC. Moreover, within-subject multivoxel pattern analyses (MVPA) in the two matched samples (acAN/HC and recAN/HC) were used to estimate neural representation of food vs. neutral, and social vs. neutral stimuli. A multiple regression analysis was conducted to test associations between the accuracy of the neural representation and treatment outcome. The GLM revealed no group differences between recAN and HC. The MVPAs showed greater classification accuracy of food stimuli in the posterior fusiform gyrus in acAN but not recAN. Classification accuracy was associated with better treatment outcome. Our findings suggest that the neural representation of food stimuli is altered in secondary visual areas in acAN and normalizes with weight recovery. Possibly this altered representation reflects attentional engagement motivating food intake, which may promote the recovery process.
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24
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Stott N, Fox JRE, Williams MO. Attentional bias in eating disorders: A meta-review. Int J Eat Disord 2021; 54:1377-1399. [PMID: 34081355 DOI: 10.1002/eat.23560] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/04/2020] [Revised: 05/15/2021] [Accepted: 05/15/2021] [Indexed: 12/29/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE This meta-review summarizes and synthesizes the most reliable findings regarding attentional bias in eating disorders across paradigms and stimulus types and considers implications for theory and future research. METHOD Four databases were systematically searched, along with reference lists of included reviews, yielding 15 systematic reviews (four of which were also meta-analyses). The quality of each review was appraised using the AMSTAR-2. RESULTS Key findings from systematic reviews are summarized, organized by paradigm and stimulus type. DISCUSSION The authors synthesize evidence from the highest-quality studies. There is evidence for attentional avoidance and vigilance in eating disorders depending on stimulus properties (low vs. high-calorie food; high-body mass vs. low-body mass index photos of others) and attentional avoidance of food stimuli in those with anorexia nervosa. Sad mood induction may generate attentional bias for food in those with binge-eating disorder. There may also be attentional bias to general threat in eating disorder samples. This meta-review concludes that most systematic reviews in this field are low in quality and summarizes the main areas that could be improved upon in future reviews. Implications of this study's findings for theory and intervention research are also discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Natalie Stott
- School of Psychology, Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK
| | - John R E Fox
- School of Psychology, Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK
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25
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Corsi E, Cardi V, Sowden S, Coll M, Cascino G, Ricca V, Treasure J, Bird G, Monteleone AM. Socio-cognitive processing in people with eating disorders: Computerized tests of mentalizing, empathy and imitation skills. Int J Eat Disord 2021; 54:1509-1518. [PMID: 34056730 PMCID: PMC8453969 DOI: 10.1002/eat.23556] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/12/2020] [Revised: 04/18/2021] [Accepted: 05/11/2021] [Indexed: 12/02/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE Eating disorders are psychiatric illnesses characterized by extreme eating behaviors, such as sustained food restriction or loss of control over eating. Symptoms are thought to be maintained by a variety of mechanisms, one of which may be the socio-cognitive impairments associated with eating disorders. While some previous work has addressed socio-cognitive impairments in eating disorders, this work has relied mostly on self-report data. METHOD Here we employed computerized tests of (a) mentalizing (ability to infer the mental states of others); (b) empathy (the degree to which the emotional states of others can be identified and the degree to which the states of others impact one's own emotional state); and (c) imitation (the degree to which observation of another's actions prompts the performance of those actions); in a group of 78 women with an eating disorder and a matched control group of 66 healthy women. RESULTS People with eating disorders showed both hyper- and hypo-mentalizing and reduced accuracy of emotional and cognitive mental state inference. They displayed less imitation of observed actions, but no differences in empathy compared to healthy controls. Although anxiety and depressive symptoms had significant effects on mentalizing, most of the observed inter-group differences persisted. DISCUSSION Women with eating disorders have difficulties mentalizing and imitating observed actions despite intact non-social automatic imitation, compared to healthy controls. These findings provide an indication that intervention modules to strengthen specific areas of social cognition might be helpful to improve patients' social skills.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elisa Corsi
- Department of Psychological Medicine, Section of Eating DisordersInstitute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King's College LondonLondonUK
- Psychiatry Unit, Department of Health SciencesUniversity of FlorenceFlorenceItaly
| | - Valentina Cardi
- Department of Psychological Medicine, Section of Eating DisordersInstitute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King's College LondonLondonUK
- Department of General PsychologyUniversity of PadovaPadovaItaly
| | | | | | - Giammarco Cascino
- Department of Medicine, Surgery and Dentistry ‘Scuola Medica Salernitana’, Section of NeurosciencesUniversity of SalernoSalernoItaly
| | - Valdo Ricca
- Psychiatry Unit, Department of Health SciencesUniversity of FlorenceFlorenceItaly
| | - Janet Treasure
- Department of Psychological Medicine, Section of Eating DisordersInstitute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King's College LondonLondonUK
| | - Geoffrey Bird
- Department of Experimental PsychologyUniversity of OxfordOxfordUK
- Social, Genetic and Developmental Psychiatry CentreInstitute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King's College LondonLondonUK
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26
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Wolf A, Ueda K. Contribution of Eye-Tracking to Study Cognitive Impairments Among Clinical Populations. Front Psychol 2021; 12:590986. [PMID: 34163391 PMCID: PMC8215550 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2021.590986] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/03/2020] [Accepted: 05/07/2021] [Indexed: 11/29/2022] Open
Abstract
In the field of psychology, the merge of decision-theory and neuroscientific methods produces an array of scientifically recognized paradigms. For example, by exploring consumer’s eye-movement behavior, researchers aim to deepen the understanding of how patterns of retinal activation are being meaningfully transformed into visual experiences and connected with specific reactions (e.g., purchase). Notably, eye-movements provide knowledge of one’s homeostatic balance and gatekeep information that shape decisions. Hence, vision science investigates the quality of observed environments determined under various experimental conditions. Moreover, it answers questions on how human process visual stimuli and use gained information for a successful strategy to achieve certain goals. While capturing cognitive states with the support of the eye-trackers progresses at a relatively fast pace in decision-making research, measuring the visual performance of real-life tasks, which require complex cognitive skills, is tentatively translated into clinical experiments. Nevertheless, the potential of the human eye as a highly valuable source of biomarkers has been underlined. In this article, we aim to draw readers attention to decision-making experimental paradigms supported with eye-tracking technology among clinical populations. Such interdisciplinary approach may become an important component that will (i) help in objectively illustrating patient’s models of beliefs and values, (ii) support clinical interventions, and (iii) contribute to health services. It is possible that shortly, eye-movement data from decision-making experiments will grant the scientific community a greater understanding of mechanisms underlining mental states and consumption practices that medical professionals consider as obsessions, disorders or addiction.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexandra Wolf
