1
|
Zbozinek TD, Wise T, Perez OD, Qi S, Fanselow MS, Mobbs D. Pavlovian occasion setting in human fear and appetitive conditioning: Effects of trait anxiety and trait depression. Behav Res Ther 2021; 147:103986. [PMID: 34740100 DOI: 10.1016/j.brat.2021.103986] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/18/2021] [Revised: 08/19/2021] [Accepted: 10/05/2021] [Indexed: 02/08/2023]
Abstract
Contexts and discrete stimuli often hierarchically influence the association between a stimulus and outcome. This phenomenon, called occasion setting, is central to modulation-based Pavlovian learning. We conducted two experiments with humans in fear and appetitive conditioning paradigms, training stimuli in differential conditioning, feature-positive discriminations, and feature-negative discriminations. We also investigated the effects of trait anxiety and trait depression on these forms of learning. Results from both experiments showed that participants were able to successfully learn which stimuli predicted the electric shock and monetary reward outcomes. Additionally, as hypothesized, the stimuli trained as occasion setters had little-to-no effect on simple reinforced or non-reinforced stimuli, suggesting the former were indeed occasion setters. Lastly, in fear conditioning, trait anxiety was associated with increases in fear of occasion setter/conditional stimulus compounds; in appetitive conditioning, trait depression was associated with lower expectations of monetary reward for the trained negative occasion setting compound and transfer of the negative occasion setter to the simple reinforced stimulus. These results suggest that clinically anxious individuals may have enhanced fear of occasion setting compounds, and clinically depressed individuals may expect less reward with compounds involving the negative occasion setter.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Tomislav D Zbozinek
- California Institute of Technology, Humanities and Social Sciences, 1200 E. California Blvd., MC 228-77, Pasadena, CA, 91125, USA.
| | - Toby Wise
- California Institute of Technology, Humanities and Social Sciences, 1200 E. California Blvd., MC 228-77, Pasadena, CA, 91125, USA
| | - Omar D Perez
- California Institute of Technology, Humanities and Social Sciences, 1200 E. California Blvd., MC 228-77, Pasadena, CA, 91125, USA; University of Santiago of Chile (USACH), Faculty of Business and Economics, Santiago, Chile
| | - Song Qi
- National Institute of Mental Health, 6001 Executive Boulevard, Room 6200, MSC 9663, Bethesda, MD, 20892, USA
| | - Michael S Fanselow
- University of California, Department of Psychology, 502 Portola Plaza, Los Angeles, CA, 90025, USA
| | - Dean Mobbs
- California Institute of Technology, Humanities and Social Sciences, 1200 E. California Blvd., MC 228-77, Pasadena, CA, 91125, USA
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Icenhour A, Petrakova L, Hazzan N, Theysohn N, Merz CJ, Elsenbruch S. When gut feelings teach the brain to fear pain: Context-dependent activation of the central fear network in a novel interoceptive conditioning paradigm. Neuroimage 2021; 238:118229. [PMID: 34082119 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2021.118229] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/28/2020] [Revised: 04/16/2021] [Accepted: 05/31/2021] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
The relevance of contextual factors in shaping neural mechanisms underlying visceral pain-related fear learning remains elusive. However, benign interoceptive sensations, which shape patients' clinical reality, may context-dependently become conditioned predictors of impending visceral pain. In a novel context-dependent interoceptive conditioning paradigm, we elucidated the putative role of the central fear network in the acquisition and extinction of pain-related fear induced by interoceptive cues and pain-predictive contexts. In this fMRI study involving rectal distensions as a clinically-relevant model of visceroception, N = 27 healthy men and women underwent differential conditioning. During acquisition training, visceral sensations of low intensity as conditioned stimuli (CS) predicted visceral pain as unconditioned stimulus (US) in one context (Con+), or safety from pain in another context (Con-). During extinction training, interoceptive CS remained unpaired in both contexts, which were operationalized as images of different rooms presented in the MRI scanner. Successful contextual conditioning was supported by increased negative valence of Con+ compared to Con- after acquisition training, which resolved after extinction training. Although interoceptive CS were perceived as comparatively pleasant, they induced significantly greater neural activation of the amygdala, ventromedial PFC, and hippocampus when presented in Con+, while contexts alone did not elicit differential responses. During extinction training, a shift from CS to context differentiation was observed, with enhanced responses in the amygdala, ventromedial, and ventrolateral PFC to Con+ relative to Con-, whereas no CS-induced differential activation emerged. Context-dependent interoceptive conditioning can turn benign interoceptive cues into predictors of visceral pain that recruit key regions of the fear network. This first evidence expands knowledge about learning and memory mechanisms underlying interoceptive hypervigilance and maladaptive avoidance behavior, with implications for disorders of the gut-brain axis.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Adriane Icenhour
- Department of Neurology, University Hospital Essen, Hufelandstr. 55, Essen 45147, Germany.
