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Ștefănescu E, Balea M, Chelaru VF, Jemna N, Verișezan Roșu O, Truță A, Stan AD, Chira D, Strilciuc Ș, Mureșanu D. Memory-Guided Saccades in Subacute and Chronic Stroke: Secondary Data Analysis of the N-PEP-12 Clinical Study. Biomedicines 2024; 12:1678. [PMID: 39200143 PMCID: PMC11351517 DOI: 10.3390/biomedicines12081678] [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: 06/21/2024] [Revised: 07/17/2024] [Accepted: 07/25/2024] [Indexed: 09/01/2024] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Ischemic stroke (IS) often leads to cognitive and motor impairments. This study aimed to investigate whether Memory-Guided Saccade Tasks (MGSTs) could be used to assess cognitive function in stroke patients. METHODS A secondary data analysis was conducted on 62 individuals with supratentorial IS. Eye-tracking metrics from MGST were correlated with established neuropsychological assessments, including the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) and Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS). RESULTS Age correlated negatively with memory-guided saccade (MGS) accuracy (ρ = -0.274) and positively with late errors (ρ = 0.327). Higher Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) scores were associated with faster corrective saccades (ρ = 0.259). Increased anxiety (HADS-A) and depression (HADS-D) levels correlated with higher early error rates (ρ = 0.325 and ρ = 0.311, respectively). The Color Trails Test and Digit Span test performance also correlated with various MGS parameters. CONCLUSIONS While some correlations were found between cognitive measures and eye-tracking metrics, further research is needed to validate MGST as a tool for cognitive assessment in a more homogenous stroke population.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emanuel Ștefănescu
- Department of Neuroscience, Iuliu Hațieganu University of Medicine and Pharmacy, 400012 Cluj-Napoca, Romania; (E.Ș.); (D.M.)
- RoNeuro Institute for Neurological Research and Diagnostic, 400364 Cluj-Napoca, Romania
| | - Maria Balea
- RoNeuro Institute for Neurological Research and Diagnostic, 400364 Cluj-Napoca, Romania
| | - Vlad-Florin Chelaru
- Department of Neuroscience, Iuliu Hațieganu University of Medicine and Pharmacy, 400012 Cluj-Napoca, Romania; (E.Ș.); (D.M.)
- RoNeuro Institute for Neurological Research and Diagnostic, 400364 Cluj-Napoca, Romania
| | - Nicoleta Jemna
- Department of Neuroscience, Iuliu Hațieganu University of Medicine and Pharmacy, 400012 Cluj-Napoca, Romania; (E.Ș.); (D.M.)
- RoNeuro Institute for Neurological Research and Diagnostic, 400364 Cluj-Napoca, Romania
| | - Olivia Verișezan Roșu
- Department of Neuroscience, Iuliu Hațieganu University of Medicine and Pharmacy, 400012 Cluj-Napoca, Romania; (E.Ș.); (D.M.)
- RoNeuro Institute for Neurological Research and Diagnostic, 400364 Cluj-Napoca, Romania
| | - Anamaria Truță
- Research Center for Functional Genomics, Biomedicine, and Translational Medicine, Iuliu Hațieganu University of Medicine and Pharmacy, 400012 Cluj-Napoca, Romania
| | - Adina Dora Stan
- Department of Neuroscience, Iuliu Hațieganu University of Medicine and Pharmacy, 400012 Cluj-Napoca, Romania; (E.Ș.); (D.M.)
- RoNeuro Institute for Neurological Research and Diagnostic, 400364 Cluj-Napoca, Romania
| | - Diana Chira
- Department of Neuroscience, Iuliu Hațieganu University of Medicine and Pharmacy, 400012 Cluj-Napoca, Romania; (E.Ș.); (D.M.)
- RoNeuro Institute for Neurological Research and Diagnostic, 400364 Cluj-Napoca, Romania
| | - Ștefan Strilciuc
- RoNeuro Institute for Neurological Research and Diagnostic, 400364 Cluj-Napoca, Romania
- Research Center for Functional Genomics, Biomedicine, and Translational Medicine, Iuliu Hațieganu University of Medicine and Pharmacy, 400012 Cluj-Napoca, Romania
| | - Dafin Mureșanu
- Department of Neuroscience, Iuliu Hațieganu University of Medicine and Pharmacy, 400012 Cluj-Napoca, Romania; (E.Ș.); (D.M.)
