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Wauthia E, D’Hondt F, Blekic W, Lefebvre L, Ris L, Rossignol M. Neural responses associated with attentional engagement and disengagement from threat in high socially anxious children: Evidence from temporal-spatial PCA. PLoS One 2022; 17:e0261172. [PMID: 35030177 PMCID: PMC8759697 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0261172] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/26/2021] [Accepted: 11/24/2021] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Cognitive models indicated that social anxiety disorder (SAD) would be caused and maintained by a biased attentional processing of threatening information. This study investigates whether socially anxious children may present impaired attentional engagement and disengagement from negative emotional faces, as well as their underlying event-related potential responses. METHODS AND FINDINGS Fifteen children with high levels of social anxiety (HSA; 9 boys; mean age = 9.99y; SD = 1.14) and twenty low socially anxious children (LSA; 16 boys; mean age = 10.47y; SD = 1.17) participated in a spatial cueing task in which they had to detect targets following neutral/disgusted faces in a valid or invalid location. No group effect was reported on reaction times [p>.05]. However, electrophysiological data showed lower P3a amplitude in HSA children compared with the LSA group when processing facial stimuli. They also reported larger N2 amplitudes for valid-disgusted targets and a larger P3a amplitude for the invalid-disgusted ones. CONCLUSION In terms of electrophysiological data, our results validated, the hypothesis of attentional disengagement difficulties in SAD children. We also confirm the idea that high levels of social anxiety are associated with cognitive control impairments and have a greater impact on the processing efficiency than on the performance effectiveness.
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Affiliation(s)
- Erika Wauthia
- Laboratory of Cognitive Psychology and Neuropsychology, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, University of Mons, Mons, Belgium
- Interdisciplinary Research Center in Psychophysiology and Cognitive Electrophysiology, Mons, Belgium
- National Fund for Human Science Research, National Fund for Scientific Research (FNRS), Brussels, Belgium
| | - Fabien D’Hondt
- Univ. Lille, INSERM U1172, CHU Lille, Centre Lille Neuroscience & Cognition, Lille, France
- CHU Lille, Clinique de Psychiatrie, Unité CURE, Lille, France
- Centre national de ressources et de résilience Lille-Paris (CN2R), Lille, France
| | - Wivine Blekic
- Laboratory of Cognitive Psychology and Neuropsychology, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, University of Mons, Mons, Belgium
- Interdisciplinary Research Center in Psychophysiology and Cognitive Electrophysiology, Mons, Belgium
- National Fund for Human Science Research, National Fund for Scientific Research (FNRS), Brussels, Belgium
| | - Laurent Lefebvre
- Laboratory of Cognitive Psychology and Neuropsychology, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, University of Mons, Mons, Belgium
- Interdisciplinary Research Center in Psychophysiology and Cognitive Electrophysiology, Mons, Belgium
| | - Laurence Ris
- Interdisciplinary Research Center in Psychophysiology and Cognitive Electrophysiology, Mons, Belgium
- Neurosciences Laboratory, Faculty of Medicine, University of Mons, Mons, Belgium
| | - Mandy Rossignol
- Laboratory of Cognitive Psychology and Neuropsychology, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, University of Mons, Mons, Belgium
- Interdisciplinary Research Center in Psychophysiology and Cognitive Electrophysiology, Mons, Belgium
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2
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Jenness JL, Lambert HK, Bitrán D, Blossom JB, Nook EC, Sasse SF, Somerville LH, McLaughlin KA. Developmental Variation in the Associations of Attention Bias to Emotion with Internalizing and Externalizing Psychopathology. Res Child Adolesc Psychopathol 2021; 49:711-726. [PMID: 33534093 PMCID: PMC8102336 DOI: 10.1007/s10802-020-00751-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 12/06/2020] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Attention biases to emotion are associated with symptoms of internalizing and externalizing psychopathology in children and adolescents. It is unknown whether attention biases to emotion and their associations with different symptoms of psychopathology vary across development from early childhood through young adulthood. We examine this age-related variation in the current study. Participants (N = 190; ages: 4-25) completed survey-based psychopathology symptom measures and a dot-probe task to assess attention bias to happy, sad, and angry relative to neutral faces. We tested whether linear or non-linear (e.g., spline-based models) associations best characterized age-related variation in attention to emotion. We additionally examined whether attention biases were associated with depression, anxiety, and externalizing symptoms and whether these associations varied by age. No age-related differences in attention biases were found for any of the emotional faces. Attention biases were associated with psychopathology symptoms, but only when examining moderation by age. Biased attention to angry faces was associated with greater symptoms of anxiety and depression in adolescents and young adults, but not children. Similarly, biased attention to happy faces was associated with externalizing symptoms in adolescents and young adults, but not in children. In contrast, biased attention to happy faces was associated with greater anxiety symptoms in children, but not in adolescents or young adults. Biased attention toward social threat and reward becomes more strongly coupled with internalizing and externalizing symptoms, respectively, during the transition to adolescence. These findings could inform when interventions such as attention bias modification training may be most effective.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jessica L Jenness
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, US.
