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Emotional Processing (emotional + processing)
Selected AbstractsEMOTIONAL PROCESSING IN PSYCHOPATHYPSYCHOPHYSIOLOGY, Issue 2006Article first published online: 7 AUG 200 No abstract is available for this article. [source] Emotional processing in eating disorders: specific impairment or general distress related deficiency?DEPRESSION AND ANXIETY, Issue 6 2006Eva Gilboa-Schechtman Ph.D. Abstract The literature on eating disorders emphasizes the relationship between alexithymia and anorexia nervosa on the one hand, and between bulimia nervosa and affect dysregulation on the other. In our study, two questions are addressed: (1) Are there different patterns of emotional processing deficiencies in anorexia and bulimia? and (2) Is there a unique contribution of eating disorders to emotional processing deficiencies? Participants were women with anorexia nervosa (ANs, n=20), bulimia nervosa (BNs, n=20), and normal controls (NCs, n=20). Three hypotheses were examined: (1) Women with eating disorders will exhibit lower emotional awareness and more deficient emotional regulation than will NCs (emotional deficiency); (2) ANs will be less emotionally aware than BNs, whereas BNs will be less capable of effective emotional regulation than ANs (disorder specificity); and (3) emotional distress will mediate the relationships between emotional processing and eating disorders (emotional distress mediation). Results supported the emotional deficiency and distress mediation hypotheses, and partially supported the disorder specificity hypothesis. The need to move beyond alexithymia in understanding the pattern of emotional processing deficiencies in eating disorders is discussed. Depression and Anxiety 23:331,339, 2006. © 2006 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Emotional processing in the treatment of psychosomatic disordersJOURNAL OF CLINICAL PSYCHOLOGY, Issue 5 2006Patricia Coughlin Della Selva Research has supported a hypothesis that was clinically suggested decades ago: that those who have functional disorders exhibit significant deficits in emotional processing. Studies have systematically documented that patients who habitually repress their emotions simultaneously suppress their immune response, rendering them vulnerable to physical illness and early death. Conversely, those who are encouraged to experience and express their feelings demonstrate improvement in immune function, physical condition, and psychological well-being. This article describes a psychotherapy designed to interrupt defensive processes and facilitate the direct experience of previously disavowed feelings in the treatment of patients who have physical ailments. Verbatim transcripts from the treatment of a woman who had a life-threatening illness illustrate the therapeutic techniques designed to facilitate emotional processing and restore health. Data from 14 years of follow-up interviews reveal a sustained remission in her disease. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Clin Psychol: In Session 62: 539,550, 2006. [source] Emotional processing in psychopathic personalityAGGRESSIVE BEHAVIOR, Issue 5 2002Ute Habel Abstract Emotional-processing deficits may be one of the characteristic features of impaired affect in individuals with psychopathy. These include shallowness and profound lack of remorse or empathy. Performances on standardized emotion discrimination tasks and mood induction tasks were compared between 17 patients with antisocial personality disorder (DSM-IV) and 17 nonpsychopaths. Subjects with psychopathic personality demonstrated poorer performance on emotion-discrimination tasks compared with controls. However, higher scores on factor "emotional detachment" of the Psychopathy Checklist (PCL-R) were associated with better discrimination ability. Subjective ratings were comparable between groups during mood induction. Although the findings support the hypothesis of a significant association between impaired emotional processing and psychopathy, they also suggest a relationship between emotional discrimination and the core personality features of psychopathy. Aggr. Behav. 