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Branchadell V, Poy R, Segarra P, Ribes-Guardiola P, Moltó J. Low defensive cardiac reactivity as a physiological correlate of psychopathic fearlessness: Gender differences. Biol Psychol 2023; 181:108617. [PMID: 37327985 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsycho.2023.108617] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/02/2023] [Revised: 06/01/2023] [Accepted: 06/12/2023] [Indexed: 06/18/2023]
Abstract
Affective/interpersonal features of psychopathy have been consistently associated with diverse psychophysiological indicators of low threat sensitivity, suggesting an underlying deficit in the reactivity of the brain's defensive motivational system. This study examined the Cardiac Defense Response (CDR) -a complex pattern of heart rate changes in response to an aversive, intense, and unexpected stimulus- and its second accelerative component (A2), as a new physiological indicator of the fearlessness trait component of psychopathy. The differential contribution of dispositional fearlessness, externalizing proneness, and coldheartedness to the CDR pattern elicited during a defense psychophysiological test was examined in a mixed-gender sample of 156 undergraduates (62% women) assessed by the Psychopathic Personality Inventory-Revised (PPI-R). Higher PPI-R Fearless Dominance scores were related to lower heart rate changes throughout the CDR in women, but not in men. Further analyses on scales conforming the fearless dominance factor revealed that the hypothesized reduced A2 was specifically related to higher PPI-R Fearlessness scores only in women. Our findings provide initial evidence for the utility of the A2 to better understand the physiological aspects of fearlessness tendencies and its potential distinct manifestations across genders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Victoria Branchadell
- Affective Neuroscience Lab, Department of Basic and Clinical Psychology, and Psychobiology, Universitat Jaume I, Castelló, Spain.
| | - Rosario Poy
- Affective Neuroscience Lab, Department of Basic and Clinical Psychology, and Psychobiology, Universitat Jaume I, Castelló, Spain
| | - Pilar Segarra
- Affective Neuroscience Lab, Department of Basic and Clinical Psychology, and Psychobiology, Universitat Jaume I, Castelló, Spain
| | - Pablo Ribes-Guardiola
- Affective Neuroscience Lab, Department of Basic and Clinical Psychology, and Psychobiology, Universitat Jaume I, Castelló, Spain
| | - Javier Moltó
- Affective Neuroscience Lab, Department of Basic and Clinical Psychology, and Psychobiology, Universitat Jaume I, Castelló, Spain.
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Cofresí RU, Piasecki TM, Bartholow BD. Acute sensitization of the P3 event-related potential response to beverage images and the risk for alcohol use disorder. ADDICTION NEUROSCIENCE 2022; 4:100041. [PMID: 36425356 PMCID: PMC9681121 DOI: 10.1016/j.addicn.2022.100041] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
Previous research suggests the amplitude of the P3 event-related potential (ERP) response reflects the incentive value of the eliciting stimulus, and that individuals with trait-like lower sensitivity (LS) to the acute effects of alcohol, a potent risk factor for alcohol use disorder (AUD), tend to show exaggerated P3 ERP responses to alcohol beverage cues (compared to their peers with higher sensitivity; HS). No prior research has examined trajectories of the cue-elicited P3 response across repeated trials of nonreinforced cue presentations. Characterizing these trajectories can be informative as to potential mechanisms linking LS with increased AUD risk. Here, we tested whether individual differences in alcohol sensitivity are associated with different trial-by-trial trajectories of the P3 elicited by alcohol and nonalcohol reward cues (infrequent oddball/target stimuli) using a large sample of emerging adults (M age = 19.53; N = 287; 55% female; 86% White; 90% right-handed) stratified for alcohol sensitivity. Multilevel models adjusted for age, sex, handedness, and alcohol use indicated that: (i) the P3 response to alcohol and nonalcohol reward cues alike sensitized (i.e., increased) across trials; (ii) across the task, the P3 response to alcohol cues was larger for the LS than the HS phenotype; and (iii) the P3 difference score (alcohol - nonalcohol) was larger for the LS than HS phenotype only across the first half of task. Findings suggest that whereas incentive value attribution may be a mechanism for alcohol cue-triggered attentional biases for both LS and HS individuals, LS individuals more consistently over-attribute incentive value to alcohol cues.