| | - Hilary K Lambert
- Department of Psychology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, US
| | - Debbie Bitrán
- Department of Psychology, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, US
| | - Jennifer B Blossom
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, US
- Department of Psychology, University of Maine at Farmington, Farmington, ME, US
| | - Erik C Nook
- Department of Psychology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, US
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3
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The effect of emotional valence and age of faces on adults and children's inattentional blindness. Atten Percept Psychophys 2021; 83:1571-1580. [PMID: 33409905 DOI: 10.3758/s13414-020-02221-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 11/24/2020] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
Inattentional blindness (IB) refers to the nature of an individual being unaware of an unexpected stimulus when focusing on an attentional task. Investigation into IB provides an innovative approach for the research of attentional bias that is connected with an individual's immediate attentional capture. This study explored the effect of emotional valence and age of faces on the IB rates of children and adults. We employed a between-subject experimental design with a 2 (age of participants: child, adult) × 2 (age of face: child face, adult face) × 2 (emotional valence: positive, negative) method and used the classic IB task of cross judgment. The participants included 79 adults (54.63 ± 8.192 years old) and 78 children (10.62 ± 2.32 years old). The results showed that: (1) The IB rates of the two groups differed significantly. Children performed better than adults in detecting the faces appearing unexpectedly. (2) The effect of emotional valence only emerged on adult participants' IB. Adults were significantly more likely to detect the positive-emotional faces than the negative-emotional ones. (3) The age of a face was not a significant factor to predict participants' IB. Neither children nor adults showed a preference for the faces of a specific age (e.g., their own age). These findings revealed the distinct characteristics of attentional capture of children and adults when confronting unexpected facial stimuli.