- RoNeuro Institute for Neurological Research and Diagnostic, 400364 Cluj-Napoca, Romania
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Gatzounis R, Gelissen A, Theuerzeit D, Meulders A. Rewarding Approach Behaviour Attenuates the Return of Pain-Related Avoidance After Successful Extinction with Response Prevention. THE JOURNAL OF PAIN 2024; 25:104453. [PMID: 38145858 DOI: 10.1016/j.jpain.2023.12.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/28/2023] [Revised: 12/15/2023] [Accepted: 12/19/2023] [Indexed: 12/27/2023]
Abstract
After successful exposure treatment for chronic pain, pain-related fear and avoidance may return, i.e., relapse may occur. This return of fear and avoidance may be modulated by various post-treatment factors. In this study, we aimed to investigate two potential factors that may affect return of fear and avoidance, i.e. cognitive load and rewarding approach behaviour. In an operant pain-related avoidance conditioning paradigm, healthy pain-free volunteers first learned to fear and avoid an arm-reaching movement that was often paired with painful electrocutaneous stimulation (T1), by performing alternative movements that were less often (T2) or never (T3) paired with pain. During extinction with response prevention, participants were only allowed to perform T1, and pain was omitted. To model relapse, two unexpected painful stimuli were presented (i.e., reinstatement manipulation), after which participants could freely choose among the three arm-reaching movements again. During test, the Low Load group performed an additional easy digit task, whereas the High Load group performed a more cognitively demanding digit task. The Reward group performed the demanding digit task, whilst being rewarded to perform T1. Results showed that pain-related fear and avoidance returned, irrespective of cognitive load imposed. When participants were rewarded to approach T1, however, the return of avoidance, but not fear, was attenuated. Our findings suggest that engaging in rewarding activities may facilitate the maintenance of treatment outcomes, and provide additional support to the growing body of literature indicating a divergent relationship between fear and avoidance. PERSPECTIVE: Results of this experiment suggest that engaging in rewarding activities may optimize exposure treatment for chronic pain, by dampening the return of pain-related avoidance - though not of pain-related fear - after extinction.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rena Gatzounis
- Experimental Health Psychology, Department of Clinical Psychological Science, Maastricht University, the Netherlands
| | - Anouk Gelissen
- Experimental Health Psychology, Department of Clinical Psychological Science, Maastricht University, the Netherlands
| | - Daniëlla Theuerzeit
- Experimental Health Psychology, Department of Clinical Psychological Science, Maastricht University, the Netherlands
| | - Ann Meulders
- Experimental Health Psychology, Department of Clinical Psychological Science, Maastricht University, the Netherlands; Health Psychology, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, KU Leuven, Belgium.
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Horton AB, Pring AM, Rudaizky D, Clarke PJF. The relationship between worry and academic performance: examining the moderating role of attention control. ANXIETY, STRESS, AND COPING 2024:1-16. [PMID: 38299451 DOI: 10.1080/10615806.2024.2308673] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/03/2023] [Accepted: 01/16/2024] [Indexed: 02/02/2024]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Worry is frequently associated with reduced cognitive performance, through consumption of attention control resources. Assessing attention control during acute worry may better reflect cognitive performance in real-world scenarios. This study examined whether attention control (assessed at rest and under acute worry) moderates the relationship between worry and academic performance. METHODS Worry (Penn State Worry Questionnaire) and academic performance (examination grades) were assessed in 87 undergraduates, with attention control (antisaccade performance) measured at baseline and following worry induction. RESULTS When assessed at rest, attention control did not moderate the relationship between trait worry and academic performance. However, under acute worry, attention control significantly moderated the relationship between worry and academic performance (p = .05, f2 = 0.14), such that at low levels of attention control under worry, higher trait worry was significantly associated with lower academic performance. At high levels of attention control under worry, however, the relationship between trait worry and academic performance was not significant. CONCLUSIONS Findings suggest that worry may shape performance according to attention control levels, with attention control's moderating role being more pronounced under conditions of acute worry. These results provide preliminary evidence that attention control assessed under worry may better predict real-world performance, compared to assessment at rest.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alannah B Horton
- School of Population Health, Discipline of Psychology, Curtin University, Perth', Australia
| | - Annelise M Pring
- School of Population Health, Discipline of Psychology, Curtin University, Perth', Australia
| | - Daniel Rudaizky