- JSPS International Research Fellow, Research Center for Applied Perceptual Science, Kyushu University, Fukuoka, Japan
| | - Kazuo Ueda
- Unit of Perceptual Psychology, Dept. Human Science, Research Center for Applied Perceptual Science, Division of Auditory and Visual Perception Research, Research and Development Center for Five-Sense Devices, Kyushu University, Fukuoka, Japan
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27
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Food-related impulsivity assessed by longitudinal laboratory tasks is reduced in patients with binge eating disorder in a randomized controlled trial. Sci Rep 2021; 11:8225. [PMID: 33859214 PMCID: PMC8050257 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-021-87231-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/07/2020] [Accepted: 03/23/2021] [Indexed: 01/12/2023] Open
Abstract
Food-related impulsivity, i.e. a food-related attentional bias proposed to be due to increased reward sensitivity and diminished inhibitory control, has been cross-sectionally associated with binge eating disorder. To analyze changes in food-related impulsivity, we implemented longitudinal analyses of objective laboratory tasks in a randomized controlled trial called IMPULS. Patients who attended an impulsivity-focused group intervention (IG N = 31) and control patients who did not take part in the intervention (CG N = 25) were compared before (T0) and after the intervention period (T1) and at three months follow-up (T2). Patients’ impulsive gaze behavior towards food vs. neutral stimuli was measured in two eye tracking paradigms, one addressing reward sensitivity and another addressing inhibitory control. Initial fixations of food vs. neutral stimuli were increased at T0 (IG: p = .014, CG: p = .001), but not at T1 and T2 in IG (T1: p = .178, T2: p = .203) and in CG after Bonferroni correction only at T2 (T1: p = .031, T2: p = .002). Patients from IG increased dwell time on neutral stimuli at T1 contrary to patients from CG (p = .016) and rated the presented food stimuli as less positive (e.g. pleasantness p < .001 at T1 and T2). A possible explanation for this observation is reduced reward sensitivity, which implies a short-term treatment effect. Both groups showed improvement in inhibiting eye movements towards food and neutral stimuli over time (i.e. first saccade errors overall p < .001, second saccade errors overall p < .003). This could indicate increased inhibitory control due to training effects from the study paradigm. The results suggest that food-related impulsivity represents an underlying mechanism of BED and that it is modifiable by cognitive behavioral interventions.
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28
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Xie JQ, Rost DH, Wang FX, Wang JL, Monk RL. The association between excessive social media use and distraction: An eye movement tracking study. INFORMATION & MANAGEMENT 2021. [DOI: 10.1016/j.im.2020.103415] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/05/2023]
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29
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AN-VR-BE. A Randomized Controlled Trial for Reducing Fear of Gaining Weight and Other Eating Disorder Symptoms in Anorexia Nervosa through Virtual Reality-Based Body Exposure. J Clin Med 2021; 10:jcm10040682. [PMID: 33578767 PMCID: PMC7916489 DOI: 10.3390/jcm10040682] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/13/2021] [Revised: 02/03/2021] [Accepted: 02/07/2021] [Indexed: 12/18/2022] Open
Abstract
In vivo body exposure therapy is considered an effective and suitable intervention to help patients with anorexia nervosa (AN) reduce their body image disturbances (BIDs). However, these interventions have notable limitations and cannot effectively reproduce certain fears usually found in AN, such as the fear of gaining weight (FGW). The latest developments in virtual reality (VR) technology and embodiment-based procedures could overcome these limitations and allow AN patients to confront their FGW and BIDs. This study aimed to provide further evidence of the efficacy of an enhanced (by means of embodiment) VR-based body exposure therapy for the treatment of AN. Thirty-five AN patients (16 in the experimental group, 19 in the control group) participated in the study. FGW, BIDs, and other body-related and ED measures were assessed before and after the intervention and three months later. The experimental group received treatment as usual (TAU) and five additional sessions of VR-based body exposure therapy, while the control group received only TAU. After the intervention, ED symptoms were clearly reduced in both groups, with most of the changes being more noticeable in the experimental group. Specifically, after the intervention and at follow-up, significant group differences were found in the FGW and BIDs, with the experimental group showing significantly lower values than the control group. The current study provides new insights and encouraging findings in the field of exposure-based therapies in AN. VR technology might improve research and clinical practice in AN by providing new tools to help patients confront their core fears (i.e., food- or weight-related cues) and improve their emotional, cognitive, and behavioral responses to their body image.
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30
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Dörsam AF, Mack I, Kögel L, Zipfel S, Giel KE. How do patients with eating disorders perceive and evaluate food portion sizes? A systematic review. EUROPEAN EATING DISORDERS REVIEW 2020; 28:398-409. [PMID: 32567175 DOI: 10.1002/erv.2743] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/14/2020] [Revised: 03/31/2020] [Accepted: 04/24/2020] [Indexed: 11/11/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE The selection of adequate portion sizes plays a key role in the nutritional treatment of eating disorders (EDs). There is limited knowledge concerning the estimation of portion sizes in individuals with EDs. METHOD We performed a systematic review according to the PRISMA statement to synthesise current evidence in this field. Of N = 584 hits, four full-texts were included in the qualitative synthesis. RESULTS While patients with anorexia nervosa (AN) tend to overestimate the size of energy-dense food items and small to medium sized meal portions, they do not show a different estimation compared to healthy controls when judging the amount of food pieces. Large portion sizes were associated with increased anxiety in patients with AN. DISCUSSION The overestimation of food portion sizes seems to be driven by attitudinal and/or higher cognitive factors associated with AN. Differences between the studies are discussed and suggestions for future studies are given.
