Attention bias to negative versus non-negative faces is related to negative affectivity in a transdiagnostic youth sample

Harrewijn, Anita; Abend, Rany; Naim, Reut; Haller, Simone P.; Stavish, Caitlin; Bajaj, Mira; Matsumoto, Chika; Dombek, Kelly; Cardinale, Elise M.; Kircanski, Katharina; Brotman, Melissa A.

doi:10.1016/j.jpsychires.2021.04.036

Cited by 7 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 23 publications

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“…In this case, heterogeneous findings related to the direction of the attention bias could be explained by the specific mood induction procedure. Indeed, adolescent negativity has recently been proven as a latent factor, which induces an attention bias towards negative faces (Harrewijn et al 2021), supporting the argument given above.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 63%

Childhood adversity and approach/avoidance-related behaviour in boys

et al. 2022

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Childhood adversity has been suggested to affect the vulnerability for developmental psychopathology, including both externalizing and internalizing symptoms. This study examines spontaneous attention biases for negative and positive emotional facial expressions as potential intermediate phenotypes. In detail, typically developing boys (6–13 years) underwent an eye-tracking paradigm displaying happy, angry, sad and fearful faces. An approach bias towards positive emotional facial expressions with increasing childhood adversity levels was found. In addition, an attention bias away from negative facial expressions was observed with increasing childhood adversity levels, especially for sad facial expressions. The results might be interpreted in terms of emotional regulation strategies in boys at risk for reactive aggression and depressive behaviour.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 63%

Childhood adversity and approach/avoidance-related behaviour in boys

et al. 2022

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“…Of note, heightened attentional bias toward or away from negative emotional stimuli is considered to be dysfunctional, because it acts as a risk and maintaining factor of various forms of psychopathology, such as depression and anxiety (Bradley et al, 1999 ; Clarke et al, 2014 , 2020 ; Gotlib et al, 2004 ). The heightened attentional bias toward angry faces indicates a difficulty in disengaging attention from threatening emotional stimuli, as extensively demonstrated by previous studies (Harrewijn et al, 2021 ; Kircanski et al, 2018 ; Mekawi et al, 2020 ; Oehlberg et al, 2012 ). Conversely, the attentional bias away from sad faces could indicate that higher trait NA individuals tend to avoid sadness.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 68%

Trait-related neural basis of attentional bias to emotions: a tDCS study

Marotta

Braga

Fiorio

2023

Cogn Affect Behav Neurosci

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Negative emotional stimuli can strongly bias attention, particularly in individuals with high levels of dispositional negative affect (NA). The current study investigated whether the prefrontal cortex (PFC), a brain region involved in the top-down regulation of emotional processing, plays a different role in controlling attention to emotions, depending on the individual NA. Sham and anodal transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) was delivered over the right or left PFC while assessing attentional bias (AB) to emotions (happy, angry, sad faces) in individuals with higher and lower trait NA. When tDCS was inactive (sham), individuals with higher trait NA showed AB toward angry and away from sad faces, while individuals with lower trait NA presented with no AB. Right anodal-tDCS abolished the AB toward angry faces and induced an AB toward sad faces in individuals with higher trait NA, while no effect was found in individuals with lower trait NA. Left anodal-tDCS abolished any AB in individuals with higher trait NA and induced an AB away from happy faces in individuals with lower trait NA. These findings confirm a critical role of trait NA in AB to emotions and demonstrate a different involvement of PFC in emotional processing based on dispositional affect.

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“…Biases in sustained attention on threat information is also observed, indicating that irritable youth may be at greater risk of recognising and then maintaining their attention on threats within their environment, and thus limiting their capacity for cognitive control when presented with a goal-directed task. Illustratively, Harrewijn et al ( 2021 ) found that youth with anxiety and irritability in the context of ADHD, DMDD, and/or ODD looked at negative compared to non-negative faces for longer durations in the happy-angry condition compared to the happy-sad condition on an eye-tracking task. Higher negative affect (a latent factor composed of irritability and anxiety) was associated with longer durations of looking at negative compared to non-negative faces.…”

Section: Underlying Processes (C and D)mentioning

confidence: 99%

An Expanded Conceptual Framework for Understanding Irritability in Childhood: The Role of Cognitive Control Processes

Elvin,

Modecki,

Waters

2024

Clin Child Fam Psychol Rev

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Children prone to irritability experience significant functional impairments and internalising and externalising problems. Contemporary models have sought to elucidate the underlying mechanisms in irritability, such as aberrant threat and reward biases to improve interventions. However, the cognitive control processes that underlie threat (e.g., attention towards threats) and reward (e.g., attention towards reward-related cues) biases and the factors which influence the differential activation of positive and negative valence systems and thus leading to maladaptive activation of cognitive control processes (i.e., proactive and reactive control) are unclear. Thus, we aim to integrate extant theoretical and empirical research to elucidate the cognitive control processes underlying threat and reward processing that contribute to irritability in middle childhood and provide a guiding framework for future research and treatment. We propose an expanded conceptual framework of irritability that includes broad intraindividual and environmental vulnerability factors and propose proximal ‘setting’ factors that activate the negative valence and positive valence systems and proactive and reactive cognitive control processes which underpin the expression and progression of irritability. We consider the implications of this expanded conceptualisation of irritability and provide suggestions for future research.

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Attention bias to negative versus non-negative faces is related to negative affectivity in a transdiagnostic youth sample

Cited by 7 publications

References 23 publications

Childhood adversity and approach/avoidance-related behaviour in boys

Childhood adversity and approach/avoidance-related behaviour in boys

Trait-related neural basis of attentional bias to emotions: a tDCS study

An Expanded Conceptual Framework for Understanding Irritability in Childhood: The Role of Cognitive Control Processes

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