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4
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Assessing cognitive inhibition in emotional and neutral contexts in children. THE EDUCATIONAL AND DEVELOPMENTAL PSYCHOLOGIST 2020. [DOI: 10.1017/edp.2020.4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
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Zamora EV, Introzzi I, Del Valle M, Vernucci S, Richard S MM. Perceptual inhibition of emotional interference in children. APPLIED NEUROPSYCHOLOGY. CHILD 2020; 9:215-229. [PMID: 30793980 DOI: 10.1080/21622965.2019.1567340] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/09/2023]
Abstract
In daily life, when a bee approaches us while we are sitting in the garden, we must pay attention to that threatening stimulus and give an appropriate response. However, if this bee approaches us while riding a bike, we must inhibit that distractor to avoid an accident. In this case, avoiding the interference of an emotional stimuli and continuing with the task should be preferential. In general, perceptual inhibition is responsible for controlling and suppressing the environmental distractions that interrupt the course of the realization of a goal. In this study, 435 children performed a modified flanker task with entirely irrelevant emotional and neutral stimuli in order to assess perceptual inhibition in contexts with high and low emotional salience. The results showed that entirely irrelevant distractors affected performance, but that there were no significant differences according to whether these distractors were emotionally salient or neutral. These results constitute a first approach to the problem of emotional interference in children considering the multidimensional approach of inhibition.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eliana V Zamora
- Instituto de Psicología Básica, Aplicada y Tecnología (IPSIBAT), Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata (UNMDP), Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Mar del Plata, Argentina
| | - Isabel Introzzi
- Instituto de Psicología Básica, Aplicada y Tecnología (IPSIBAT), Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata (UNMDP), Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Mar del Plata, Argentina
| | - Macarena Del Valle
- Instituto de Psicología Básica, Aplicada y Tecnología (IPSIBAT), Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata (UNMDP), Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Mar del Plata, Argentina
| | - Santiago Vernucci
- Instituto de Psicología Básica, Aplicada y Tecnología (IPSIBAT), Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata (UNMDP), Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Mar del Plata, Argentina
| | - María M Richard S
- Instituto de Psicología Básica, Aplicada y Tecnología (IPSIBAT), Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata (UNMDP), Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Mar del Plata, Argentina
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An J, Wen W, Wu Z, Wan X. Differential inter-trial effects in the visual search of children, adolescents, and young adults. Acta Psychol (Amst) 2018; 191:171-178. [PMID: 30286429 DOI: 10.1016/j.actpsy.2018.09.011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/25/2018] [Revised: 09/14/2018] [Accepted: 09/26/2018] [Indexed: 10/28/2022] Open
Abstract
We examined the age-related variation in one type of inter-trial effect of visual search, the distractor previewing effect (DPE), in affectively neutral and affectively charged contexts. In Experiment 1, children, adolescents, and young adults were faster to identify the shape of a color target when the color of the current distractors had already been previewed than when the target had been previewed in the preceding target-absent trial, indicative of a color-based DPE. The results revealed a greater DPE in children than in adolescents and young adults, but it can be attributed to children's slower RTs than the other two groups. In Experiment 2, children, adolescents, and young adults were instructed to respond to a schematic face that was different from the other two faces. Young adults were faster in searching for a threatening face among friendly ones when they had previewed a target-absent display consisting of friendly faces than that of threatening faces, indicating an emotional DPE. By contrast, children showed a reversed DPE under the same condition, whereas adolescents showed no DPE. Taken together, these results suggested that the three age groups were all able to create an inhibitory attentional bias on the basis of trial history in affectively neutral context, whereas children and adolescents were not able to create such an inhibitory attentional bias in affectively charged contexts in the same way as adults did. These findings implied that the development of attentional inhibition abilities in affectively charged contexts might be delayed compared to those in affectively neutral contexts.
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Horovitz O, Lindenfeld I, Melamed M, Shechner T. Developmental effects of stimulus gender and the social context in which it appears on threat detection. BRITISH JOURNAL OF DEVELOPMENTAL PSYCHOLOGY 2017; 36:452-466. [PMID: 29266313 DOI: 10.1111/bjdp.12230] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/26/2017] [Revised: 11/24/2017] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Abstract
This study used a hands-free eye-tracking visual search (VS) task to examine possible developmental differences in target detection. Thirty-two young adults and 27 youth were asked to detect a fearful face (male or female) among a crowd of either neutral or happy faces. Fearful male faces were detected faster than fearful female faces, but only by young adults and only when displayed among neutral faces. Additionally, young adults had shorter scanpath lengths prior to the target detection. Finally, a strong negative correlation emerged between age and detection speed for a male target in a neutral crowd. Using this age-matched VS task, the study found age differences in the way individuals detect a threat in a social-related contextual environment, pointing to subtle differences in the emotion-attention interplay during the course of development. Statement of contribution What is already known on this subject? Visual search of threat detection is critical for survival, specifically regarding expressive faces. Visual search efficiency is affected by both stimulus-driven and higher goal-directed processes. Stimuli and contextual features affect threat speed detection. What does this study add? A novel task was designed to examine age-related differences in visual search. Specific stimuli gender and contextual features yielded age-related differences in threat detection. The study further demonstrates the subtle developmental differences in attention-emotion interaction.