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Affiliation(s)
- Annica Franziska Dörsam
- Department of Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, University Hospital Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany.,Competence Center for Eating Disorders (KOMET), Tübingen, Germany
| | - Isabelle Mack
- Department of Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, University Hospital Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany.,Competence Center for Eating Disorders (KOMET), Tübingen, Germany
| | - Laura Kögel
- Department of Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, University Hospital Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany.,Competence Center for Eating Disorders (KOMET), Tübingen, Germany
| | - Stephan Zipfel
- Department of Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, University Hospital Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany.,Competence Center for Eating Disorders (KOMET), Tübingen, Germany
| | - Katrin Elisabeth Giel
- Department of Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, University Hospital Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany.,Competence Center for Eating Disorders (KOMET), Tübingen, Germany
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31
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Nuñez-Gomez P, Alvarez-Ruiz A, Ortega-Mohedano F, Alvarez-Flores EP. Neuromarketing Highlights in How Asperger Syndrome Youth Perceive Advertising. Front Psychol 2020; 11:2103. [PMID: 33117205 PMCID: PMC7575727 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2020.02103] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/12/2020] [Accepted: 07/28/2020] [Indexed: 12/27/2022] Open
Abstract
This study examines how advertising material and brands related to organizational communication are perceived by people with Asperger syndrome, a form of autism. The main objective of the study was to understand whether the perception of advertising differs between individuals with AS and a neurotypical population. Neuromarketing techniques were used to examine two key variables, attention and emotion, which were also measured by physiological and biometric variables. The results were compared with those of a control group from a neurotypical population; i.e., participants who had not been diagnosed with any type of developmental disorder. Commercial advertisements were the preferred material used in this research although social-themed advertisements were also included, some produced by commercial companies and others by institutional advertisers (NGOs and foundations). Qualitative techniques were also used to explain the observed phenomena. Data revealed significant differences between the two groups in their perception of advertising and organizational communication with respect to attention and emotion variables.
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Affiliation(s)
- Patricia Nuñez-Gomez
- Department of Applied Communication Studies, Faculty of Media and Communication Science, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Madrid, Spain
| | - Anton Alvarez-Ruiz
- Department of Applied Communication Studies, Faculty of Media and Communication Science, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Madrid, Spain
| | - Felix Ortega-Mohedano
- Department of Sociology and Communication, University of Salamanca, Salamanca, Spain
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32
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Mañas-Viniegra L, González-Villa IA, Llorente-Barroso C. The Corporate Purpose of Spanish Listed Companies: Neurocommunication Research Applied to Organizational Intangibles. Front Psychol 2020; 11:2108. [PMID: 33117206 PMCID: PMC7574645 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2020.02108] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/20/2020] [Accepted: 07/29/2020] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Purpose driven companies have developed their corporate culture with a commitment to stakeholders, Sustainable Development Goals, and social responsibility, prioritizing the management of organizational intangibles over capital. The overall objective of this research is to gain knowledge regarding the attention and emotional intensity registered by young Spanish university students when visualizing corporate purpose versus corporate visual identity, as well as the image of the Chairman of the main Spanish companies quoted on the IBEX 35. The techniques of eye tracking and galvanic skin response have been used with 31 Spanish university students. The results suggest that brands with the highest brand equity in the Interbrand (2019) ranking are also the ones that receive the highest levels of attention and emotional arousal, and that a well-formulated corporate purpose is not enough to satisfy the public if company credibility is low due to previous perceptions of an organization.
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Affiliation(s)
- Luis Mañas-Viniegra
- Department of Applied Communication Studies, Complutense University of Madrid, Madrid, Spain
| | | | - Carmen Llorente-Barroso
- Department of Applied Communication Studies, Complutense University of Madrid, Madrid, Spain
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33
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Porras-Garcia B, Ferrer-Garcia M, Serrano-Troncoso E, Carulla-Roig M, Soto-Usera P, Miquel-Nabau H, Shojaeian N, de la Montaña Santos-Carrasco I, Borszewski B, Díaz-Marsá M, Sánchez-Díaz I, Fernández-Aranda F, Gutiérrez-Maldonado J. Validity of Virtual Reality Body Exposure to Elicit Fear of Gaining Weight, Body Anxiety and Body-Related Attentional Bias in Patients with Anorexia Nervosa. J Clin Med 2020; 9:E3210. [PMID: 33027945 PMCID: PMC7600187 DOI: 10.3390/jcm9103210] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/28/2020] [Revised: 10/01/2020] [Accepted: 10/02/2020] [Indexed: 12/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Fear of gaining weight (FGW), body image disturbances, associated anxiety and body-related attentional bias are the core symptoms of anorexia nervosa (AN) and play critical roles in its development and maintenance. The aim of the current study is to evaluate the usefulness of virtual reality-based body exposure software for the assessment of important body-related cognitive and emotional responses in AN. Thirty female patients with AN, one of them subclinical, and 43 healthy college women, 25 with low body dissatisfaction (BD) and 18 with high BD, owned a virtual body that had their silhouette and body mass index. Full-body illusion (FBI) over the virtual body was induced using both visuo-motor and visuo-tactile stimulation. Once the FBI was induced, the FBI itself, FGW, body anxiety and body-related attentional bias toward weight-related and non-weight-related body areas were assessed. One-way analyses of covariance (ANCOVA), controlling for age, showed that AN patients reported higher FGW, body anxiety and body-related attentional bias than healthy controls. Unexpectedly, patients with AN reported significantly lower FBI levels than healthy participants. Finally, Pearson correlations showed significant relationships between visual analog scales and body-related attentional bias measures, compared to other eating disorder measures. These results provide evidence about the usefulness of virtual reality-based body exposure to elicit FGW and other body-related disturbances in AN patients. Thus, it may be a suitable intervention for reducing these emotional responses and for easing weight recovery.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bruno Porras-Garcia
- Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychobiology, University of Barcelona, Passeig de la Vall d’Hebron 171, 08035 Barcelona, Spain; (B.P.-G.); (M.F.-G.); (H.M.-N.); (N.S.)
