Article
Psychology, Multidisciplinary
Julia Folz, Tom S. Roth, Milica Nikolic, Mariska E. Kret
Summary: This study examined attentional biases towards different emotional expressions and found no consistent links between these biases and social anxiety or autistic traits. Only an exploratory Bayesian analysis suggested a weaker bias towards happy facial expressions in individuals with higher autistic trait levels. Furthermore, the attentional bias towards angry facial expressions appeared to be influenced by an interplay between both trait dimensions. Novel approaches in assessing attentional biases may provide a more valid description of disorder-specific biases in attention to emotions.
CURRENT PSYCHOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Psychology, Multidisciplinary
Shu-Hui Lee, Kuan-Te Lee
Summary: Alexithymia is a personality trait characterized by difficulties in identifying and describing emotions, and is considered a risk factor for multiple psychiatric disorders. This study found that Taiwanese individuals with alexithymia show early avoidance tendency in processing negative emotional information and negative affect does not interfere with subsequent attention processing. Furthermore, there is no specific attentional bias toward different types of negative emotions in individuals with alexithymia.
PSYCHOLOGICAL REPORTS
(2022)
Article
Psychology, Multidisciplinary
Wen Xiao, Xiaoqi Zheng, Yuejia Luo, Jiaxin Peng
Summary: This study examined the effects of reward associative learning and the traditional threat-avoidance ABM paradigm on anxiety and attentional bias. The results showed that reward training reduced both general anxiety and attentional bias, while traditional ABM training only reduced anxiety when combined with reward training.
FRONTIERS IN PSYCHOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Psychiatry
Javad S. Fadardi, Sepideh Memarian, John Parkinson, W. Miles Cox, Alan W. Stacy
Summary: Consistent with cognitive models of social anxiety, socially anxious individuals show cognitive biases that magnify their perceived level of threat in the environment. The objective of the study was to determine whether attentional bias for socially threatening stimuli occurs after concomitant depression has been controlled and to test the effectiveness of the Attention Control Training Program for Social Anxiety (ACTP-SA) for reducing social anxiety attentional bias and improving therapeutic indices in people with social anxiety. The results underscore the importance of information processing biases in social anxiety and the benefits of attentional bias training as a complementary intervention for modifying symptoms of social anxiety.
JOURNAL OF PSYCHIATRIC RESEARCH
(2023)
Article
Psychology, Experimental
Nick Berggren
Summary: Threat-related information strongly biases attention, particularly for high anxious individuals. This study shows that high anxious individuals have a stronger attentional bias towards threat-related features, which is correlated with individual differences in trait anxiety. Additionally, the study suggests that anxiety-related phenomena may stem from task-irrelevant visual working memory representation.
Article
Behavioral Sciences
Emilio A. Valadez, Daniel S. Pine, Nathan A. Fox, Yair Bar-Haim
Summary: Anxiety is associated with increased attention to threat. This review examines the evidence for this association, discusses the neurobiology of anxiety-related differences in attention to threat, explores the developmental origin of attention bias, and investigates efforts to apply this research to clinical intervention. Future directions include improving the analysis of threat-processing brain networks, clarifying the role of cognitive control in attention bias development, and conducting larger clinical trials to examine treatment response factors.
NEUROSCIENCE AND BIOBEHAVIORAL REVIEWS
(2022)
Article
Psychology, Experimental
Hannah L. Delchau, Bruce K. Christensen, Ottmar Lipp, Stephanie C. Goodhew
Summary: This study examined the relationship between social anxiety and biased attention toward threatening facial expressions, finding that individuals with higher levels of social anxiety exhibit selective deficits in attentional shifting towards happy faces when paired with angry faces, but not with neutral faces.
Article
Psychology, Multidisciplinary
Diane Baier, Marleen Kempkes, Thomas Ditye, Ulrich Ansorge
Summary: Two experiments showed that fearful facial expressions do not capture attention in an awareness-independent way, whether as cues or targets.
FRONTIERS IN PSYCHOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Psychology, Clinical
Chrysanthi Leonidou, Georgia Panayiotou
Summary: This study examined how individuals process illness-related information and how it relates to emotional reactivity. The results showed that individuals with higher levels of illness anxiety displayed a vigilant bias towards illness-related pictures, while task nature influenced the attentional processing patterns of illness stimuli. The findings suggest that attention allocation may serve as a mechanism for emotion regulation.