- School of Population Health, Discipline of Psychology, Curtin University, Perth', Australia
| | - Patrick J F Clarke
- School of Population Health, Discipline of Psychology, Curtin University, Perth', Australia
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Hildebrand AS, Breuer F, Leehr EJ, Finke JB, Bucher L, Klucken T, Dannlowski U, Roesmann K. Inhibitory control and its modification in spider phobia - Study protocol for an antisaccade training trial. PLoS One 2023; 18:e0292471. [PMID: 38113211 PMCID: PMC10729957 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0292471] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/20/2023] [Accepted: 09/26/2023] [Indexed: 12/21/2023] Open
Abstract
OBJECTIVES Inhibitory control deficits are considered a key pathogenic factor in anxiety disorders. To assess inhibitory control, the antisaccade task is a well-established measure that assesses antisaccade performance via latencies and error rates. The present study follows three aims: (1) to investigate inhibitory control via antisaccade latencies and errors in an antisaccade task, and their associations with multiple measures of fear in patients with spider phobia (SP) versus healthy controls (HC), (2) to investigate the modifiability of antisaccade performance via a fear-specific antisaccade training in patients with SP and HC, and (3) to explore associations between putative training-induced changes in antisaccade performance in SPs and changes in diverse measures of fear. METHODS Towards aim 1, we assess antisaccade latencies (primary outcome) and error rates (secondary outcome) in an emotional antisaccade task. Further, the baseline assessment includes assessments of psychophysiological, behavioral, and psychometric indices of fear in patients with SP and HCs. To address aim 2, we compare effects of a fear-specific antisaccade training with effects of a prosaccade training as a control condition. The primary and secondary outcomes are reassessed at a post-1-assessment in both SPs and HCs. Aim 3 employs a cross-over design and is piloted in patients with SP, only. Towards this aim, primary and secondary outcomes, as well as psychophysiological, behavioral, and psychometric measures of fear are reassessed at a post-2-assessment after the second training block. CONCLUSION This study aims to better understand inhibitory control processes and their modifiability in spider phobia. If successful, antisaccade training may assist in the treatment of specific phobia by directly targeting the putative underlying inhibitory control deficits. This study has been preregistered with ISRCTN (ID: ISRCTN12918583) on 28th February 2022.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anne Sophie Hildebrand
- Department of Psychology, Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, University of Siegen, Siegen, Germany
| | - Fabian Breuer
- Institute for Translational Psychiatry, University of Münster, Münster, Germany
| | | | - Johannes B. Finke
- Department of Psychology, Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, University of Siegen, Siegen, Germany
| | - Leandra Bucher
- Department of Psychology, Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, University of Siegen, Siegen, Germany
| | - Tim Klucken
- Department of Psychology, Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, University of Siegen, Siegen, Germany
| | - Udo Dannlowski
- Institute for Translational Psychiatry, University of Münster, Münster, Germany
| | - Kati Roesmann
- Department of Psychology, Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, University of Siegen, Siegen, Germany
- Institute of Psychology, Unit of Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy in Childhood and Adolescence, University of Osnabrück, Osnabrück, Germany
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5
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Yang L, Wang Y. The effect of motivational and instructional self-talk on attentional control under noise distraction. PLoS One 2023; 18:e0292321. [PMID: 37773946 PMCID: PMC10540956 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0292321] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/12/2022] [Accepted: 09/18/2023] [Indexed: 10/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Inhibition is the key factor of attentional control (AC). Basketball players are typically exposed to noise from the audience or opposing teams while competing. These distractions disrupt the attentional systems, ultimately compromise the athletes' inhibition ability and directly affect their performance on the court. Hence, effective AC strategies are crucial. Two studies were demonstrated to investigate the effects of noise distractions on attentional control and the moderating effect of self-talk. In Study 1, 36 participants undertook the Stroop task, showing an increased error rate with noise distraction. Thirty-nine national second-level basketball players participated in Study 2, where they engaged in the Antisaccade task under both quiet and noise-distraction conditions, employing different self-talk strategies. Results showed that instructional self-talk reduced the antisaccade error rate in quiet conditions, while motivational self-talk increased the error rate under noise distractions. These findings suggests that noise distraction reduces AC. In competition scenarios, basketball players are required to appropriately implement self-talk strategies to improve AC and prevent potential counterproductive effects.