| | - Marta Ferrer-Garcia
- Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychobiology, University of Barcelona, Passeig de la Vall d’Hebron 171, 08035 Barcelona, Spain; (B.P.-G.); (M.F.-G.); (H.M.-N.); (N.S.)
| | - Eduardo Serrano-Troncoso
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychology, Hospital Sant Joan de Déu of Barcelona; Passeig de Sant Joan de Déu, 2, 08950 Esplugues de Llobregat, Spain; (E.S.-T.); (M.C.-R.); (P.S.-U.)
| | - Marta Carulla-Roig
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychology, Hospital Sant Joan de Déu of Barcelona; Passeig de Sant Joan de Déu, 2, 08950 Esplugues de Llobregat, Spain; (E.S.-T.); (M.C.-R.); (P.S.-U.)
| | - Pau Soto-Usera
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychology, Hospital Sant Joan de Déu of Barcelona; Passeig de Sant Joan de Déu, 2, 08950 Esplugues de Llobregat, Spain; (E.S.-T.); (M.C.-R.); (P.S.-U.)
| | - Helena Miquel-Nabau
- Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychobiology, University of Barcelona, Passeig de la Vall d’Hebron 171, 08035 Barcelona, Spain; (B.P.-G.); (M.F.-G.); (H.M.-N.); (N.S.)
| | - Nazilla Shojaeian
- Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychobiology, University of Barcelona, Passeig de la Vall d’Hebron 171, 08035 Barcelona, Spain; (B.P.-G.); (M.F.-G.); (H.M.-N.); (N.S.)
| | - Isabel de la Montaña Santos-Carrasco
- Department of Psychiatry and Mental Health, Hospital Clínico San Carlos, Madrid, Calle del Prof Martín Lagos, s/n, 28040 Madrid, Spain; (I.d.l.M.S.-C.); (B.B.); (M.D.-M.)
| | - Bianca Borszewski
- Department of Psychiatry and Mental Health, Hospital Clínico San Carlos, Madrid, Calle del Prof Martín Lagos, s/n, 28040 Madrid, Spain; (I.d.l.M.S.-C.); (B.B.); (M.D.-M.)
| | - Marina Díaz-Marsá
- Department of Psychiatry and Mental Health, Hospital Clínico San Carlos, Madrid, Calle del Prof Martín Lagos, s/n, 28040 Madrid, Spain; (I.d.l.M.S.-C.); (B.B.); (M.D.-M.)
| | - Isabel Sánchez-Díaz
- Department of Psychiatry and Mental Health, Hospital Universitario de Bellvitge- IDIBELL and CIBEROBN, Barcelona; Carrer Feixa Llarga s/n, 08907 Hospitalet del Llobregat, Spain; (I.S.-D.); (F.F.-A.)
| | - Fernando Fernández-Aranda
- Department of Psychiatry and Mental Health, Hospital Universitario de Bellvitge- IDIBELL and CIBEROBN, Barcelona; Carrer Feixa Llarga s/n, 08907 Hospitalet del Llobregat, Spain; (I.S.-D.); (F.F.-A.)
| | - José Gutiérrez-Maldonado
- Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychobiology, University of Barcelona, Passeig de la Vall d’Hebron 171, 08035 Barcelona, Spain; (B.P.-G.); (M.F.-G.); (H.M.-N.); (N.S.)
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Phillipou A, Abel LA, Gurvich C, Castle DJ, Rossell SL. Eye movements in anorexia nervosa: State or trait markers? Int J Eat Disord 2020; 53:1678-1684. [PMID: 32720354 DOI: 10.1002/eat.23345] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/19/2020] [Revised: 06/25/2020] [Accepted: 06/25/2020] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE Differences in saccadic eye movements are widely reported in mental illnesses, and can indirectly inform our understanding of neurobiological and cognitive underpinnings of psychiatric conditions, including anorexia nervosa (AN). Preliminary research has suggested that individuals with AN may show specific eye movement abnormalities; whether these deficits are representative of state or trait effects is, however, unclear. The aim of this study was to identify whether there are demonstrable differences in performance on saccadic eye movement tasks in individuals with current AN (c-AN), those who are weight-restored from AN (wr-AN), biological sisters of individuals with AN (AN-sis), and healthy controls (HC). METHODS Eighty participants took part in the study (n = 20/group). A set of saccadic eye movement tasks was administered, including prosaccade, antisaccade, memory-guided saccade, and visual scanpath tasks. RESULTS The c-AN group showed an increased rate of inhibitory errors to 10° targets on the memory-guided saccade task. DISCUSSION The results are discussed in terms of the potential role of the superior colliculus in AN, and that the findings may reflect a state measure of AN.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrea Phillipou
- Centre for Mental Health, Swinburne University of Technology, Melbourne, Australia.,Department of Mental Health, St Vincent's Hospital, Melbourne, Australia.,Department of Psychiatry, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia.,Department of Mental Health, Austin Health, Melbourne, Australia
| | - Larry A Abel
- Optometry, School of Medicine, Deakin University, Waurn Ponds, Australia
| | - Caroline Gurvich
- Monash Alfred Psychiatry Research Centre, Monash University & The Alfred Hospital, Melbourne, Australia
| | - David J Castle
- Department of Mental Health, St Vincent's Hospital, Melbourne, Australia.,Department of Psychiatry, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia
| | - Susan L Rossell
- Centre for Mental Health, Swinburne University of Technology, Melbourne, Australia.,Department of Mental Health, St Vincent's Hospital, Melbourne, Australia
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Giel KE, Conzelmann A, Renner TJ, Richter T, Martin Benito S, Zipfel S, Schag K. Attention allocation to illness-compatible information discriminates women with active versus weight-recovered anorexia nervosa. Int J Eat Disord 2020; 53:1270-1279. [PMID: 31840847 DOI: 10.1002/eat.23209] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/19/2019] [Revised: 11/19/2019] [Accepted: 11/24/2019] [Indexed: 01/22/2023]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE Biased attention for disorder-relevant information plays a crucial role in the maintenance of different mental disorders including eating disorders and might be of use to define recovery beyond symptom-related criteria. METHOD We assessed attention deployment using eye tracking in a cued choice viewing paradigm to two different categories of disorder-relevant stimuli in 24 individuals with acute anorexia nervosa (AN), 20 weight-recovered individuals with a history of AN (WRAN) and 23 healthy control participants (CG). Picture pairs consisted of a food stimulus or a picture depicting physical activity and a matched control stimulus (household item/physical inactivity). Participants rated the valence of stimuli afterwards. RESULTS The groups did not differ in initial attention deployment. In later processing stages, AN patients showed a generalized attentional avoidance of food and control pictures as compared to CG, while WRAN individuals were in between. AN patients showed an attentional bias toward physical activity pictures as compared to WRAN individuals, but not the CG. AN individuals rated the food pictures and the pictures showing physical inactivity as less pleasant than the CG, while WRAN individuals were in between. DISCUSSION Attention deployment is partly changed in WRAN as compared to the acute AN group, especially with regard to a shift away from illness-compatible stimuli (physical activity), and this might be a useful recovery criterion. Valence rating of food stimuli might be an additional useful tool to distinguish between acutely ill and weight-recovered individuals. Attentional biases for illness-compatible stimuli might qualify as a valuable approach to defining recovery in AN.