28:394,400, 2002. © 2002 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Emotional processing in male adolescents with childhood-onset conduct disorderTHE JOURNAL OF CHILD PSYCHOLOGY AND PSYCHIATRY AND ALLIED DISCIPLINES, Issue 7 2008Sabine C. Herpertz Background:, Boys with early onset of conduct disorder (CD), most of whom also meet diagnostic criteria of a comorbid attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), tend to exhibit high levels of aggression throughout development. While a number of functional neuroimaging studies on emotional processing have been performed in antisocial adults, little is known about how CD children process emotional information. Method:, Functional magnetic resonance imaging data were analyzed in 22 male adolescents aged 12 to 17 years with childhood-onset CD (16 of them with comorbid ADHD) compared to 22 age-matched male healthy controls. In order to consider the likely confounding of results through ADHD comorbidity, we performed a supplementary study including 13 adolescent subjects with pure ADHD who were compared with healthy controls. To challenge emotional processing of stimuli, a passive viewing task was applied, presenting pictures of negative, positive or neutral valence. Results:, When comparing CD/combined disorder patients with healthy controls, we found enhanced left-sided amygdala activation in response to negative pictures as compared to neutral pictures in the patient group. In addition, these boys exhibited no reduced activation in the orbitofrontal, anterior cingulate and insular cortices. By contrast, children with pure ADHD did not show any abnormalities in amygdala activation but showed decreased neural activity in the insula only in response to negative pictures. Conclusions:, Increased rather than reduced amygdala activation found in our study may indicate an enhanced response to environmental cues in adolescents with early-onset CD (most of whom also met the condition of ADHD), and is not consistent with the assumption of a reduced capacity to take note of affective information in the social environment. Further studies with an emphasis on developmental aspects of affect regulation are needed to clarify the relationship between CD and adult personality pathology associated with different modes of persistent antisocial behavior. [source] Emotional processing in children with conduct problems and callous/unemotional traitsCHILD: CARE, HEALTH AND DEVELOPMENT, Issue 2 2008M. Woodworth Abstract Background A considerable body of evidence now suggests that conduct problem (CP) children with callous/unemotional (CU) traits differ in many ways from CP children without these characteristics. Previous research has suggested that there are important differences for youth with CP and CU characteristics in their ability to process emotional information. The current study investigated the ability of children with disruptive behaviour disorders to label emotional faces and stories. Methods Participants (aged 7,12) were involved in a summer day treatment and research programme for children with disruptive behaviour problems. Two tasks were administered that were designed to measure participant's ability to recognize and label facial expressions of emotion, as well as their ability to label emotions in hypothetical situations. Results Results indicated that children with higher levels of CU traits, regardless of whether they had elevated CP scores, were less accurate in identifying sad facial expressions. Interestingly, children with higher CU scores were more accurate in labelling fear than were children with lower CU scores, while children with high CP but low CU traits were less accurate than other children in interpreting fearful facial emotions. Further, children's recognition of various emotional vignettes was not associated with CP, CU traits or their interaction. Conclusions The current study demonstrated that it was the combination of CP and a high number of CU traits that differentiated emotional attributions. Consistent with previous research, youth with CU traits had more difficulty in identifying sad facial expressions. However, contrasting with some previous studies, higher CU traits were associated with more accurate perceptions of fearful expressions. It is possible that there is something specific to fear recognition for individuals with more psychopathic, CU traits that actually make them more successful for observing or recognizing fearful expressions. Additional research is needed to clarify both the recognition and processing of fear expression in CP children with and without CU. [source] Emotional processing in eating disorders: specific impairment or general distress related deficiency?DEPRESSION AND ANXIETY, Issue 6 2006Eva Gilboa-Schechtman Ph.D. Abstract The literature on eating disorders emphasizes the relationship between alexithymia and anorexia nervosa on the one hand, and between bulimia nervosa and affect dysregulation on the other. In our study, two questions are addressed: (1) Are there different patterns of emotional processing deficiencies in anorexia and bulimia? and (2) Is there a unique contribution of eating disorders to emotional processing deficiencies? Participants were women with anorexia nervosa (ANs, n=20), bulimia nervosa (BNs, n=20), and normal