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Affiliation(s)
- Liu Yang
- School of Psychology, Shanghai University of Sport, Shanghai, China
- School of Psychology, Beijing Sport University, Beijing, China
| | - Yingchun Wang
- School of Psychology, Beijing Sport University, Beijing, China
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Ge J, Liu Y, Zhang A, Shu T. The relationship between anxiety and smartphone addiction in the context of Covid-19: The mediating effect of attentional control and executive dysfunction. Heliyon 2023; 9:e13273. [PMID: 36743853 PMCID: PMC9886567 DOI: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2023.e13273] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/04/2022] [Revised: 12/26/2022] [Accepted: 01/24/2023] [Indexed: 02/01/2023] Open
Abstract
In the context of Covid-19, the present study examined the relationship between anxiety and smartphone addiction and tested the mediation role of attentional control and executive dysfunction. Four hundred and twenty-one Chinese undergraduate students completed anxiety, attentional control, executive dysfunction, and smartphone addiction measures. The findings of correlation analysis indicated that anxiety was negatively associated with attentional control, and positively with executive dysfunction and smartphone addiction. The results of structural equation model showed that attentional control and executive dysfunction played a mediation role between anxiety and smartphone addiction in series. Moreover, anxiety did not directly predict smartphone addiction in the final model including attentional control and executive dysfunction as mediators, suggesting that attentional control and executive dysfunction were full mediators in the relation between anxiety and smartphone addiction.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jiamin Ge
- School of Educational Sciences, Chongqing Normal University, Chongqing, 401331, China
- Key Laboratory of Applied Psychology, Chongqing Normal University, Chongqing, 401331, China
| | - Ya Liu
- School of Educational Sciences, Chongqing Normal University, Chongqing, 401331, China
- Key Laboratory of Applied Psychology, Chongqing Normal University, Chongqing, 401331, China
| | - Anbang Zhang
- School of Educational Sciences, Chongqing Normal University, Chongqing, 401331, China
- Key Laboratory of Applied Psychology, Chongqing Normal University, Chongqing, 401331, China
| | - Tengyou Shu
- School of Educational Sciences, Chongqing Normal University, Chongqing, 401331, China
- Key Laboratory of Applied Psychology, Chongqing Normal University, Chongqing, 401331, China
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Basanovic J, Myles O, MacLeod C. Do the eyes have it? A comparison of eye-movement and attentional-probe-based approaches to indexing attentional control within the antisaccade paradigm. Q J Exp Psychol (Hove) 2023; 76:221-230. [PMID: 35187988 DOI: 10.1177/17470218221083556] [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: 01/25/2023]
Abstract
Individual differences in the ability to control visual attention, often termed "attentional control," have been of particular interest to cognitive researchers. This has led to the development of numerous tasks intended to measure attentional control, including the antisaccade task. While attentional performance on the antisaccade task is typically indexed through the recording of eye movements, increasingly researchers are reporting the use of probe-based methods of indexing attentional performance on the task. Critically, no research has yet determined the convergence of measures yielded by each of these assessment methods, nor compared the reliability of these measures. The purpose of the present study was to examine whether antisaccade cost measures yielded by a probe-based adaptation of the task converge with antisaccade cost measures yielded by an eye movement task in the sample of individuals, and whether these alternative approaches have comparable levels of psychometric reliability. Ninety-three individuals completed an eye movement task and a probe-based task at two assessment times, and an index of antisaccade cost was computed from each task at each assessment time. Analyses revealed that the antisaccade cost index yielded by each task demonstrated high internal reliability (eye-movement, rSB = .92; probe-based, rSB = .80-.84) and high test-retest reliability (eye-movement, rSB = .82; probe-based, rSB = .72), but modest measurement convergence (r = .21-.35). Findings suggest that probe-based and eye-movement based antisaccade tasks measure shared variance in attentional control, although their measures do not converge strongly enough to be considered equivalent measures of attentional control.