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Affiliation(s)
- Roberto U. Cofresí
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO 65211, United States
| | - Thomas M. Piasecki
- Center for Tobacco Research and Intervention and Department of Medicine, University of Wisconsin, Madison, United States
| | - Bruce D. Bartholow
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO 65211, United States
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Garrido A, Duschek S, Rodríguez Árbol J, González Usera I, Vila J, Mata JL. Sympathetic contributions to habituation and recovery of the cardiac defense response. Biol Psychol 2020; 151:107846. [DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsycho.2020.107846] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/31/2019] [Revised: 11/29/2019] [Accepted: 01/14/2020] [Indexed: 12/20/2022]
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Papousek I, Weiss EM, Schulter G, Fink A, Reiser EM, Lackner HK. Prefrontal EEG alpha asymmetry changes while observing disaster happening to other people: Cardiac correlates and prediction of emotional impact. Biol Psychol 2014; 103:184-94. [DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsycho.2014.09.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 46] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/24/2013] [Revised: 07/27/2014] [Accepted: 09/04/2014] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
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Chen KH, Aksan N, Anderson SW, Grafft A, Chapleau MW. Habituation of parasympathetic-mediated heart rate responses to recurring acoustic startle. Front Psychol 2014; 5:1288. [PMID: 25477830 PMCID: PMC4238409 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2014.01288] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/11/2014] [Accepted: 10/23/2014] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Startle habituation is a type of implicit and automatic emotion regulation. Diminished startle habituation is linked to several psychiatric or neurological disorders. Most previous studies quantified startle habituation by assessing skin conductance response (SCR; reflecting sympathetic-mediated sweating), eye-blink reflex, or motor response. The habituation of parasympathetic-mediated heart rate responses to recurrent startle stimuli is not well understood. A variety of methods and metrics have been used to quantify parasympathetic activity and its effects on the heart. We hypothesized that these different measures reflect unique psychological and physiological processes that may habituate differently during repeated startle stimuli. We measured cardiac inter-beat intervals (IBIs) to recurring acoustic startle probes in 75 eight year old children. Eight acoustic stimuli of 500 ms duration were introduced at intervals of 15-25 s. Indices of parasympathetic effect included: (1) the initial rapid decrease in IBI post-startle mediated by parasympathetic inhibition (PI); (2) the subsequent IBI recovery mediated by parasympathetic reactivation (PR); (3) rapid, beat-to-beat heart rate variability (HRV) measured from the first seven IBIs following each startle probe. SCR and motor responses to startle were also measured. Results showed that habituation of PR (IBI recovery and overshoot) and SCRs were rapid and robust. In addition, changes in PR and SCR were significantly correlated. In contrast, habituation of PI (the initial decrease in IBI) was slower and relatively modest. Measurement of rapid HRV provided an index reflecting the combination of PI and PR. We conclude that different measures of parasympathetic-mediated heart rate responses to repeated startle probes habituate in a differential manner.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kuan-Hua Chen
- Department of Neurology, Carver College of Medicine, University of Iowa Iowa City, IA, USA ; Neuroscience Graduate Program, University of Iowa Iowa City, IA, USA
| | - Nazan Aksan
- Department of Neurology, Carver College of Medicine, University of Iowa Iowa City, IA, USA
| | - Steven W Anderson
- Department of Neurology, Carver College of Medicine, University of Iowa Iowa City, IA, USA ; Neuroscience Graduate Program, University of Iowa Iowa City, IA, USA
| | - Amanda Grafft
- Department of Neurology, Carver College of Medicine, University of Iowa Iowa City, IA, USA ; University of Iowa Children's Hospital Iowa City, IA, USA
| | - Mark W Chapleau
- Neuroscience Graduate Program, University of Iowa Iowa City, IA, USA ; Department of Internal Medicine, Carver College of Medicine, University of Iowa Iowa City, IA, USA ; Department of Molecular Physiology and Biophysics, University of Iowa Iowa City, IA, USA ; Veterans Affairs Medical Center Iowa City, IA, USA
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Ortega-Roldán B, Rodríguez-Ruiz S, Perakakis P, Fernández-Santaella MC, Vila J. The emotional and attentional impact of exposure to one's own body in bulimia nervosa: a physiological view. PLoS One 2014; 9:e102595. [PMID: 25036222 PMCID: PMC4103750 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0102595] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/14/2013] [Accepted: 06/20/2014] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Body dissatisfaction is the most relevant body image disturbance in bulimia nervosa (BN). Research has shown that viewing one's own body evokes negative thoughts and emotions in individuals with BN. However, the psychophysiological mechanisms involved in this negative reaction have not yet been clearly established. Our aim was to examine the emotional and attentional processes that are activated when patients with BN view their own bodies. Method We examined the effects of viewing a video of one's own body on the physiological (eye-blink startle, cardiac defense, and skin conductance) and subjective (pleasure, arousal, and control ratings) responses elicited by a burst of 110 dB white noise of 500 ms duration. The participants were 30 women with BN and 30 healthy control women. The experimental task consisted of two consecutive and counterbalanced presentations of the auditory stimulus preceded, alternatively, by a video of the participant's own body versus no such video. Results The results showed that, when viewing their own bodies, women with BN experienced (a) greater inhibition of the startle reflex, (b) greater cardiac acceleration in the first component of the defense reaction, (c) greater skin conductance response, and (d) less subjective pleasure and control combined with greater arousal, compared with the control participants. Conclusion Our findings suggest that, for women with BN, peripheral-physiological responses to self-images are dominated by attentional processes, which provoke an immobility reaction caused by a dysfunctional negative response to their own body.