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Affiliation(s)
- Katrin E Giel
- Department of Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, Medical University Hospital Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany.,Competence Center for Eating Disorders, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Annette Conzelmann
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Psychosomatics and Psychotherapy, Medical University Hospital Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany.,Department of Psychology (Clinical Psychology II), Private University of Applied Sciences, Göttingen, Germany
| | - Tobias J Renner
- Competence Center for Eating Disorders, Tübingen, Germany.,Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Psychosomatics and Psychotherapy, Medical University Hospital Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Tabea Richter
- Department of Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, Medical University Hospital Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany.,Department of Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, Hospital Christophsbad, Göppingen, Germany
| | - Sebastian Martin Benito
- Department of Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, Medical University Hospital Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany.,Center for Schooling Quality and Teacher Training, Schools Psychological Counseling Center Backnang, Regional Office Schwäbisch Gmünd, Schwäbisch Gmünd, Germany
| | - Stephan Zipfel
- Department of Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, Medical University Hospital Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany.,Competence Center for Eating Disorders, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Kathrin Schag
- Department of Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, Medical University Hospital Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany.,Competence Center for Eating Disorders, Tübingen, Germany
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36
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Body-Related Attentional Bias among Men with High and Low Muscularity Dissatisfaction. J Clin Med 2020; 9:jcm9061736. [PMID: 32512745 PMCID: PMC7355895 DOI: 10.3390/jcm9061736] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/30/2020] [Revised: 05/26/2020] [Accepted: 06/02/2020] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Previous studies have found gender differences in body-related attentional bias (AB), with women showing AB towards weight-related body parts. However, few studies have assessed the relationship between body-related AB and muscularity dissatisfaction (MD) in men. This study aimed to assess the presence of muscle-related AB in men, using a combination of a virtual reality (VR) embodiment-based technique and eye-tracking (ET) technology. Twenty men with high MD and 20 with low MD, owned a virtual avatar that had the same silhouette and body mass index as the participant. To analyze the gaze data, muscle-related areas of interest (M-AOIs) and nonmuscle-related areas of interest (NM-AOIs) were defined. The complete fixation time and the number of fixations on each AOI were recorded. Mixed between (group)-within (AOI_condition) analyses of variance showed a statistically significant interaction between group and time (p < 0.05) in both AB measures. Follow-up analyses revealed an AB towards M-AOIs only in men with high MD. Overall, men with high MD spent more time looking and displayed a higher number of fixations on M-AOIs, specifically the chest and shoulders, compared to men with low MD. This study provides new information about the relationship between MD and body-related AB in men. Combining VR with ET technologies presents interesting opportunities in the study of body image in men.
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Bartuzel MM, Wróbel K, Tamborski S, Meina M, Nowakowski M, Dalasiński K, Szkulmowska A, Szkulmowski M. High-resolution, ultrafast, wide-field retinal eye-tracking for enhanced quantification of fixational and saccadic motion. BIOMEDICAL OPTICS EXPRESS 2020; 11:3164-3180. [PMID: 32637248 PMCID: PMC7316009 DOI: 10.1364/boe.392849] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/18/2020] [Revised: 04/30/2020] [Accepted: 05/07/2020] [Indexed: 05/23/2023]
Abstract
We introduce a novel, noninvasive retinal eye-tracking system capable of detecting eye displacements with an angular resolution of 0.039 arcmin and a maximum velocity of 300°/s across an 8° span. Our system is designed based on a confocal retinal imaging module similar to a scanning laser ophthalmoscope. It utilizes a 2D MEMS scanner ensuring high image frame acquisition frequencies up to 1.24 kHz. In contrast with leading eye-tracking technology, we measure the eye displacements via the collection of the observed spatial excursions for all the times corresponding a full acquisition cycle, thus obviating the need for both a baseline reference frame and absolute spatial calibration. Using this approach, we demonstrate the precise measurement of eye movements with magnitudes exceeding the spatial extent of a single frame, which is not possible using existing image-based retinal trackers. We describe our retinal tracker, tracking algorithms and assess the performance of our system by using programmed artificial eye movements. We also demonstrate the clinical capabilities of our system with in vivo subjects by detecting microsaccades with angular extents as small as 0.028°. The rich kinematic ocular data provided by our system with its exquisite degree of accuracy and extended dynamic range opens new and exciting avenues in retinal imaging and clinical neuroscience. Several subtle features of ocular motion such as saccadic dysfunction, fixation instability and abnormal smooth pursuit can be readily extracted and inferred from the measured retinal trajectories thus offering a promising tool for identifying biomarkers of neurodegenerative diseases associated with these ocular symptoms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maciej M. Bartuzel
- Institute of Physics, Faculty of Physics, Astronomy and Informatics, Nicolaus Copernicus University in Toruń, Grudziądzka 5, Toruń 87-100, Poland
- Faculty of Fundamental Problems of Technology, Wroclaw University of Science and Technology, Wyb. Wyspiańskiego 27, Wrocław 50-370, Poland
| | - Krystian Wróbel
- Institute of Physics, Faculty of Physics, Astronomy and Informatics, Nicolaus Copernicus University in Toruń, Grudziądzka 5, Toruń 87-100, Poland
| | - Szymon Tamborski
- Institute of Physics, Faculty of Physics, Astronomy and Informatics, Nicolaus Copernicus University in Toruń, Grudziądzka 5, Toruń 87-100, Poland
| | - Michał Meina
- Institute of Physics, Faculty of Physics, Astronomy and Informatics, Nicolaus Copernicus University in Toruń, Grudziądzka 5, Toruń 87-100, Poland
- AM2M Ltd. L.P., Mickiewicza 7/17, Toruń 87-100, Poland
| | | | | | | | - Maciej Szkulmowski
- Institute of Physics, Faculty of Physics, Astronomy and Informatics, Nicolaus Copernicus University in Toruń, Grudziądzka 5, Toruń 87-100, Poland
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38