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Affiliation(s)
- Julian Basanovic
- Centre for the Advancement of Research on Emotion, School of Psychological Science, The University of Western Australia, Crawley, Western Australia, Australia
| | - Owen Myles
- Centre for the Advancement of Research on Emotion, School of Psychological Science, The University of Western Australia, Crawley, Western Australia, Australia
| | - Colin MacLeod
- Centre for the Advancement of Research on Emotion, School of Psychological Science, The University of Western Australia, Crawley, Western Australia, Australia
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Basanovic J, Todd J, van Bockstaele B, Notebaert L, Meeten F, Clarke PJF. Assessing anxiety-linked impairment in attentional control without eye-tracking: The masked-target antisaccade task. Behav Res Methods 2023; 55:135-142. [PMID: 35292933 PMCID: PMC9918577 DOI: 10.3758/s13428-022-01800-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 01/15/2022] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
Contemporary cognitive theories of anxiety and attention processing propose that heightened levels of anxiety vulnerability are associated with a decreasing ability to inhibit the allocation of attention towards task-irrelevant information. Existing performance-based research has most often used eye-movement assessment variants of the antisaccade paradigm to demonstrate such effects. Critically, however, eye-movement assessment methods are limited by expense, the need for expert training in administration, and limited mobility and scalability. These barriers have likely led to researchers' use of suboptimal methods of assessing the relationship between attentional control and anxiety vulnerability. The present study examined the capacity for a non-eye-movement-based variant of the antisaccade task, the masked-target antisaccade task (Guitton et al., 1985), to detect anxiety-linked differences in attentional control. Participants (N = 342) completed an assessment of anxiety vulnerability and performed the masked-target antisaccade task in an online assessment session. Greater levels of anxiety vulnerability predicted poorer performance on the task, consistent with findings observed from eye-movement methods and with cognitive theories of anxiety and attention processing. Results also revealed the task to have high internal reliability. Our findings indicate that the masked-target antisaccade task provides a psychometrically reliable, low-cost, mobile, and scalable assessment of anxiety-linked differences in attentional control.
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Affiliation(s)
- Julian Basanovic
- Centre for the Advancement of Research on Emotion, School of Psychological Science, The University of Western Australia, Perth, Australia.
| | - Jemma Todd
- School of Psychology, University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia
| | - Bram van Bockstaele
- Centre for the Advancement of Research on Emotion, School of Psychological Science, The University of Western Australia, Perth, Australia
- Research Institute of Child Development and Education, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, Netherlands
| | - Lies Notebaert
- Centre for the Advancement of Research on Emotion, School of Psychological Science, The University of Western Australia, Perth, Australia
| | - Frances Meeten
- School of Psychology, University of Sussex, Brighton, UK
| | - Patrick J F Clarke
- Affective, Behavioural, and Cognitive Neuroscience Research Group, Curtin University, Perth, Australia
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Hu C, Oei TP, Hong Y, Zhou R. Processing the peripheral distractor in test anxiety: the effects of perceptual load and cognitive load. CURRENT PSYCHOLOGY 2022. [DOI: 10.1007/s12144-022-03264-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
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10
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Hoffmann A, Marhenke R, Sachse P. Sensory processing sensitivity predicts performance in an emotional antisaccade paradigm. Acta Psychol (Amst) 2022; 222:103463. [PMID: 34952450 DOI: 10.1016/j.actpsy.2021.103463] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/05/2021] [Revised: 12/06/2021] [Accepted: 12/09/2021] [Indexed: 11/01/2022] Open
Abstract
Sensory Processing Sensitivity (SPS) is a common, heritable, and evolutionarily conserved trait, describing inter-individual differences in responsiveness and a more cautious approach to novel stimuli. It is associated with increased activation of brain regions involved in awareness, integration of sensory information, and empathy during processing of emotional faces. Furthermore, SPS is related to better performance in a visual detection task. Even though SPS is conceptualized to be closely related to traits characterized by pausing before acting, no study to date has assessed the relation between SPS and inhibitory control in a behavioral inhibition task. The present study fills this gap by investigating how SPS influences individual performance on two different antisaccade paradigms including emotional face stimuli. In addition, we assessed self-reported mood, anxiety, and depressiveness. Results showed that SPS was related to faster processing speed on the emotional, but not the classic antisaccade paradigm. Moreover, SPS predicted inhibitory control speed above mood and depressiveness. Our results provide evidence that higher SPS participants show superior inhibitory abilities, especially during the processing of emotional stimuli. This is in line with earlier findings showing better performance in a visual detection task as well as increased brain activation during emotional face processing.
