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Howe-Davies H, Hobson C, Waters C, van Goozen SHM. Emotional and socio-cognitive processing in young children with symptoms of anxiety. Eur Child Adolesc Psychiatry 2023; 32:2077-2088. [PMID: 35861892 PMCID: PMC10533571 DOI: 10.1007/s00787-022-02050-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/03/2022] [Accepted: 07/10/2022] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
Abstract
Many children with anxiety disorders exhibit significant and persistent impairments in their social and interpersonal functioning. Two components essential for successful social interaction are empathy and theory of mind (ToM). Both constructs develop rapidly in childhood, but no study has simultaneously examined these skills in young children with emerging mental health problems, including those with symptoms of anxiety. This study investigated empathy and ToM in children with anxiety symptomatology and examined their relationship with anxiety severity. A cross-sectional study was carried out with 174 children aged 4-8 years with emerging mental health difficulties who were referred by school teachers for an assessment because of emotional, cognitive, or behavioural problems at school. Participants completed empathy and ToM tasks. Parents were interviewed and rated children's emotional and behavioural problems. Correlational analyses indicated that elevated anxiety was associated with better cognitive ToM and worse affective empathy; there were no associations between anxiety and either cognitive empathy or affective ToM. Subsequent regression analyses demonstrated that whilst enhanced cognitive ToM was explained by age and verbal IQ, anxiety symptoms uniquely predicted impaired affective empathy. These results indicate that children with symptoms of anxiety have difficulty in sharing in other people's emotions. As a result, they may find it difficult to behave in socially adequate ways in interactions with others that involve affective sharing. These findings encourage the use of early and targeted interventions that improve affective empathy development in children with anxiety symptoms.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | - Stephanie H M van Goozen
- School of Psychology, Cardiff University, Wales, UK.
- Department of Clinical Child and Adolescent Studies, Leiden University, Leiden, Netherlands.
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Montandon ML, Rodriguez C, Herrmann FR, Eytan A, Pegna AJ, Haller S, Giannakopoulos P. Seeing in my way or your way: impact of intelligence, attention, and empathy on brain reactivity. Front Hum Neurosci 2023; 17:1071676. [PMID: 37234603 PMCID: PMC10206026 DOI: 10.3389/fnhum.2023.1071676] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/16/2022] [Accepted: 04/17/2023] [Indexed: 05/28/2023] Open
Abstract
Previous studies showed that neurotypical adults are able to engage in unconscious analyses of others' mental states in the context of automatic perspective taking and experience systematic difficulties when judging the conflicts between their own (Self) and another's (Other) perspective. Several functional MRI (fMRI) studies reported widespread activation of mentalizing, salience, and executive networks when adopting the Other compared to Self perspective. This study aims to explore whether cognitive and emotional parameters impact on brain reactivity in dot perspective task (dPT). We provide here an fMRI analysis based on individual z-scores in eighty-two healthy adults who underwent the Samson's dPT after detailed assessment of fluid intelligence, attention, levels of alexithymia and social cognition abilities. Univariate regression models were used to explore the association between brain activation patterns and psychological variables. There was a strong positive association between Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS) and fMRI z-scores in Self perspective. When the Other perspective is taken, Continuous Performance Test (CPT)-II parameters were negatively associated with fMRI z-scores. Individuals with higher Toronto Alexithymia scale (TAS) score and lower scores in mini-Social cognition and Emotional Assessment (SEA) displayed significantly higher egocentric interference-related fMRI z-scores. Our data demonstrate that brain activation when focusing on our own perspective depends on the levels of fluid intelligence. Decreased attentional recruitment and decreased inhibitory control affects the brain efforts to adopt the Other perspective. Egocentric interference-associated brain fMRI activation was less marked in cases with better empathy abilities but the opposite was true for persons who experience increased difficulties in the recognition of emotions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marie-Louise Montandon
- Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland
- Department of Rehabilitation and Geriatrics, Geneva University Hospitals, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Cristelle Rodriguez
- Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland
- Division of Institutional Measures, Medical Direction, Geneva University Hospitals, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - François R. Herrmann
- Department of Rehabilitation and Geriatrics, Geneva University Hospitals, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Ariel Eytan
- Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland
- Division of Institutional Measures, Medical Direction, Geneva University Hospitals, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Alan J. Pegna
- School of Psychology, University of Queensland, Brisbane, QLD, Australia
| | - Sven Haller
- CIMC—Centre d’Imagerie Médicale de Cornavin, Geneva, Switzerland
- Department of Surgical Sciences, Radiology, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden
- Faculty of Medicine, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland
- Department of Radiology, Beijing Tiantan Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China
| | - Panteleimon Giannakopoulos
- Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland
- Division of Institutional Measures, Medical Direction, Geneva University Hospitals, Geneva, Switzerland
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