Attentional processing biases to threat in schizophrenia: Evidence from a free-viewing task with emotional scenes.

Fecha de publicación: 24/09/2021 Fecha Ahead of Print: 24/09/2021

Autores de IIS La Fe

Manuel Perea Lara

Autor
Ana Cristina García Blanco

Autor

Participantes ajenos a IIS La Fe

Navalon, Pablo
Benavent, Pilar
Sierra, Pilar
Dominguez, Alberto
Iranzo, Carmen
Serrano-Lozano, Elena
Almansa, Belen

Grupos

Investigación en Salud Mental

Leader

Ana Cristina García Blanco

Abstract

Attentional biases to threatening stimuli have been suggested to play a key role in the onset and course of schizophrenia. However, current research has not completely demonstrated this assumption. The aim of this eye-tracking study was to shed light on the underlying psychological mechanisms of schizophrenia by examining the attentional processing of socio-emotional information. Forty-four individuals with schizophrenia and 47 healthy controls were assessed in a 3-s free-viewing task with a social scene (i.e., happy, threatening, or neutral) in competition with a non-social one to determine the effects of emotional information on the different stages of the attentional processing. The location and latency of initial fixations (i.e., initial orienting), the firs-pass fixations and gaze duration (i.e., attentional engagement), and the percentage of total duration and total fixations (i.e., attentional maintenance) were analyzed. It was found that the schizophrenia group showed longer first-pass gaze duration, as well as higher percentage of total fixations and total duration toward threatening scenes in relation to the non-social ones, compared to controls. Therefore, an attentional bias toward threatening scenes in schizophrenia was found in the attentional maintenance and engagement, but not in the initial orienting of attention. Of note, the threat-related attentional bias was not associated with positive symptoms of schizophrenia. These findings offer empirical support to affective-information processing models stating that threatening information may confer psychological vulnerability to develop schizophrenia. Moreover, the results can improve psychological treatments, such as attentional bias modification paradigms or cognitive-behavior interventions managing maladaptive schemas related to threat.

Datos de la publicación

ISSN/ISSNe:: 0022-3956, 1879-1379
Tipo:: Article
Páginas:: 80-86
DOI:: 10.1016/j.jpsychires.2021.09.044
Factor de Impacto:: 1,560 SCImago ℠
Cuartil:: Q1 SCImago ℠

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Métricas

Filiaciones

Navalon, Pablo:: Instituto de Investigación. 1Department of Psychiatry and Clinical Psychology, La Fe University and Polytechnic Hospital, Valencia, Spain; Neonatal Research Group, La Fe Health Research Institute, Valencia, Spain.
Perea, Manuel:: 2Nebrija University, Madrid, Spain; Department of Psychology, University of Valencia, Valencia, Spain.
Benavent, Pilar:: 3Department of Psychiatry and Clinical Psychology, La Fe University and Polytechnic Hospital, Valencia, Spain.
Sierra, Pilar:: 4Department of Psychiatry and Clinical Psychology, La Fe University and Polytechnic Hospital, Valencia, Spain; Department of Medicine, University of Valencia, Valencia, Spain.
Dominguez, Alberto:: 3Department of Psychiatry and Clinical Psychology, La Fe University and Polytechnic Hospital, Valencia, Spain.
Iranzo, Carmen:: 3Department of Psychiatry and Clinical Psychology, La Fe University and Polytechnic Hospital, Valencia, Spain.
Serrano-Lozano, Elena:: 5Department of Psychology, University of Valencia, Valencia, Spain.
Almansa, Belen:: Instituto de Investigación. 6Neonatal Research Group, La Fe Health Research Institute, Valencia, Spain; Department of Psychology, University of Valencia, Valencia, Spain.
Garcia-Blanco, Ana:: Instituto de Investigación. 7Neonatal Research Group, La Fe Health Research Institute, Valencia, Spain; Department of Psychology, University of Valencia, Valencia, Spain.