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Kerr-Gaffney J, Mason L, Jones E, Hayward H, Ahmad J, Harrison A, Loth E, Murphy D, Tchanturia K. Emotion Recognition Abilities in Adults with Anorexia Nervosa are Associated with Autistic Traits. J Clin Med 2020; 9:E1057. [PMID: 32276387 PMCID: PMC7230901 DOI: 10.3390/jcm9041057] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/20/2020] [Revised: 04/02/2020] [Accepted: 04/03/2020] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Difficulties in socio-emotional functioning are proposed to contribute to the development and maintenance of anorexia nervosa (AN). This study aimed to examine emotion recognition abilities in individuals in the acute and recovered stages of AN compared to healthy controls (HCs). A second aim was to examine whether attention to faces and comorbid psychopathology predicted emotion recognition abilities. The films expressions task was administered to 148 participants (46 AN, 51 recovered AN, 51 HC) to assess emotion recognition, during which attention to faces was recorded using eye-tracking. Comorbid psychopathology was assessed using self-report questionnaires and the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule-2nd edition (ADOS-2). No significant differences in emotion recognition abilities or attention to faces were found between groups. However, individuals with a lifetime history of AN who scored above the clinical cut-off on the ADOS-2 displayed poorer emotion recognition performance than those scoring below cut-off and HCs. ADOS-2 scores significantly predicted emotion recognition abilities while controlling for group membership and intelligence. Difficulties in emotion recognition appear to be associated with high autism spectrum disorder (ASD) traits, rather than a feature of AN. Whether individuals with AN and high ASD traits may require different treatment strategies or adaptations is a question for future research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jess Kerr-Gaffney
- Department of Psychological Medicine, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King’s College London, London SE5 8AB, UK;
| | - Luke Mason
- Centre for Brain & Cognitive Development, Birkbeck, University of London, London WC1E 7JL, UK
| | - Emily Jones
- Centre for Brain & Cognitive Development, Birkbeck, University of London, London WC1E 7JL, UK
| | - Hannah Hayward
- Department of Forensic & Neurodevelopmental Sciences, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King’s College London, London SE5 8AB, UK
| | - Jumana Ahmad
- School of Human Sciences, University of Greenwich, London SE10 9LS, UK
| | - Amy Harrison
- Department of Psychology and Human Development, University College London, London WC1H 0AA, UK
- South London and Maudsley NHS Trust, National Eating Disorders Service, Psychological Medicine Clinical Academic Group, London SE5 8AZ, UK
| | - Eva Loth
- Department of Forensic & Neurodevelopmental Sciences, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King’s College London, London SE5 8AB, UK
| | - Declan Murphy
- Department of Forensic & Neurodevelopmental Sciences, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King’s College London, London SE5 8AB, UK
| | - Kate Tchanturia
- Department of Psychological Medicine, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King’s College London, London SE5 8AB, UK;
- South London and Maudsley NHS Trust, National Eating Disorders Service, Psychological Medicine Clinical Academic Group, London SE5 8AZ, UK
- Department of Psychology, Ilia State University, Tbilisi 0162, Georgia
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Porras-Garcia B, Ferrer-Garcia M, Yilmaz L, Sen YO, Olszewska A, Ghita A, Serrano-Troncoso E, Treasure J, Gutiérrez-Maldonado J. Body-related attentional bias as mediator of the relationship between body mass index and body dissatisfaction. EUROPEAN EATING DISORDERS REVIEW 2020; 28:454-464. [PMID: 32155304 DOI: 10.1002/erv.2730] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/18/2019] [Revised: 02/13/2020] [Accepted: 02/23/2020] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
Abstract
Body image disturbance, consisting of an affective (body dissatisfaction) and perceptual (body distortion) component, is not only found in eating disorders, but is also present in healthy individuals, affecting their psychological well-being and everyday life. A higher body mass index is associated with higher body dissatisfaction, whereas results in relation to body distortion are mixed. Furthermore, body dissatisfaction is associated with a weight-related attentional bias. This study aimed to investigate the mediating role of a weight-related attentional bias in the relationship between body mass index and body image disturbance. Forty-one college women took part in a virtual reality and eye tracking procedure, in which the illusion of owning a virtual avatar with their body measurements was induced. During this procedure, body-related attentional bias was measured and afterwards body image disturbance was assessed. Mediation analysis revealed that weight-related attentional bias mediated the relationship between body mass index and body dissatisfaction (but not distortion). These findings suggest that modifying weight-related attentional bias would be a useful treatment target for improving body dissatisfaction. In addition, virtual reality technology could serve as an innovative method for modifying attentional bias in an ecologically valid way. HIGHLIGHTS: This Virtual Reality and Eye-Tracking study expands our knowledge about the relation between body mass index, body-related attention and body image disturbances. The results suggest that attentional bias towards weight-related body parts mediates the relation between BMI and body dissatisfaction. On the contrary, the relation between BMI and body distortion was not significant.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bruno Porras-Garcia
- Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychobiology, University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Marta Ferrer-Garcia
- Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychobiology, University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Lena Yilmaz
- Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychobiology, University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Yigit O Sen
- Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychobiology, University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Agata Olszewska
- Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychobiology, University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Alexandra Ghita
- Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychobiology, University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Eduardo Serrano-Troncoso
- Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychology Department, Hospital Sant Joan de Déu of Barcelona, Esplugues de Llobregat, Spain
| | - Janet Treasure
- Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience, King's College London, London, UK
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40
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Mañas-Viniegra L, Núñez-Gómez P, Tur-Viñes V. Neuromarketing as a strategic tool for predicting how Instagramers have an influence on the personal identity of adolescents and young people in Spain. Heliyon 2020; 6:e03578. [PMID: 32195398 PMCID: PMC7075991 DOI: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2020.e03578] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/06/2019] [Revised: 01/08/2020] [Accepted: 03/09/2020] [Indexed: 11/27/2022] Open
Abstract
Instagram is the fastest growing social network and has an audience that shares lifestyles related to their interest in beauty and fashion. However, the exposure of adolescents to images that promote the slender beauty ideal can lead to body dissatisfaction, as they place a lot of importance on the likes and comments they receive regarding the comparison of their appearance with that of other users. The popularity of influencers and their opinion leadership has resulted in the convergence of a given body image with the promotion of products and brands. Through the use of neuromarketing techniques -attention through eye tracking, and emotion using galvanic skin response-, the objective of this research is to determine the cognitive perception that Spanish adolescents and young people have of the stimuli transmitted by influencers on Instagram, surpassing classic content analysis of social networks and offering the innovative technique of registering unconscious reactions of the audience, both toward the body image as well as toward the brands promoted by influencers who are akin to the audience. The results suggest that adolescents place greater attention and emotional intensity on the nude body appeal of influencers compared to young adults, and show only scarce interest in brands.