JOURNAL OF HEALTH PSYCHOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Psychology, Multidisciplinary
Xinyi Zhu, Yan Gong, Tingting Xu, Wen Lian, Shuhui Xu, Lu Fan
Summary: This study investigated the processing characteristics and mechanisms of the interaction between gestures and facial expressions in individuals with high and low social anxiety. The results showed that individuals recognized gestures faster than faces and negative gestures enhanced attention more significantly. When the emotional valence of facial expressions and gestures matched, the recognition of both was facilitated. However, incongruent gestures had a stronger impact on the processing of facial expressions, indicating that facial emotional processing is more influenced by environmental cues provided by gestures.
FRONTIERS IN PSYCHOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Behavioral Sciences
V. Burmester, G. K. Butler, P. Terry
Summary: Research has shown that oxytocin can reduce individuals' attentional bias towards food images, and this effect is modulated by self-reported food cravings and trait stress.
Article
Psychiatry
Antonia Vehlen, Antonia Kellner, Claus Normann, Markus Heinrichs, Gregor Domes
Summary: Chronic depression disorders (CDD) are characterized by impaired social cognitive functioning. Visual attention during social perception is altered in CDD and is sensitive to intranasal treatment with oxytocin (OT). This study investigated gaze preferences during a facial emotion recognition task in CDD patients and the effect of intranasal OT. While CDD patients were not more impaired in emotion recognition and there was no OT effect, they demonstrated less attention to the eye region compared to healthy controls. This bias was reduced after OT treatment, suggesting the potential of OT to augment psychotherapy.
JOURNAL OF PSYCHIATRIC RESEARCH
(2023)
Article
Psychology, Developmental
Abigail Thompson, Nikolaus Steinbeis
Summary: By utilizing a perceptual load paradigm and computational modelling, this study investigated the cognitive processes involved in attentional biases towards negative stimuli in childhood anxiety. The findings suggest that anxiety levels and load conditions significantly impact attentional biases in children.
DEVELOPMENTAL SCIENCE
(2021)
Article
Psychiatry
Hui Kou, Wei Luo, Xinnan Liu, Mingyang Ke, Qinhong Xie, Xue Li, Taiyong Bi
Summary: Mindfulness training can effectively reduce anxiety and depressive symptoms. However, its impact on attentional bias towards facial emotions may only be temporary and plays a limited role in improving emotional symptoms.
JOURNAL OF PSYCHIATRIC RESEARCH
(2023)
Article
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Laura Sagliano, Massimiliano Conson, Gennaro Saporito, Antonio Carolei, Simona Sacco, Francesca Pistoia
Summary: This study found that earthquake victims tend to avoid fearful and happy facial expressions, with this avoidance being negatively correlated with anxiety-related cognitive concerns. The results suggest that attentional avoidance of emotional faces persists among earthquake victims years after the traumatic event.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF DISASTER RISK REDUCTION
(2021)
Article
Psychology, Clinical
Lizhu Luo, Christelle Langley, Laura Moreno-Lopez, Keith Kendrick, David K. Menon, Emmanuel A. Stamatakis, Barbara J. Sahakian
Summary: This study examined the association between depressive symptoms in traumatic brain injury (TBI) patients and altered resting-state functional connectivity (rs-fc) or voxel-based morphology in brain regions involved in emotional regulation and associated with depression. The results showed a positive association between depression scores and rs-fc between limbic regions and cognitive control regions, while there was a negative association between depression scores and rs-fc between limbic and frontal regions involved in emotion regulation. These findings contribute to a better understanding of the mechanisms underlying depression following TBI and can inform treatment decisions.
PSYCHOLOGICAL MEDICINE
(2023)
Article
Psychology, Developmental
S. Hampton, C. Allison, S. Baron-Cohen, R. Holt
Summary: There are sensory and communication related barriers to childbirth and postnatal healthcare for autistic people, with a need for adjustments and greater mental health support.