controls (NCs, n=20). Three hypotheses were examined: (1) Women with eating disorders will exhibit lower emotional awareness and more deficient emotional regulation than will NCs (emotional deficiency); (2) ANs will be less emotionally aware than BNs, whereas BNs will be less capable of effective emotional regulation than ANs (disorder specificity); and (3) emotional distress will mediate the relationships between emotional processing and eating disorders (emotional distress mediation). Results supported the emotional deficiency and distress mediation hypotheses, and partially supported the disorder specificity hypothesis. The need to move beyond alexithymia in understanding the pattern of emotional processing deficiencies in eating disorders is discussed. Depression and Anxiety 23:331,339, 2006. © 2006 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Increased right amygdala volume in lithium-treated patients with bipolar I disorderACTA PSYCHIATRICA SCANDINAVICA, Issue 2 2010J. Usher Usher J, Menzel P, Schneider-Axmann T, Kemmer C, Reith W, Falkai P, Gruber O, Scherk H. Increased right amygdala volume in lithium-treated patients with bipolar I disorder. Objective:, The amygdala plays a major role in processing emotional stimuli. Fourteen studies using structural magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) have examined the amygdala volume in paediatric and adult patients with bipolar disorder (BD) compared with healthy controls (HC) and reported inconsistent findings. Lithium has been found to increase grey matter volume, and first evidence points towards an effect on regional brain volume such as the amygdala. Method:, We examined the amygdala volume of euthymic patients with BD treated with lithium (n = 15), without lithium (n = 24) and HC (n = 41) using structural MRI. Results:, Patients treated with lithium exhibited in comparison to HC a larger right absolute (+17.9%, P = 0.015) and relative (+18%, P = 0.017) amygdala volume. There was no significant difference in amygdala volume between patients without lithium treatment and HC. Conclusion:, Lithium appears to have a sustained effect on a central core region of emotional processing and should therefore be considered in studies examining BD. [source] REVIEW: Acute withdrawal, protracted abstinence and negative affect in alcoholism: are they linked?ADDICTION BIOLOGY, Issue 2 2010Markus Heilig ABSTRACT The role of withdrawal-related phenomena in the development and maintenance of alcohol addiction remains under debate. A ,self-medication' framework postulates that emotional changes are induced by a history of alcohol use, persist into abstinence, and are a major factor in maintaining alcoholism. This view initially focused on negative emotional states during early withdrawal: these are pronounced, occur in the vast majority of alcohol-dependent patients, and are characterized by depressed mood and elevated anxiety. This concept lost popularity with the realization that in most patients, these symptoms abate over 3,6 weeks of abstinence, while relapse risk persists long beyond this period. More recently, animal data have established that a prolonged history of alcohol dependence induces more subtle neuroadaptations. These confer altered emotional processing that persists long into protracted abstinence. The resulting behavioral phenotype is characterized by excessive voluntary alcohol intake and increased behavioral sensitivity to stress. Emerging human data support the clinical relevance of negative emotionality for protracted abstinence and relapse. These developments prompt a series of research questions: (1) are processes observed during acute withdrawal, while transient in nature, mechanistically related to those that remain during protracted abstinence?; (2) is susceptibility to negative emotionality in acute withdrawal in part due to heritable factors, similar to what animal models have indicated for susceptibility to physical aspects of withdrawal?; and (3) to what extent is susceptibility to negative affect that persists into protracted abstinence heritable? [source] Avoidance motivation, risk perception and emotional processingEUROPEAN JOURNAL OF PERSONALITY, Issue 2 2009Sointu Leikas The present studies examined the moderating role of state motivation on the associations between trait avoidance motivation, risk perception and emotional processing. In Studies 1 and 2, avoidance or approach states were evoked in participants who then completed a risk perception task and a trait avoidance motivation measure. Both studies showed that trait avoidance only correlated with risk perceptions among individuals in approach state. In Study 3, emotional interpretation was measured. State and trait avoidance motivation did not interact in predicting emotional interpretation. The results showed that the effect of state motivation can explain the low correlations found between trait avoidance and risk perceptions, and suggested that the avoidance system may operate on an on,off principle rather than synergistically. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Amygdala damage affects event-related potentials for fearful faces at specific time windowsHUMAN BRAIN MAPPING, Issue 7 2010Pia Rotshtein Abstract The amygdala is known to influence processing of threat-related stimuli in distant brain regions, including visual cortex. The time-course of these distant influences is unknown, although this information is important for resolving debates over likely pathways mediating an apparent rapidity in emotional processing. To address this, we recorded event-related potentials (ERPs) to seen fearful face expressions, in preoperative patients with medial temporal lobe epilepsy who had varying degrees of amygdala pathology, plus healthy volunteers. We found that amygdala damage diminished ERPs for fearful versus neutral faces within the P1 time-range, ,100,150 ms, and for a later component at ,500,600 ms. Individual severity of amygdala damage determined the magnitude of both these effects, consistent with a causal amygdala role. By contrast, amygdala damage did not affect explicit perception of fearful expressions nor a distinct emotional ERP effect at 150,250 ms. These results demonstrate two distinct time-points at which the amygdala influences fear processing. The data also demonstrate that while not all aspects of expression processing are disrupted by amygdala damage, there is a crucial impact on an early P1 component. These findings are consistent with the existence of multiple processing stages or routes for fearful faces that vary in their dependence on amygdala function. Hum Brain Mapp, 2010. © 2009 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Emotional processing in the treatment of psychosomatic disordersJOURNAL OF CLINICAL PSYCHOLOGY, Issue 5 2006Patricia Coughlin Della Selva Research has supported a hypothesis that was clinically suggested decades ago: that those who have functional disorders exhibit significant deficits in emotional processing. Studies have systematically documented that patients who habitually repress their emotions simultaneously suppress their immune response, rendering them vulnerable to physical illness and early death. Conversely, those who are encouraged to experience and express their feelings demonstrate improvement in immune function, physical condition, and psychological well-being. This article describes a psychotherapy designed to interrupt defensive processes and facilitate the direct experience of previously disavowed feelings in the treatment of patients who have physical ailments. Verbatim transcripts from the treatment of a woman who had a life-threatening illness illustrate the therapeutic techniques designed to facilitate emotional processing and restore health. Data from 14 years of follow-up interviews reveal a sustained remission in her disease. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Clin Psychol: In Session 62: 539,550, 2006. [source] Emotional processing in psychopathic personalityAGGRESSIVE BEHAVIOR, Issue 5 2002Ute Habel Abstract Emotional-processing deficits may be one of the characteristic features of impaired affect in individuals with psychopathy. These include shallowness and profound lack of remorse or empathy. Performances on standardized emotion discrimination tasks and mood induction tasks were compared between 17 patients with antisocial personality disorder (DSM-IV) and 17 nonpsychopaths. Subjects with psychopathic personality demonstrated poorer performance on emotion-discrimination tasks compared with controls. However, higher scores on factor "emotional detachment" of the Psychopathy Checklist (PCL-R) were associated with better discrimination ability. Subjective ratings were comparable between groups during mood induction. Although the findings support the hypothesis of a significant association between impaired emotional processing and psychopathy, they also suggest a relationship between emotional discrimination and the core personality features of psychopathy. Aggr. Behav. 28:394,400, 2002. © 2002 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Decoupling task and relationship conflict: the role of intragroup emotional processingJOURNAL OF ORGANIZATIONAL BEHAVIOR, Issue 5 2004Jixia Yang The present paper focuses on the role of emotion in intragroup conflict processes. We propose that how group members handle emotion affects intragroup interactions and has implications for task and relationship conflict. Three types of variables,collective emotional intelligence, intragroup relational ties, and conflict-relevant interactional norms,constrain negative emotionality and may determine whether task conflict results in damaging relationship conflict. The moderating influence of these variables is discussed, as are compositional issues associated with measuring them. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Social constraints and spousal communication in lung cancerPSYCHO-ONCOLOGY, Issue 8 2006Hoda Badr Abstract The Social Cognitive Processing Model suggests that talking with others facilitates cognitive and emotional processing of experiences such as cancer if the social context in which these discussions take place is supportive and positive. Despite this, patients and spouses may inadvertently constrain each other's attempts to process and cope with the disease. To our knowledge, no previous studies have directly examined the effect of lung cancer on the spousal relationship. We began to examine this effect by identifying the social constraints experienced by couples coping with lung cancer through semi-structured interviews with 13 patients and 12 spouses. Using Grounded Theory methodology, our analyses showed that these couples experienced a wide variety of social constraints, including denial, avoidance, and conflict that can hinder open spousal communication. Specifically, patients and spouses reported trouble discussing continued tobacco use, cancer-related symptoms, prognosis, and the emotional effects of lung cancer on the spouse. Despite these constraints, participants who reported talking with their partners about their relationships reported fewer constraints and better communication about cancer. These findings highlight the importance of a relationship perspective in the study of lung cancer and provide information about how talking together about the spousal relationship may enable couples to minimize social constraints and enhance cognitive and emotional processing of the disease. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Music and emotion: Electrophysiological correlates of the processing of pleasant and unpleasant musicPSYCHOPHYSIOLOGY, Issue 2 2007Daniela Sammler Abstract Human emotion and its electrophysiological correlates are still poorly understood. The present study examined whether the valence of perceived emotions would differentially influence EEG power spectra and heart rate (HR). Pleasant and unpleasant emotions were induced by consonant and dissonant music. Unpleasant (compared to pleasant) music evoked a significant decrease of HR, replicating the pattern of HR responses previously described for the processing of emotional pictures, sounds, and films. In the EEG, pleasant (contrasted to unpleasant) music was associated with an increase of frontal midline (Fm) theta power. This effect is taken to reflect emotional processing in close interaction with attentional functions. These findings show that Fm theta is modulated by emotion more strongly than previously believed. [source] Gamma band activity and its synchronization reflect the dysfunctional emotional processing in alexithymic personsPSYCHOPHYSIOLOGY, Issue 6 2006Atsushi Matsumoto Abstract In the present study, we investigated the gamma band response and its phase synchrony between electrodes in alexithymia, which is characterized by a disability in identifying and describing feelings. Individuals with high and low alexithymia scores were selected according to the scores on the 20-item Toronto Alexithymia Scale. EEG was recorded from alexithymic and nonalexithymic persons viewing emotionally negative or neutral stimuli. Nonalexithymic persons exhibited increased gamma band power and phase synchronization at the 400,450-ms time window when processing emotionally negative stimuli. Neither enhanced gamma band power nor phase synchronization was observed in alexithymic persons in the negative emotion condition. These results suggest that gamma band activity reflects emotional processing, and alexithymic persons may have a deficit in communication between brain regions or in the utilization of memory or emotional information during the processing of emotional stimuli. [source] Emotional processing in male adolescents with childhood-onset conduct disorderTHE JOURNAL OF CHILD PSYCHOLOGY AND PSYCHIATRY AND ALLIED DISCIPLINES, Issue 7 2008Sabine C. Herpertz Background:, Boys with early onset of conduct disorder (CD), most of whom also meet diagnostic criteria of a comorbid attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), tend to exhibit high levels of aggression throughout development. While a number of functional neuroimaging studies on emotional processing have