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Affiliation(s)
- Blanca Ortega-Roldán
- Department of Personality, Evaluation and Psychological Treatment, University of Granada, Granada, Spain
- * E-mail:
| | - Sonia Rodríguez-Ruiz
- Department of Personality, Evaluation and Psychological Treatment, University of Granada, Granada, Spain
| | - Pandelis Perakakis
- Department of Personality, Evaluation and Psychological Treatment, University of Granada, Granada, Spain
- Laboratory of Experimental Economics, Department of Economics, University Jaume I, Castellón, Spain
| | | | - Jaime Vila
- Department of Personality, Evaluation and Psychological Treatment, University of Granada, Granada, Spain
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Balada F, Blanch A, Aluja A. Arousal and Habituation Effects (Excitability) on Startle Responses to the International Affective Picture Systems (IAPS). J PSYCHOPHYSIOL 2014. [DOI: 10.1027/0269-8803/a000115] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
Abstract
The magnitude and habituation of startle reflex responses have been used to evaluate the excitability of the neural structures involved in this psychophysiological response. We analyzed the magnitude and habituation responses to startle reflex probes in 112 women. Results confirmed the modulation of eyeblink reflex by affective valence for arousing (F = 34.79, p < .001), but not for nonarousing pictures (F = 1.08, ns). Our results indicate that there is a linear adjustment for habituation in all picture groups, except for arousing unpleasant pictures where there is a quadratic adjustment that could be due to initial sensitization followed by the subsequent habituation. Multiple linear regression analysis revealed that the startle magnitude was partially determined by arousal and startle presentation order. In conclusion, our results emphasize the usefulness of arousing pictures to study startle reflex response and show evidence of different response mechanisms for pleasant and unpleasant pictures conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ferran Balada
- Department of Psychology, University of Lleida, Institute of Biomedical Research of Lleida, Spain
- Department of Psychobiology, Autonomous University of Barcelona, Spain
| | - Angel Blanch
- Department of Psychology, University of Lleida, Institute of Biomedical Research of Lleida, Spain
| | - Anton Aluja
- Department of Psychology, University of Lleida, Institute of Biomedical Research of Lleida, Spain
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Schalinski I, Elbert TR, Schauer M. Cardiac defense in response to imminent threat in women with multiple trauma and severe PTSD. Psychophysiology 2013; 50:691-700. [DOI: 10.1111/psyp.12051] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/29/2012] [Accepted: 02/25/2013] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- I. Schalinski
- Department of Psychology; University of Konstanz; Konstanz; Germany
| | - T. R. Elbert
- Department of Psychology; University of Konstanz; Konstanz; Germany
| | - M. Schauer
- Department of Psychology; University of Konstanz; Konstanz; Germany
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Deuter CE, Kuehl LK, Blumenthal TD, Schulz A, Oitzl MS, Schachinger H. Effects of cold pressor stress on the human startle response. PLoS One 2012; 7:e49866. [PMID: 23166784 PMCID: PMC3499498 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0049866] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/20/2012] [Accepted: 10/15/2012] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Both emotion and attention are known to influence the startle response. Stress influences emotion and attention, but the impact of stress on the human startle response remains unclear. We used an established physiological stressor, the Cold Pressor Test (CPT), to induce stress in a non-clinical human sample (24 student participants) in a within-subjects design. Autonomic (heart rate and skin conductance) and somatic (eye blink) responses to acoustic startle probes were measured during a pre-stress baseline, during a three minutes stress intervention, and during the subsequent recovery period. Startle skin conductance and heart rate responses were facilitated during stress. Compared to baseline, startle eye blink responses were not affected during the intervention but were diminished afterwards. These data describe a new and unique startle response pattern during stress: facilitation of autonomic stress responses but no such facilitation of somatic startle eye blink responses. The absence of an effect of stress on startle eye blink responsiveness may illustrate the importance of guaranteeing uninterrupted visual input during periods of stress.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christian E Deuter
- Department of Clinical Psychophysiology, Institute of Psychobiology, University of Trier, Trier, Germany.