JOURNAL OF AUTISM AND DEVELOPMENTAL DISORDERS
(2023)
Article
Clinical Neurology
Martine Skumlien, Claire Mokrysz, Tom P. Freeman, Vincent Valton, Matthew B. Wall, Michael Bloomfield, Rachel Lees, Anna Borissova, Kat Petrilli, Manuela Giugliano, Denisa Clisu, Christelle Langley, Barbara J. Sahakian, H. Valerie Curran, Will Lawn
Summary: This study examined the association between cannabis use and anhedonia, apathy, pleasure, and effort-based decision-making for reward, and explored the moderating effect of age group.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF NEUROPSYCHOPHARMACOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Psychology, Developmental
Sarah Hampton, Joyce Man, Carrie Allison, Ezra Aydin, Simon Baron-Cohen, Rosemary Holt
Summary: Pregnant autistic women may experience heightened sensory and physical symptoms during pregnancy, and may hesitate to disclose their diagnosis to healthcare professionals due to perceived lack of knowledge. They require detailed information and time to process verbal information, and also emphasize the need for sensory adjustments in healthcare settings.
Article
Psychology, Developmental
Ofer Golan, Michael Terner, Sandra Israel-Yaacov, Carrie Allison, Simon Baron-Cohen
Summary: The study examined the properties of the Hebrew version of the Autism-Spectrum Quotient and created a short version suitable for autism assessment. The Hebrew version showed good internal consistency and had high sensitivity and specificity, making it an effective tool for screening autistic traits in clinically referred adults.
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Ravi Prabhakar More, Varun Warrier, Helena Brunel, Clara Buckingham, Paula Smith, Carrie Allison, Rosemary Holt, Charles R. Bradshaw, Simon Baron-Cohen
Summary: This study conducted whole-genome sequencing of 21 highly multiplex autism families and identified rare variants in genes associated with autism. The study also found a convergence of the genes identified in molecular pathways related to development and neurogenesis. These findings provide initial evidence to demonstrate the value of integrating autism diagnosis and autistic traits to prioritize genes.
MOLECULAR PSYCHIATRY
(2023)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Xinran Wu, Lena Palaniyappan, Gechang Yu, Kai Zhang, Jakob Seidlitz, Zhaowen Liu, Xiangzhen Kong, Gunter Schumann, Jianfeng Feng, Barbara J. Sahakian, Trevor W. Robbins, Edward Bullmore, Jie Zhang
Summary: This study constructed a whole-brain morphometric similarity network and found that developmental dissimilarities between cortical and subcortical regions were associated with cognitive and psychiatric status during preadolescence.
MOLECULAR PSYCHIATRY
(2023)
Article
Neurosciences
Christelle Langley, Sophia Armand, Qiang Luo, George Savulich, Tina Segerberg, Anna Sondergaard, Elisabeth B. Pedersen, Nanna Svart, Oliver Overgaard-Hansen, Annette Johansen, Camilla Borgsted, Rudolf N. Cardinal, Trevor W. Robbins, Dea S. Stenbaek, Gitte M. Knudsen, Barbara J. Sahakian
Summary: This study aimed to investigate the chronic effects of the SSRI escitalopram on cognition in healthy volunteers. The findings revealed that escitalopram decreased reinforcement sensitivity but had no significant impact on "cold" cognition and decision-making ability. These findings suggest that serotonin reuptake inhibition plays a role in reinforcement learning in healthy individuals.
NEUROPSYCHOPHARMACOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Clinical Neurology
Roxanne W. Hook, Masanori Isobe, George Savulich, Jon E. Grant, Konstantinos Ioannidis, David Christmas, Barbara J. Sahakian, Trevor W. Robbins, Samuel R. Chamberlain
Summary: This study found that single-dose istradefylline can impact human cognition, particularly in the social information preference task with emotional loading. This indicates the under-studied role of the adenosine neurochemical system in human cognition, which requires further exploration.
EUROPEAN NEUROPSYCHOPHARMACOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Psychiatry
Lukas Cheney, Robert B. Dudas, Jenna M. Traynor, Josephine A. Beatson, Sathya Rao, Lois W. Choi-Kain
HARVARD REVIEW OF PSYCHIATRY
(2023)
Article
Psychiatry
Michal M. Graczyk, Barbara J. Sahakian, Trevor W. Robbins, Karen D. Ersche
Summary: Not everyone who uses drugs loses control over their intake, which is a hallmark of addiction. Although familial risk studies suggest significant addiction heritability, the genetic basis of vulnerability to drug addiction remains largely unknown. In this study, the researchers examined the relationship between self-control, cocaine use, and a specific gene variant (rs36024) associated with the noradrenaline transporter gene. They found that individuals carrying the C-allele of this gene exhibited impaired self-control, particularly in the context of chronic cocaine use. Patients with cocaine use disorder who had the CC genotype showed longer stop-signal reaction time and fewer successful stops compared to healthy controls and patients with the TT genotype. These findings suggest that rs36024 may be a potential genetic vulnerability marker for cocaine addiction.