been performed in antisocial adults, little is known about how CD children process emotional information. Method:, Functional magnetic resonance imaging data were analyzed in 22 male adolescents aged 12 to 17 years with childhood-onset CD (16 of them with comorbid ADHD) compared to 22 age-matched male healthy controls. In order to consider the likely confounding of results through ADHD comorbidity, we performed a supplementary study including 13 adolescent subjects with pure ADHD who were compared with healthy controls. To challenge emotional processing of stimuli, a passive viewing task was applied, presenting pictures of negative, positive or neutral valence. Results:, When comparing CD/combined disorder patients with healthy controls, we found enhanced left-sided amygdala activation in response to negative pictures as compared to neutral pictures in the patient group. In addition, these boys exhibited no reduced activation in the orbitofrontal, anterior cingulate and insular cortices. By contrast, children with pure ADHD did not show any abnormalities in amygdala activation but showed decreased neural activity in the insula only in response to negative pictures. Conclusions:, Increased rather than reduced amygdala activation found in our study may indicate an enhanced response to environmental cues in adolescents with early-onset CD (most of whom also met the condition of ADHD), and is not consistent with the assumption of a reduced capacity to take note of affective information in the social environment. Further studies with an emphasis on developmental aspects of affect regulation are needed to clarify the relationship between CD and adult personality pathology associated with different modes of persistent antisocial behavior. [source] Intrusive trauma memory: A review and functional analysisAPPLIED COGNITIVE PSYCHOLOGY, Issue 8 2009Julie Krans Our contribution to this special issue focuses on the phenomenon of intrusive trauma memory. While intrusive trauma memories can undoubtedly cause impairment, we argue that they may exist for a potentially adaptive reason. Theory and experimental research on intrusion development are reviewed and possible functions of intrusive trauma memory are explored. These functions include aiding emotional processing, preventing future harm and protecting the coherence of the self. The issue of intrusive images in other disorders than posttraumatic stress disorder is briefly addressed. This review suggests that the study of function is important for a nuanced view on the modulation of intrusive trauma memory in both experimental psychopathology and clinical treatment. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Increased glutamate/glutamine compounds in the brains of patients with fibromyalgia: A magnetic resonance spectroscopy studyARTHRITIS & RHEUMATISM, Issue 6 2010Manuel Valdés Objective Fibromyalgia (FM) has been defined as a systemic disorder that is clinically characterized by pain, cognitive deficit, and the presence of associated psychopathology, all of which are suggestive of a primary brain dysfunction. This study was undertaken to identify the nature of this cerebral dysfunction by assessing the brain metabolite patterns in patients with FM through magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) techniques. Methods A cohort of 28 female patients with FM and a control group of 24 healthy women of the same age were studied. MRS techniques were used to study brain metabolites in the amygdala, thalami, and prefrontal cortex of these women. Results In comparison with healthy controls, patients with FM showed higher levels of glutamate/glutamine (Glx) compounds (mean ± SD 11.9 ± 1.6 arbitrary units [AU] versus 13.4 ± 1.7 AU in controls and patients, respectively; t = 2.517, 35 df, corrected P = 0.03) and a higher Glx:creatine ratio (mean ± SD 2.1 ± 0.4 versus 2.4 ± 1.4, respectively; t = 2.373, 35 df, corrected P = 0.04) in the right amygdala. In FM patients with increased levels of pain intensity, greater fatigue, and more symptoms of depression, inositol levels in the right amygdala and right thalamus were significantly higher. Conclusion The distinctive metabolic features found in the right amygdala of patients with FM suggest the possible existence of a neural dysfunction in emotional processing. The results appear to extend previous findings regarding the dysfunction in pain processing observed in patients with FM. [source] Abnormal cerebellum density in victims of rape with post-traumatic stress disorder: Voxel-based analysis of magnetic resonance imaging investigationASIA-PACIFIC PSYCHIATRY, Issue 3 2010Shuang-Ge Sui MD MBA Abstract Introduction: Based on early studies of non-motor function in the cerebellum and