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Affiliation(s)
- Omer Horovitz
- Psychology Department and the Integrated Brain and Behavior Research Center, University of Haifa, Israel.,Psychology Department, Tel-Hai College, Upper Galilee, Israel
| | - Irit Lindenfeld
- Psychology Department and the Integrated Brain and Behavior Research Center, University of Haifa, Israel
| | - Maya Melamed
- Psychology Department and the Integrated Brain and Behavior Research Center, University of Haifa, Israel
| | - Tomer Shechner
- Psychology Department and the Integrated Brain and Behavior Research Center, University of Haifa, Israel
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Morales S, Fu X, Pérez-Edgar KE. A developmental neuroscience perspective on affect-biased attention. Dev Cogn Neurosci 2016; 21:26-41. [PMID: 27606972 PMCID: PMC5067218 DOI: 10.1016/j.dcn.2016.08.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 63] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/31/2016] [Revised: 08/17/2016] [Accepted: 08/22/2016] [Indexed: 01/09/2023] Open
Abstract
There is growing interest regarding the impact of affect-biased attention on psychopathology. However, most of the research to date lacks a developmental approach. In the present review, we examine the role affect-biased attention plays in shaping socioemotional trajectories within a developmental neuroscience framework. We propose that affect-biased attention, particularly if stable and entrenched, acts as a developmental tether that helps sustain early socioemotional and behavioral profiles over time, placing some individuals on maladaptive developmental trajectories. Although most of the evidence is found in the anxiety literature, we suggest that these relations may operate across multiple domains of interest, including positive affect, externalizing behaviors, drug use, and eating behaviors. We also review the general mechanisms and neural correlates of affect-biased attention, as well as the current evidence for the co-development of attention and affect. Based on the reviewed literature, we propose a model that may help us better understand the nuances of affect-biased attention across development. The model may serve as a strong foundation for ongoing attempts to identify neurocognitive mechanisms and intervene with individuals at risk. Finally, we discuss open issues for future research that may help bridge existing gaps in the literature.
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Affiliation(s)
- Santiago Morales
- The Pennsylvania State University, Department of Psychology, 140 Moore Building, University Park, PA 16802, United States.
| | - Xiaoxue Fu
- The Pennsylvania State University, Department of Psychology, 140 Moore Building, University Park, PA 16802, United States
| | - Koraly E Pérez-Edgar
- The Pennsylvania State University, Department of Psychology, 140 Moore Building, University Park, PA 16802, United States
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9
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De Voogd EL, Wiers RW, Prins PJM, Salemink E. Visual search attentional bias modification reduced social phobia in adolescents. J Behav Ther Exp Psychiatry 2014; 45:252-9. [PMID: 24361543 DOI: 10.1016/j.jbtep.2013.11.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 76] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/11/2013] [Revised: 11/25/2013] [Accepted: 11/26/2013] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES An attentional bias for negative information plays an important role in the development and maintenance of (social) anxiety and depression, which are highly prevalent in adolescence. Attention Bias Modification (ABM) might be an interesting tool in the prevention of emotional disorders. The current study investigated whether visual search ABM might affect attentional bias and emotional functioning in adolescents. METHODS A visual search task was used as a training paradigm; participants (n = 16 adolescents, aged 13-16) had to repeatedly identify the only smiling face in a 4 × 4 matrix of negative emotional faces, while participants in the control condition (n = 16) were randomly allocated to one of three placebo training versions. An assessment version of the task was developed to directly test whether attentional bias changed due to the training. Self-reported anxiety and depressive symptoms and self-esteem were measured pre- and post-training. RESULTS After two sessions of training, the ABM group showed a significant decrease in attentional bias for negative information and self-reported social phobia, while the control group did not. There were no effects of training on depressive mood or self-esteem. LIMITATIONS No correlation between attentional bias and social phobia was found, which raises questions about the validity of the attentional bias assessment task. Also, the small sample size precludes strong conclusions. CONCLUSIONS Visual search ABM might be beneficial in changing attentional bias and social phobia in adolescents, but further research with larger sample sizes and longer follow-up is needed.