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Ooishi Y, Kashino M. Habituation of rapid sympathetic response to aversive timbre eliminated by change in basal sympathovagal balance. Psychophysiology 2012; 49:1059-71. [PMID: 22646525 DOI: 10.1111/j.1469-8986.2012.01393.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/05/2011] [Accepted: 04/13/2012] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
We studied the difference in the habituation of the rapid sympathetic response to slightly and highly aversive timbres in 68 males. We measured the decrease in the blood volume pulse amplitude (BVP response) as the rapid sympathetic response and the low- (0.04-0.15 Hz) to high- (0.15-0.40 Hz) frequency (LF/HF) ratio of heart rate variability as the sympathovagal balance. The BVP response was suppressed for slightly aversive timbres that had been presented once before, but not for a highly aversive timbre. In contrast, the prior presentation of a highly aversive timbre enhanced the BVP response to a slightly aversive timbre. Only a highly aversive timbre reduced the LF/HF ratio. We suggest that the lack of habituation of the rapid sympathetic response to an aversive timbre is the result of the balance between the effects of the increase caused by the change in sympathovagal balance to vagal dominance and the decrease caused by classical habituation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yuuki Ooishi
- NTT Communication Science Laboratories, NTT Corporation, Atsugi, Japan.
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Keil A, Bradley MM, Ihssen N, Heim S, Vila J, Guerra P, Lang PJ. Defensive engagement and perceptual enhancement. Neuropsychologia 2010; 48:3580-4. [PMID: 20713075 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2010.08.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/07/2010] [Revised: 08/04/2010] [Accepted: 08/09/2010] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
We tested whether visual cortical sensitivity to external cues in the context of an acute defensive reaction is heightened or attenuated. A strong cardiac defense (fear) response was elicited by presenting an abrupt, loud acoustic stimulus following a 10-min period of quiescence. Electrocortical responses to aversive and neutral pictures following defensive stimulus onset were measured using dense-array EEG. Pictures were flickered at 12.5 Hz to evoke steady-state visual evoked potentials (ssVEP), which can be reliably extracted on the basis of single trials. Visual cortical activity indexing perceptual processing was substantially heightened when pictures were shown in temporal proximity to (i.e., 5s after) the defense stimulus. Replicating previous studies, aversive visual stimuli were associated with enhanced ssVEP amplitude, compared to neutral stimuli. Acute defense facilitates visual perception of external cues and preserves accurate discrimination between threatening and safe cues.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andreas Keil
- NIMH Center for the Study of Emotion and Attention, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32608, USA.
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Sánchez MB, Guerra P, Muñoz MA, Mata JL, Bradley MM, Lang PJ, Vila J. Communalities and differences in fear potentiation between cardiac defense and eyeblink startle. Psychophysiology 2009; 46:1137-40. [PMID: 19572906 DOI: 10.1111/j.1469-8986.2009.00861.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Abstract
This study examines similarities and differences in fear potentiation between two protective reflexes: cardiac defense and eyeblink startle. Women reporting intense fear of animals but low fear of blood or intense fear of blood but low fear of animals viewed pictures depicting blood or the feared animal for 6 s in 2 separate trials in counterbalanced order. An intense burst of white noise, able to elicit both a cardiac defense response and a reflexive startle blink, was presented 3.5 s after picture onset. Both cardiac and blink responses were potentiated when highly fearful individuals viewed fearful pictures. However, differences appeared concerning picture order. This pattern of results indicates communalities and differences among protective reflexes that are relevant for understanding the dynamics of emotional reflex modulation.
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Affiliation(s)
- María B Sánchez
- Department of Personality, University of Granada, Campus La Cartuja s/n., Granada, Spain
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