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Affiliation(s)
- Luis Mañas-Viniegra
- Department of Applied Communication Studies, Complutense University of Madrid, Spain
| | - Patricia Núñez-Gómez
- Department of Applied Communication Studies, Complutense University of Madrid, Spain
| | - Victoria Tur-Viñes
- Department of Communication and Social Psychology, University of Alicante, Spain
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41
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Engel N, Waldorf M, Hartmann A, Voßbeck-Elsebusch A, Vocks S. Is It Possible to Train the Focus on Positive and Negative Parts of One's Own Body? A Pilot Randomized Controlled Study on Attentional Bias Modification Training. Front Psychol 2020; 10:2890. [PMID: 31920898 PMCID: PMC6934133 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2019.02890] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/24/2019] [Accepted: 12/05/2019] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Dysfunctional body- and shape-related attentional biases are involved in the etiology and maintenance of eating disorders (ED). Various studies suggest that women, particularly those with ED diagnoses, focus on negatively evaluated parts of their own body, which leads to an increase in body dissatisfaction. The present study aims to empirically test the hypothesis that non-ED women show an attentional bias toward negative body parts and that the focus on positive and negative parts of one’s own body can be modified by attentional bias modification training based on a dot-probe task. Although several studies have measured body-related attentional biases by using pictures of participants’ own bodies, the approach of investigating attentional bias via a dot-probe task while presenting pictures of the participants’ own body parts and modifying the biased attention using such pictures is novel. Women (n = 60) rank-ordered 10 parts of their own body regarding their attractiveness. To examine and modify the attentional focus, pictures of the self-defined positive and negative parts of one’s own body were presented by means of a dot-probe task. A paired-sample t-test revealed no difference between reaction times to negative compared to positive body parts, indicating no attentional bias toward negative parts of one’s own body. A two-way ANOVA revealed a main effect of time for pictures of positive and negative parts of one’s own body, with a decrease in reaction times from pre- to post-training. However, there was no significant interaction between time and training condition concerning reaction times to positive and negative body parts. Our findings replicate previous evidence of a balanced attentional pattern regarding one’s own body in women without ED diagnoses. However, the dot-probe task failed to modify the attentional focus. As the modifiability of state body image increases with more pronounced body dissatisfaction, the next step would be to test this approach in clinical samples of women with ED diagnoses.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicole Engel
- Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, University of Osnabrück, Osnabrück, Germany
| | - Manuel Waldorf
- Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, University of Osnabrück, Osnabrück, Germany
| | - Andrea Hartmann
- Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, University of Osnabrück, Osnabrück, Germany
| | - Anna Voßbeck-Elsebusch
- Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, University of Osnabrück, Osnabrück, Germany.,Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, University of Münster, Münster, Germany
| | - Silja Vocks
- Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, University of Osnabrück, Osnabrück, Germany
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42
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Ralph-Nearman C, Achee M, Lapidus R, Stewart JL, Filik R. A systematic and methodological review of attentional biases in eating disorders: Food, body, and perfectionism. Brain Behav 2019; 9:e01458. [PMID: 31696674 PMCID: PMC6908865 DOI: 10.1002/brb3.1458] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/28/2019] [Accepted: 10/05/2019] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
OBJECTIVE The current systematic and methodological review aimed to critically review existing literature utilizing implicit processing, or automatic approach- and/or avoidance-related attentional biases between eating disorder (ED) and nonclinical samples, which (a) highlights how psychophysiological methods advance knowledge of ED implicit bias; (b) explains how findings fit into transdiagnostic versus disorder-specific ED frameworks; and (c) suggests how research can address perfectionism-related ED biases. METHOD Three databases were systematically searched to identify studies: PubMed, Scopus, and PsychInfo electronic databases. Peer-reviewed studies of 18- to 39-year-olds with both clinical ED and healthy samples assessing visual attentional biases using pictorial and/or linguistic stimuli related to food, body, and/or perfectionism were included. RESULTS Forty-six studies were included. While behavioral results were often similar across ED diagnoses, studies incorporating psychophysiological measures often revealed disease-specific attentional biases. Specifically, women with bulimia nervosa (BN) tend to approach food and other body types, whereas women with anorexia nervosa (AN) tend to avoid food as well as overweight bodies. CONCLUSIONS Further integration of psychophysiological and behavioral methods may identify subtle processing variations in ED, which may guide prevention strategies and interventions, and provide important clinical implications. Few implicit bias studies include male participants, investigate binge-eating disorder, or evaluate perfectionism-relevant stimuli, despite the fact that perfectionism is implicated in models of ED.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christina Ralph-Nearman
- Laureate Institute for Brain Research, Tulsa, OK, USA.,School of Psychology, University of Nottingham, Nottingham, UK
| | - Margaret Achee
- Department of Psychology, University of Tulsa, Tulsa, OK, USA
| | | | - Jennifer L Stewart
- Laureate Institute for Brain Research, Tulsa, OK, USA.,Department of Community Medicine, University of Tulsa, Tulsa, OK, USA
| | - Ruth Filik
- School of Psychology, University of Nottingham, Nottingham, UK