dysfunction in the cerebellum of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) patients, we presumed that the cerebellum was involved in the neuropathology of cognitive and emotional processing of PTSD patients, while the density of some sub-areas of the cerebellum of PTSD patients was most likely abnormal. Methods: Eleven female victims of rape with PTSD and 12 age-matched female normal controls received 1.5 T 3D magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scan. The scans were then analyzed using the voxel-based morphometry 2 (VBM2) toolbox. Results: Victims of rape with PTSD showed increased cerebellum density on the left side compared with normal controls (P<0.001), especially in the pyramis (x=,9, y=,72, z=,36; k=519; t=4.70), uvula (x=,4, y=,66, z=,35; k=256; t=4.02), declive (x=,6, y=,69, z=,30; k=213; t=3.84) and nodule (x=,4, y=,63, z=,31; k=147; t=3.93). In addition, compared with normal controls, the PTSD group showed significant differences in gray matter density of other brain areas, including the frontal lobe, parietal lobe, occipital lobe (P<0.001), insula, posterior cingulate, amygdala and hippocampus (P<0.005). Discussion: These finding suggest that the cerebellum may be involved in the neuropathology and functional compensation in the neurocircuitry of PTSD. [source] The common adolescent bipolar phenotype shows positive biases in emotional processingBIPOLAR DISORDERS, Issue 6 2010Philippa L Rock Rock PL, Goodwin GM, Harmer CJ. The common adolescent bipolar phenotype shows positive biases in emotional processing. Bipolar Disord 2010: 12: 606,615. © 2010 The Authors. Journal compilation © 2010 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Objectives:, Bipolar disorder is associated with abnormalities in emotional processing that persist into periods of remission. However, studies of euthymic bipolar disorder patients may be confounded by the experience of mood episodes and medication. We therefore assessed an adolescent group for vulnerability markers associated with the bipolar phenotype. Methods:, The Mood Disorder Questionnaire (MDQ) is a screening tool for bipolar disorder that targets mood-elevation symptoms. We selected 32 high-scoring students (, 7 symptoms) with the adolescent bipolar phenotype and 30 low-scoring controls (, 3 symptoms) and screened them with the Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview,Plus for bipolar disorder and other psychiatric disorders. We investigated emotional processing by assessing facial expression recognition, emotional memory, emotion-potentiated startle, and a dot-probe task. Results:, Of the high-MDQ participants, 12 were in remission from bipolar disorder defined by DSM-IV-TR and interview (bipolar II disorder/bipolar disorder not otherwise specified) and 3 from major depressive disorder. High-MDQ participants had higher levels of neuroticism, low mood, and lifetime anxiety comorbidity and alcohol dependence compared with low-MDQ participants. The high-MDQ group showed facilitated recognition of surprised and neutral facial expressions and enhanced processing of positive versus negative information in emotional recognition memory and emotion-potentiated startle. There were no effects on emotional categorisation/recall memory or attentional bias in the dot-probe task. Conclusions:, These results suggest that students with the common adolescent bipolar phenotype show positive emotional processing biases despite increased levels of neuroticism, low mood, and anxiety. Such effects may represent a psychological vulnerability marker associated with the bipolar phenotype. [source] Affect regulation in borderline personality disorder: experimental findings from psychophysiology and functional neuroimagingACTA NEUROPSYCHIATRICA, Issue 2 2002S. C. Herpertz Background: Intense and rapidly changing mood states are a major feature of borderline personality disorder (BPD), which is thought to arise from affective vulnerability. Objective: There have been only a few studies investigating affective processing in BPD, and particularly neither psychophysiological nor neurofunctional correlates of abnormal emotional processing have been identified so far. Methods:, Studies are reported using psychophysiological or functional neuroimaging methodology. Results:, The psychophysiological study did not indicate a general emotional hyperresponsiveness in BPD. Low autonomic arousal seemed to reflect dissociative states in borderline subjects experiencing intense emotions. In the functional magnetic resonance imaging study enhanced amygdala activation was found in BPD, and it is suggested to reflect the intense and slowly subsiding emotions commonly observed in response to even low-level stressors. Conclusions:, Implications