Threat‐of‐shock decreases emotional interference on affective stroop performance in healthy controls and anxiety patients. (11th December 2019)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Lago, Tiffany R.; Blair, Karina S.; Alvarez, Gabriella; Thongdarong, Amanda; Blair, James R.; Ernst, Monique; Grillon, Christian
• Other Names: Schmidt Mathias V. guestEditor.; Robinson Oliver guestEditor.; Sandi Carmen guestEditor.
• Is Part Of: European journal of neuroscience. Volume 55:Number 9/10(2022)
• Page Start: 2519
• Page End: 2528
• Publication Date: 2019-12-11
• Subjects: anxiety disorder -- attention control -- cognition -- state anxiety; Nervous system -- Periodicals; 612.8
• DOI: 10.1111/ejn.14624
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0953-816X

Abstract

Abstract: Patients with anxiety disorders suffer from impaired concentration, potentially as a result of stronger emotional interference on attention. Studies using behavioural measures provide conflicting support for this hypothesis. Elevated state anxiety may be necessary to reliably document differences in emotional interference in patients versus healthy controls. The present study examines the effect of experimentally induced state anxiety (threat‐of‐shock) on attention interference by emotional stimuli. Anxiety patients ( n = 36) and healthy controls ( n = 32) completed a modified affective Stroop task during periods of safety and threat‐of‐shock. Results indicated that in both patients and controls, threat decreased negative, but not positive or neutral, emotional interference on attention (both p < .001). This finding supports a threat‐related narrowing of attention whereby a certain level of anxiety decreases task‐irrelevant processing. Abstract : In both anxiety patients and healthy controls, threat‐of‐shock and negative, but not positive or neutral, distractors improve performance on a modified Affective Stroop Task. Findings support a narrowing of attention whereby a certain level of anxiety can decrease task‐irrelevant processing and improve cognitive control.