Patterns of perceptual asymmetry in depression and anxiety: Implications for neuropsychological models of emotion and psychopathology.

Abstract

More than 1,000 university undergraduates were simultaneously classified as either high or low depressed and high or low anxious and given a face-processing task that typically elicits a left hemispatial bias. Depression and anxiety were associated with opposing biases in perceptual asymmetry scores. In particular, high-depressed students had smaller left hemispatial biases than low-depressed students, whereas high-anxious students had larger left hemispatial biases than low-anxious students. The results suggest that depression and anxiety may be associated with different patterns of asymmetric hemispheric function. Because the rate of comorbidity of depression and anxiety in the population is high, these findings confirm the importance of separating anxiety and depression when examining the relationship among patterns of brain activity, emotion, and psychopathology.

Grandchildren at High and Low Risk for Depression Differ in EEG Measures of Regional Brain Asymmetry

“…Findings for EEG and cognitive laterality studies provide additional evidence of relatively less right parietotemporal activity in depression (Bruder, 2003;Heller et al, 1995) and indicate that this characteristic asymmetry meets at least some criteria for an endophenotypic marker (Hasler et al 2004;Gottesman & Gould 2004). The parietal asymmetry is state-independent, in that, it is found whether or not a depressive disorder is present.…”

Dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, working memory and episodic memory processes: insight through transcranial magnetic stimulation techniques

“…Heller [45] to conclude that anxiety is associated with greater right-hemisphere activity. Besides Heller's experimental studies on perceptual hemispatial bias [45] , evidence for this hypothesis was provided by neuroimaging studies on the mechanism of functioning of anti-anxiety medications that reduce anxiety symptoms and limit the metabolism of the right hemisphere [46] .…”

“…Besides Heller's experimental studies on perceptual hemispatial bias [45] , evidence for this hypothesis was provided by neuroimaging studies on the mechanism of functioning of anti-anxiety medications that reduce anxiety symptoms and limit the metabolism of the right hemisphere [46] . in line with this model, recently the "valence" model has been proposed to explain the relationship between anxiety and emotional information processing.…”

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“…In an evaluation of current anxiety research, Heller and her colleagues (Heller, Etienne, & Miller, 1995;Heller, Nitschke, Etienne, & Miller, 1997) suggested that part of the lack of clarity lies with the field's undifferentiated approach to anxiety that ignores differences in anxious arousal (panic) and anxious apprehension (worry). That is to say, studies exploring situations which increase arousal may result in differential cortical activation than those focused on worry or GAD.…”