TRANSLATIONAL PSYCHIATRY
(2023)
Article
Genetics & Heredity
Lisa M. Berg, Caroline Gurr, Johanna Leyhausen, Hanna Seelemeyer, Anke Bletsch, Tim Schaefer, Charlotte M. Pretzsch, Bethany Oakley, Eva Loth, Dorothea L. Floris, Jan K. Buitelaar, Christian F. Beckmann, Tobias Banaschewski, Tony Charman, Emily J. H. Jones, Julian Tillmann, Chris H. Chatham, Thomas Bourgeron, Jumana Ahmad, Sara Ambrosino, Bonnie Auyeung, Simon Baron-Cohen, Sarah Baumeister, Sven Boelte, Carsten Bours, Michael Brammer, Daniel Brandeis, Claudia Brogna, Yvette de Bruijn, Bhismadev Chakrabarti, Ineke Cornelissen, Daisy Crawley, Flavio Dell'Acqua, Guillaume Dumas, Sarah Durston, Jessica Faulkner, Vincent Frouin, Pilar Garces, David Goyard, Lindsay Ham, Hannah Hayward, Joerg Hipp, Rosemary Holt, Mark H. Johnson, Prantik Kundu, Meng-Chuan Lai, Xavier Liogier D'Ardhuy, Michael V. Lombardo, David J. Lythgoe, Rene Mandl, Andre Marquand, Luke Mason, Maarten Mennes, Andreas Meyer-Lindenberg, Carolin Moessnang, Nico Bast, Laurence O'Dwyer, Marianne Oldehinkel, Bob Oranje, Gahan Pandina, Antonio M. Persico, Barbara Ruggeri, Amber Ruigrok, Jessica Sabet, Roberto Sacco, Antonia San Jose Caceres, Emily Simonoff, Will Spooren, Roberto Toro, Heike Tost, Jack Waldman, Steve C. R. Williams, Caroline Wooldridge, Marcel P. Zwiers, Declan G. Murphy, Christine Ecker
Summary: This study investigates the neurobiology of individuals with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) and their co-occurring condition, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). The findings suggest that the neuroanatomy of ASD is significantly modulated by ADHD, indicating that individuals with co-occurring ADHD may have specific neuroanatomical underpinnings potentially mediated by atypical gene expression.
Article
Psychiatry
A. Tsompanidis, L. Blanken, Z. A. Broere-Brown, B. B. van Rijn, S. Baron-Cohen, H. Tiemeier
Summary: Autism is more prevalent in males, and males on average score higher on measures of autistic traits. Placental function is significantly affected by the sex of the fetus. It is unclear if sex differences in placental function are associated with sex differences in the occurrence of autistic traits postnatally.
TRANSLATIONAL PSYCHIATRY
(2023)
Review
Neurosciences
Owen Stafford, Christina Gleeson, Ciara Egan, Conall Tunney, Brendan Rooney, Fiadhnait O'Keeffe, Garret Mcdermott, Simon Baron-Cohen, Tom Burke
Summary: Social cognition, which involves understanding and predicting others' behavior, is clinically and diagnostically significant. This study examines the deficits in mentalizing abilities in individuals with neurodegenerative conditions, finding consistent impairment in various conditions at different disease stages.
Article
Psychology, Developmental
Yonat Rum, Ofer Golan, Carrie Allison, Paula Smith, Simon R. White, Simon Baron-Cohen
Summary: This study examined the impact of having siblings on empathy in individuals with autism. The results showed that autistic children without siblings scored higher on empathy measures compared to those with siblings. For autistic adults, the presence of siblings did not have a significant impact on empathy performance, but there was an interaction effect between sex and group specifically on the Reading the Mind in the Eyes Test.
JOURNAL OF AUTISM AND DEVELOPMENTAL DISORDERS
(2023)