| | - Liubov Petrakova
- Department of Medical Psychology and Medical Sociology, Ruhr University Bochum, Universitaetsstr. 150, Bochum 44801 Germany
| | - Nelly Hazzan
- Department of Neurology, University Hospital Essen, Hufelandstr. 55, Essen 45147, Germany
| | - Nina Theysohn
- Institute of Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology and Neuroradiology, University Hospital Essen, University of Duisburg-Essen, Hufelandstr. 55, Essen 45147, Germany
| | - Christian J Merz
- Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, Department of Cognitive Psychology, Ruhr University Bochum, Universitaetsstr. 150, Bochum 44801, Germany
| | - Sigrid Elsenbruch
- Department of Neurology, University Hospital Essen, Hufelandstr. 55, Essen 45147, Germany; Department of Medical Psychology and Medical Sociology, Ruhr University Bochum, Universitaetsstr. 150, Bochum 44801 Germany
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
Avoidance behaviour performed in the context of a novel, ambiguous movement increases threat and pain-related fear. Pain 2021; 162:875-885. [PMID: 32947543 DOI: 10.1097/j.pain.0000000000002079] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/11/2020] [Accepted: 09/09/2020] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
ABSTRACT The fear-avoidance model of chronic pain predicts that catastrophic (mis)interpretation of pain elicits pain-related fear that in turn may spur avoidance behaviour leading to chronic pain disability. Here, we investigated whether performing a movement to avoid a painful stimulus in the context of a novel movement increases threat and pain-related fear towards this novel movement and whether avoidance behaviour persisted when given the choice between performing the acquired movement to avoid a painful stimulus or an alternative, novel movement. Applying a robotic arm-reaching task, participants could choose between 2 movements to reach a target location: a short, but painful movement trajectory, or a longer nonpainful movement trajectory. After avoidance acquisition, the option to choose the painful trajectory was removed. The experimental group (N = 50) could choose between the longest trajectory or a novel intermediate trajectory, whereas the control group (N = 50) was allowed to only perform the novel trajectory. In a final test, participants of both groups were allowed to choose any of the 3 trajectories. After acquisition, experimental group participants showed elevated pain expectancy and pain-related fear towards the novel trajectory, compared with the control group. During test, the experimental group participants persisted in performing the longest pain-free (avoidance) trajectory and were less likely to choose the novel trajectory. In addition, these participants maintained higher levels of pain-related fear for the novel trajectory compared with the control group. These findings suggest that avoidance in the context of other neutral activities/movements may lead to the development and maintenance of threat appraisals and irrational fears.
Collapse
|
4
|
Abstract
Occasion setting refers to the ability of 1 stimulus, an occasion setter, to modulate the efficacy of the association between another, conditioned stimulus (CS) and an unconditioned stimulus (US) or reinforcer. Occasion setters and simple CSs are readily distinguished. For example, occasion setters are relatively immune to extinction and counterconditioning, and their combination and transfer functions differ substantially from those of simple CSs. Similarly, the acquisition of occasion setting is favored when stimuli are separated by longer intervals, by empty trace intervals, and are of different modalities, whereas the opposite conditions typically favor the acquisition of simple associations. Furthermore, the simple conditioning and occasion setting properties of a single stimulus can be independent, for example, that stimulus may simultaneously predict the occurrence of a reinforcer and indicate that another stimulus will not be reinforced. Many behavioral phenomena that are intractable to simple associative analysis are better understood within an occasion setting framework. Besides capturing the distinction between direct and modulatory control common to many arenas in neuroscience, occasion setting provides a model for the hierarchical organization of memory for events and event relations, and for contextual control more broadly. Although early lesion studies further differentiated between occasion setting and simple conditioning functions, little is known about the neurobiology of occasion setting. Modern techniques for precise manipulation and monitoring of neuronal activity in multiple brain regions are ideally suited for disentangling contributions of simple conditioning and occasion setting in associative learning. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved).