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Porras-Garcia B, Ferrer-Garcia M, Ghita A, Moreno M, López-Jiménez L, Vallvé-Romeu A, Serrano-Troncoso E, Gutiérrez-Maldonado J. The influence of gender and body dissatisfaction on body-related attentional bias: An eye-tracking and virtual reality study. Int J Eat Disord 2019; 52:1181-1190. [PMID: 31301151 DOI: 10.1002/eat.23136] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/29/2018] [Revised: 06/23/2019] [Accepted: 06/25/2019] [Indexed: 12/28/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE In the attentional bias (AB) phenomenon, eating disorder (ED) patients show a tendency to pay more attention to self-attributed unattractive body parts than to other body parts. However, little research has focused on gender differences in body-related attention, controlling for body dissatisfaction (BD). This study aimed to assess gender differences in AB toward specific weight- or nonweight-related body parts using a virtual reality (VR)-based embodiment technique and an eye-tracking AB assessment. METHOD Forty-five women (23 with high BD and 22 with low BD) and 40 men (20 with high BD and 20 with low BD) were subsequently embodied in three virtual avatars, the first based on the participant's actual measurements, the second being larger than the participant, and the third being the same as the first avatar. The number of fixations and complete fixation time on weight-related areas of interest (W-AOIs) and nonweight-related areas of interest (NW-AOIs) were recorded for the three assessment time/avatars. RESULTS The results showed a statistically significant interaction between gender and time for total fixation time and number of fixations (p < .05). BD levels did not significantly affect the results. Overall, women paid more attention to the W-AOIs than men, who in turn paid more attention to the NW-AOIs. Furthermore, preliminary evidence was found for an AB toward muscular-related AOIs among men. CONCLUSIONS This study provides new information about gender differences and BD in gaze pattern behaviors. Future psychological ED assessments and treatments could take advantage of the possibilities of VR while real-time AB is objectively measured.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bruno Porras-Garcia
- Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychobiology, University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Marta Ferrer-Garcia
- Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychobiology, University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Alexandra Ghita
- Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychobiology, University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Manuel Moreno
- Department of Cognition, Development and Education Psychology, University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Laura López-Jiménez
- Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychobiology, University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Alba Vallvé-Romeu
- Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychobiology, University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Eduardo Serrano-Troncoso
- Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychology Department, Hospital Sant Joan de Déu of Barcelona, Esplugues de Llobregat, Spain
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44
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Naumann E, Biehl S, Svaldi J. Eye-tracking study on the effects of happiness and sadness on body dissatisfaction and selective visual attention during mirror exposure in bulimia nervosa. Int J Eat Disord 2019; 52:895-903. [PMID: 31241208 DOI: 10.1002/eat.23127] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/30/2019] [Revised: 06/11/2019] [Accepted: 06/11/2019] [Indexed: 10/26/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE Abundant research points to the central role of body image disturbances in the occurrence of eating disorders (ED). While emotional arousal has been identified as a trigger for binge eating in bulimia nervosa (BN), empirical knowledge on the influence of emotions on body image in individuals with BN is scarce. The present study sought to experimentally examine effects of a positive and negative emotion induction on body dissatisfaction and selective attention towards negatively valenced body parts among people with BN. METHOD In a randomized-controlled cross-over design, happiness and sadness were induced by film clips one-week apart in women with BN (n = 23) and non-ED controls (n = 26). After the emotion induction, participants looked at their body in a full-length mirror, while their attentional allocation was recorded with the help of a mobile eye tracker. Participants repeatedly rated their momentary body dissatisfaction. RESULTS Induction of happiness led to a significant decrease in self-reported body dissatisfaction. Furthermore, attentional bias (higher gaze duration and frequency) towards the most disliked body part relative to the most liked body part was significantly greater in the sadness than happiness condition in BN. No significant effects of emotion induction on gaze duration and gaze frequency during mirror exposure were found for controls. DISCUSSION In line with assumptions of current models on ED, findings support the notion that emotional state influences the body image of patients with BN.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eva Naumann
- Department of Psychology, Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, University of Tuebingen, Tuebingen, Germany
| | - Stefanie Biehl
- Department of Psychology, Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, University of Regensburg, Regensburg, Germany
| | - Jennifer Svaldi
- Department of Psychology, Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, University of Tuebingen, Tuebingen, Germany
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45
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Fashion Promotion on Instagram with Eye Tracking: Curvy Girl Influencers Versus Fashion Brands in Spain and Portugal. SUSTAINABILITY 2019. [DOI: 10.3390/su11143977] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
The rise of Instagram, as the fastest growing social network in Spain and Portugal, and its incorporation into the communication strategies of beauty and fashion brands have posed some risks for younger followers in relation to the development of identity and self-esteem. A physical appearance acceptance movement has also begun, based on interaction with images, on which the social network is also based. The purpose of this research was to determine how attention is paid to fashion promotion and to the awareness of physical appearance acceptance by curvy influencers in comparison with communications by fashion brands on Instagram. The quantitative and qualitative methodology is based on the use of a biometric eye tracking technique applied to a sample of 120 participants from Spain and Portugal, matching the profile of the main users of Instagram: urban university women under 25 years old with an interest in fashion, and a self-perception as a curvy woman. The results point to more attention focused on the imperfections for which curvy influencers are raising awareness than on the fashion they promote when these awareness factors are more visible, as well as more attention focused on the fashion accessories worn by curvy brand models than those worn by the influencers, with specific and significant differences between Spanish and Portuguese audiences.
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