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11
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Liang CW. Inhibitory attentional control under cognitive load in social anxiety: An investigation using a novel dual-task paradigm. Behav Res Ther 2021; 144:103925. [PMID: 34242838 DOI: 10.1016/j.brat.2021.103925] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/17/2020] [Revised: 04/07/2021] [Accepted: 06/29/2021] [Indexed: 10/21/2022]
Abstract
Research suggests that socially anxious (SA) individuals exhibit poorer attentional inhibition than their non-anxious (NA) counterparts. Attentional control theory presumes that cognitive load worsens the adverse effects of anxiety on attentional inhibition. However, previous studies examined the effects of cognitive load on attentional inhibition in social anxiety yielded inconsistent results. In this study, cognitive load was manipulated by adding a 1-back (low cognitive load) and 2-back task (high cognitive load) to the emotional antisaccade task, investigating the effects of cognitive load on attentional inhibition in the presence of social evaluative stimuli in SA and NA individuals. Results revealed that cognitive load improved the efficiency but impeded the effectiveness of inhibitory attentional control in SA participants. Under high cognitive load, SA participants made more erroneous saccades for threat-related than nonthreat-related faces while NA participants showed no differences in error rates among different face types. Moreover, regardless of cognitive levels, SA participants had shorter saccade latencies for angry faces than happy and neutral faces. NA participants did not show differences in saccade latencies among different face types. Implications of these findings for understanding the role that cognitive load plays in the processes of attentional control and interventions for social anxiety are discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chi-Wen Liang
- Department of Psychology, Chung Yuan Christian University, No. 200, Zhongbei Rd., Zhongli Dist., Taoyuan City, 320314, Taiwan, ROC.
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Basanovic J, Kaiko I, MacLeod C. Change in Attentional Control Predicts Change in Attentional Bias to Negative Information in Response to Elevated State Anxiety. COGNITIVE THERAPY AND RESEARCH 2020. [DOI: 10.1007/s10608-020-10176-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
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13
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Clarke PJF, Marinovic W, Todd J, Basanovic J, Chen NTM, Notebaert L. What is attention bias variability? Examining the potential roles of attention control and response time variability in its relationship with anxiety. Behav Res Ther 2020; 135:103751. [PMID: 33070010 DOI: 10.1016/j.brat.2020.103751] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/27/2020] [Revised: 09/25/2020] [Accepted: 10/04/2020] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Abstract
The present study examined the underlying role of attention control and response time variability in explaining the relationship between anxiety and two commonly computed measures of attention bias variability: 'moving average' and 'trial-level bias score' measures. Participants (final n = 195) completed measures of anxiety symptomatology, antisaccade performance (attention control), a stand-alone measure of response-time variability, and a probe task measure of attention bias. Average bias and moving average bias variability measures both recorded significant, but low split-half reliability. Both attention bias variability measures and average attention bias were associated with anxiety, and attention control. Both attention bias variability measures correlated with response time variability. Neither attention bias variability measure correlated with average attention bias. Attention control was the single significant mediator of the relationship between anxiety and the trial-level bias score measure of attention bias variability. Neither response time variability nor attention control significantly mediated the relationship between anxiety and the moving average measure of attention bias variability. No evidence was found for the mediating role of response time variability. The present findings suggest that the relationships observed between anxiety and the trial-level bias score measure of attention bias variability in particular may be attributable to the over-arching role of attention control.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Jemma Todd
- School of Psychology, University of Sydney, Camperdown, Australia
| | - Julian Basanovic
- School of Psychological Science, University of Western Australia, Crawley, Australia
| | - Nigel T M Chen
- School of Psychology, Curtin University, Bentley, Australia
| | - Lies Notebaert
- School of Psychological Science, University of Western Australia, Crawley, Australia
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Afek A, Ben-Avraham R, Davidov A, Berezin Cohen N, Ben Yehuda A, Gilboa Y, Nahum M. Psychological Resilience, Mental Health, and Inhibitory Control Among Youth and Young Adults Under Stress. Front Psychiatry 2020; 11:608588. [PMID: 33584372 PMCID: PMC7874000 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyt.2020.608588] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/21/2020] [Accepted: 12/21/2020] [Indexed: 01/18/2023] Open