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Affiliation(s)
- E L De Voogd
- Department of Developmental Psychology, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
| | - R W Wiers
- Department of Developmental Psychology, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
| | - P J M Prins
- Department of Developmental Psychology, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
| | - E Salemink
- Department of Developmental Psychology, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
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Abstract
Experiments using schematic faces developed by Öhman (Öhman, Lundqvist, & Esteves, 2001) seem to document an anger-superiority effect, although we have come to question these experiments. Our work shows that the low-level features of these schematic faces interact with the face's surround to produce effects that have been attributed to facial affect. Using relatively neutral faces that preserved the feature and surround spatial relationships of angry and happy schematic faces, we produced reaction times (RTs) that were indistinguishable from those found with angry and happy faces. We also found that the target face's position within the crowd determined the magnitude of the advantage for angry faces as well as for relatively affect-neutral faces. Removing the facial surround reduces the advantage for angry faces, largely by improving performance on happy faces. There was an apparent small advantage for angry features without a surround. Öhman faces avoid the problems associated with modified grayscale faces only to introduce an equally troubling confound.
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11
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Waters AM, Lipp OV, Randhawa RS. Visual search with animal fear-relevant stimuli: A tale of two procedures. MOTIVATION AND EMOTION 2010. [DOI: 10.1007/s11031-010-9191-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
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12
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Visu-Petra L, Ţincaş I, Cheie L, Benga O. Anxiety and visual-spatial memory updating in young children: An investigation using emotional facial expressions. Cogn Emot 2010. [DOI: 10.1080/02699930903387546] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/20/2022]
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13
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Emotional faces in neutral crowds: Detecting displays of anger, happiness, and sadness on schematic and photographic images of faces. MOTIVATION AND EMOTION 2009. [DOI: 10.1007/s11031-009-9136-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/20/2022]
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14
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Waters AM, Valvoi JS. Attentional bias for emotional faces in paediatric anxiety disorders: an investigation using the emotional Go/No Go task. J Behav Ther Exp Psychiatry 2009; 40:306-16. [PMID: 19159866 DOI: 10.1016/j.jbtep.2008.12.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/04/2008] [Revised: 10/22/2008] [Accepted: 12/16/2008] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND The present study examined contextual modulation of attentional control processes in paediatric anxiety disorders. METHOD Anxious children (N=20) and non-anxious controls (N=20) completed an emotional Go/No Go task in which they responded on some trials (i.e., Go trials) when neutral faces were presented amongst either angry or happy faces to which children avoided responding (i.e., No Go trials) or when angry and happy faces were presented as Go trials and children avoided responding to neutral faces. RESULTS Anxious girls were slower responding to neutral faces with embedded angry compared with happy face No Go trials whereas non-anxious girls were slower responding to neutral faces with embedded happy versus angry face No Go trials. Anxious and non-anxious boys showed the same basic pattern as non-anxious girls. There were no significant group differences on No Go trials or when the emotional faces were presented as Go trials. CONCLUSIONS Results are discussed in terms of selective interference by angry faces in the control of attention in anxious girls.
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Affiliation(s)
- Allison M Waters
- School of Psychology, Griffith University, Gold Coast Qld, Australia.
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Baseline and affective startle modulation by angry and neutral faces in 4–8-year-old anxious and non-anxious children. Biol Psychol 2008; 78:10-9. [DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsycho.2007.12.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 43] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/18/2007] [Revised: 12/02/2007] [Accepted: 12/08/2007] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
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