TY - JOUR
T1 - Attention bias to negative versus non-negative faces is related to negative affectivity in a transdiagnostic youth sample
AU - Harrewijn, Anita
AU - Abend, Rany
AU - Naim, Reut
AU - Haller, Simona
AU - Stavish, Caitlin
AU - Bajaj, Mira
AU - Matsumoto, Chika
AU - Dombek, Kelly
AU - Cardinale, Elise
AU - Kircanski, Katharina
AU - Brotman, Melissa
N1 - Funding Information:
This work was supported by the Intramural Research Program at the National Institute of Mental Health, National Institutes of Health ( ZIAMH002969 01 for M.A. Brotman and ZIAMH002782 and NCT00018057 for D.S. Pine).
Publisher Copyright:
© 2021
PY - 2021/6
Y1 - 2021/6
N2 - This study identified a shared pathophysiological mechanism of pediatric anxiety and irritability. Clinically, anxiety and irritability are common, co-occurring problems, both characterized by high-arousal negative affective states. Behaviorally, anxiety and irritability are associated with aberrant threat processing. To build on these findings, we examined eye-tracking measures of attention bias in relation to the unique and shared features of anxiety and irritability in a transdiagnostic sample of youth (n = 97, 58% female, Mage = 13.03, SDage = 2.82). We measured attention bias to negative versus non-negative emotional faces during a passive viewing task. We employed bifactor analysis to parse the unique and shared variance of anxiety and irritability symptoms from self- and parent-report questionnaires. Negative affectivity is the derived latent factor reflecting shared variance of anxiety and irritability. We found that higher negative affectivity was associated with looking longer at negative versus non-negative faces, reflecting a shared mechanism of anxiety and irritability. This finding suggests that modification of elevated attention to negative emotional faces may represent a common potential treatment target of anxiety and irritability.
AB - This study identified a shared pathophysiological mechanism of pediatric anxiety and irritability. Clinically, anxiety and irritability are common, co-occurring problems, both characterized by high-arousal negative affective states. Behaviorally, anxiety and irritability are associated with aberrant threat processing. To build on these findings, we examined eye-tracking measures of attention bias in relation to the unique and shared features of anxiety and irritability in a transdiagnostic sample of youth (n = 97, 58% female, Mage = 13.03, SDage = 2.82). We measured attention bias to negative versus non-negative emotional faces during a passive viewing task. We employed bifactor analysis to parse the unique and shared variance of anxiety and irritability symptoms from self- and parent-report questionnaires. Negative affectivity is the derived latent factor reflecting shared variance of anxiety and irritability. We found that higher negative affectivity was associated with looking longer at negative versus non-negative faces, reflecting a shared mechanism of anxiety and irritability. This finding suggests that modification of elevated attention to negative emotional faces may represent a common potential treatment target of anxiety and irritability.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85105504500&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.jpsychires.2021.04.036
DO - 10.1016/j.jpsychires.2021.04.036
M3 - Article
C2 - 33975068
SN - 0022-3956
VL - 138
SP - 514
EP - 518
JO - Journal of Psychiatric Research
JF - Journal of Psychiatric Research
ER -