for psychotherapy are discussed. [source] An Eye for Detail: An Event-Related Potential Study of the Rapid Processing of Fearful Facial Expressions in ChildrenCHILD DEVELOPMENT, Issue 4 2010Petra H. J. M. Vlamings There is converging evidence for the presence of a fast subcortical face-processing route that operates on global face characteristics in the mature brain. Until now, little has been known about the development of such a route, which is surprising given suggestions that this fast subcortical face-processing route might be affected in neurodevelopmental disorders such as autism. To address this, early visual event-related potentials to pictures of fearful and neutral faces containing detailed or global information in 3- to 4-year-old (n = 20), 5- to 6-year-old (n = 25), and 7- to 8-year-old (n = 25) children were compared. In children, emotional processing was driven by detailed information. Developmental effects are discussed in terms of maturation of the fast subcortical face-processing route as well as an increase in experience with facial expressions with age. [source] A qualitative exploration of the perception of emotions in anorexia nervosa: A basic emotion and developmental perspectiveCLINICAL PSYCHOLOGY AND PSYCHOTHERAPY (AN INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF THEORY & PRACTICE), Issue 4 2009John R. E. Fox Abstract Difficulties in emotional processing have long been regarded as a core difficulty within anorexia nervosa. Recent research and theory have started to highlight how eating disorder symptoms are often used to regulate painful emotions. However, there has been a lack of theoretical sophistication in how emotions have been considered within the eating disorders. This study was designed to use qualitative methodologies to address these inadequacies and provide a richer, more thorough account of emotions within anorexia nervosa. It used a grounded theory methodology to gather and analyse interview data from 11 participants who had a diagnosis of anorexia nervosa, being seen at a regional eating disorder service (both inpatient and day patient). The results highlighted two main overarching themes regarding the perception and management of emotions within anorexia nervosa: (1) development of poor meta-emotional skills; and (2) perception and management of emotion in anorexia nervosa. These two categories comprised of a significant number of components from the qualitative analysis, including difficulties with anger, meta-emotional skills and poverty of emotional environments while growing up. Once the data had been collected and analysed, links were made between the findings of this research and the current literature base.,Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. Key Practitioner Message: Practitoners needs to consider the importance of poor meta-emotional skills within anorexia nervosa. These meta skills appears to be more complicated than the simplistic notion of alexithymia. The routes to these difficulties in emotion appear to be drawn from a complicated developmental picture. The role of anger needs to be considered more fully in the psychotherapeutic work with people with anorexia nervosa. This study's findings suggest that increasing levels of anger may play a role in increased eating disorder symptomatology, especially vomitting. [source] A Comparison of Emotional Approach Coping (EAC) between Individuals with Anxiety Disorders and Nonanxious ControlsCNS: NEUROSCIENCE AND THERAPEUTICS, Issue 2 2009Luana Marques Emotional regulation deficits are described as a core component of anxiety disorders (ADs), yet there remains a paucity of data examining this issue in patients diagnosed with ADs. We hypothesized that help-seeking individuals with ADs would report lower levels of emotional approach coping (EAC), which includes emotional processing (EP) and emotional expression (EE), than nonanxious controls. Diagnostic interviews and a validated self-report scale assessing emotional approaches to coping (emotional approach coping scale [EACS]) were administered to 101 nonanxious controls and 92 patients with a primary AD (29 generalized anxiety disorder, 40 social anxiety disorder, and 23 panic disorder). Patients with each AD demonstrated significantly lower EAC, including both EP and EE, than nonanxious controls. Lower EAC was also associated with higher anxiety sensitivity and higher anxiety symptom severity. Overall, gender did not moderate the anxiety,EAC effect, but the results suggested that women utilize EAC to a greater degree than men. Clinical techniques designed to improve emotional coping may be beneficial to individuals with ADs. [source] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||