Abstract
Psychological resilience allows one to cope successfully with adversities occurring during stressful periods, which may otherwise trigger mental illness. Recent models suggest that inhibitory control (IC), the executive control function which supports our goal-directed behavior and regulates our emotional response, may underlie resilience. However, the ways in which this is manifested during stressful situations in real life is still unclear. Here, we examined the relationship between IC, psychological resilience, psychological distress, and anxiety among 138 female and male participants in a stressful situation: during their initial combat training in the military. Using a mobile app, we assessed IC using emotional and non-emotional variations of the Go/No-Go task. Psychological resilience, psychological distress, and anxiety were assessed using mobile versions of self-report questionnaires. We found that psychological resilience is significantly correlated with non-emotional IC (r = 0.24, p < 0.005), but not with emotional IC; whereas, psychological distress and anxiety are correlated with emotional IC (r = -0.253, p < 0.005 and r = -0.224, p < 0.01, for psychological distress and anxiety, respectively), but not with non-emotional IC. A regression model predicting emotional IC confirmed non-emotional IC and distress as unique contributors to the variance, but not psychological distress. In addition, associations between psychological distress and emotional IC were found only for female participants. Collectively, the results clarify the link between IC, resilience, and mental health in real-life stressful situations, showing separate mechanisms of IC involved in resilience on the one hand, and mental health on the other hand. These results have implications for building mobile resilience interventions for youth and young adults facing stressful situations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anat Afek
- School of Occupational Therapy, Faculty of Medicine, Hebrew University, Jerusalem, Israel
| | - Rina Ben-Avraham
- School of Occupational Therapy, Faculty of Medicine, Hebrew University, Jerusalem, Israel
| | | | - Noa Berezin Cohen
- Mental Health Department, Medical Corps, Israel Defense Forces, Haifa, Israel
| | - Ariel Ben Yehuda
- Mental Health Department, Medical Corps, Israel Defense Forces, Haifa, Israel
| | - Yafit Gilboa
- School of Occupational Therapy, Faculty of Medicine, Hebrew University, Jerusalem, Israel
| | - Mor Nahum
- School of Occupational Therapy, Faculty of Medicine, Hebrew University, Jerusalem, Israel
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Avgerinou VA, Tolmie A. Inhibition and cognitive load in fractions and decimals. BRITISH JOURNAL OF EDUCATIONAL PSYCHOLOGY 2019; 90 Suppl 1:240-256. [PMID: 31573075 DOI: 10.1111/bjep.12321] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/18/2019] [Revised: 08/24/2019] [Indexed: 01/08/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Prior research with adults and children suggests that inhibitory control may have a role to play in learning counterintuitive fractions and decimals that are inconsistent with whole number knowledge. However, there is little research to date with primary school-aged children at the early stages of fraction and decimal instruction that addresses this relationship. Understanding this association has the potential to inform instructional practices concerning the learning of counterintuitive maths concepts. AIM This study examined the relationship between inhibitory control and counterintuitive fractions and decimals in the presence of varying cognitive load in 8- to 10-year-old children. METHODS Children aged 8-10 years (N = 95) completed a fraction and decimal magnitude comparison task with pairs that were either consistent (controls) or inconsistent (counterintuitive) with whole number magnitudes. Cognitive load was manipulated by presenting trials with simple integrated text (no additional load), with integrated text accompanied by supportive illustrations (low load), or with illustrations containing information that needed to be integrated to arrive at an answer (high load). Participants also completed measures of response and semantic inhibition. RESULTS Inhibitory control uniquely contributed to performance in counterintuitive fractions and decimals only under conditions of high cognitive load, where low semantic inhibition predicted longer response times. CONCLUSION Our results indicate a more nuanced relation between inhibitory control and counterintuitive fractions and decimals than presumed by previous research. They suggest that the role of inhibitory control when reasoning about counterintuitive fractions and decimals is not constant, and it is only drawn on at high levels of cognitive load.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Andrew Tolmie
- UCL Institute of Education, University College London, UK
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