Collapse
|
5
|
Treanor M, Barry TJ. Treatment of avoidance behavior as an adjunct to exposure therapy: Insights from modern learning theory. Behav Res Ther 2017; 96:30-36. [DOI: 10.1016/j.brat.2017.04.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/29/2016] [Revised: 04/11/2017] [Accepted: 04/17/2017] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
|
6
|
Krypotos AM, Effting M, Kindt M, Beckers T. Avoidance learning: a review of theoretical models and recent developments. Front Behav Neurosci 2015; 9:189. [PMID: 26257618 PMCID: PMC4508580 DOI: 10.3389/fnbeh.2015.00189] [Citation(s) in RCA: 194] [Impact Index Per Article: 21.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/20/2015] [Accepted: 07/06/2015] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Avoidance is a key characteristic of adaptive and maladaptive fear. Here, we review past and contemporary theories of avoidance learning. Based on the theories, experimental findings and clinical observations reviewed, we distill key principles of how adaptive and maladaptive avoidance behavior is acquired and maintained. We highlight clinical implications of avoidance learning theories and describe intervention strategies that could reduce maladaptive avoidance and prevent its return. We end with a brief overview of recent developments and avenues for further research.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Angelos-Miltiadis Krypotos
- Department of Clinical Psychology, University of AmsterdamAmsterdam, Netherlands
- Amsterdam Brain and Cognition, University of AmsterdamAmsterdam, Netherlands
| | - Marieke Effting
- Department of Clinical Psychology, University of AmsterdamAmsterdam, Netherlands
- Amsterdam Brain and Cognition, University of AmsterdamAmsterdam, Netherlands
| | - Merel Kindt
- Department of Clinical Psychology, University of AmsterdamAmsterdam, Netherlands
- Amsterdam Brain and Cognition, University of AmsterdamAmsterdam, Netherlands
| | - Tom Beckers
- Department of Clinical Psychology, University of AmsterdamAmsterdam, Netherlands
- Amsterdam Brain and Cognition, University of AmsterdamAmsterdam, Netherlands
- Department of Psychology, KU LeuvenLeuven, Belgium
| |
Collapse
|
7
|
Avoidance behavior in chronic pain research: A cold case revisited. Behav Res Ther 2015; 64:31-7. [DOI: 10.1016/j.brat.2014.11.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 48] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/08/2013] [Revised: 10/27/2014] [Accepted: 11/04/2014] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
|
8
|
Hassoulas A, McHugh L, Reed P. Avoidance and behavioural flexibility in obsessive compulsive disorder. J Anxiety Disord 2014; 28:148-53. [PMID: 23774010 DOI: 10.1016/j.janxdis.2013.05.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/07/2012] [Revised: 05/06/2013] [Accepted: 05/10/2013] [Indexed: 10/26/2022]
Abstract
Three experiments measured differences in responding between participants scoring either higher or lower on obsessive-compulsive trait measures. A Sidman avoidance procedure was employed in Experiment 1, in which participants were required to identify an avoidance response that postponed an aversive event, and noted that higher scorers maintained this response more successfully. Experiments 2 and 3 involved an operant variability procedure to differentiate between variable and rigid responding among participants demonstrating high versus low obsessive-compulsive traits, and revealed no differential sensitivity to rigid responding between the groups. The results provide insight into the nature of obsessive-compulsive behavioural traits, suggesting that avoidance but not stereotypy is primary in OCD.
Collapse
|
9
|
Declercq M, De Houwer J. Evidence against an occasion setting account of avoidance learning. LEARNING AND MOTIVATION 2011. [DOI: 10.1016/j.lmot.2010.08.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/18/2022]
|
10
|
Dymond S. A contemporary behavior analysis of anxiety and avoidance. THE BEHAVIOR ANALYST 2009; 32:7-27. [PMID: 22478511 PMCID: PMC2686994 DOI: 10.1007/bf03392173] [Citation(s) in RCA: 88] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
Abstract
Despite the central status of avoidance in explaining the etiology and maintenance of anxiety disorders, surprisingly little behavioral research has been conducted on human avoidance. In the present paper, first we provide a brief review of the empirical literature on avoidance. Next, we describe the implications of research on derived relational responding and the transformation of functions for a contemporary behavioral account of avoidance, before providing several illustrative research examples of laboratory-based analogues of key clinical treatment processes. Finally, we suggest some challenges and opportunities that lie ahead for behavioral research on anxiety and avoidance.
Collapse
|