scholarly journals The devil is in the detail: The role of threat level and intolerance of uncertainty in extinction

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jayne Morriss ◽  
Francesco Saldarini ◽  
Carien M. van Reekum
Keyword(s):  
Anxiety Disorder ◽  
Skin Conductance ◽  
Intolerance Of Uncertainty ◽  
Auditory Stimuli ◽  
Subjective Ratings ◽  
Potential Threat ◽  
Skin Conductance Responses ◽  
Threat Level ◽  
The Devil

AbstractRecent evidence suggests that individual differences in intolerance of uncertainty (IU) are associated with disrupted threat extinction. However, it is unknown what maintains the learned threat association in high IU individuals: is it the experienced uncertainty during extinction or the combination of experienced uncertainty with potential threat during extinction? Here we addressed this question by running two independent experiments with uncertain auditory stimuli that varied in threat level (Experiment 1, aversive human scream (n = 30); Experiment 2, benign tone (n = 47) and mildly aversive tone (n = 49)). During the experiments, we recorded skin conductance responses and subjective ratings to the learned cues during acquisition and extinction. In experiment 1, high IU was associated with heightened skin conductance responding to the learned threat vs. safe cue during extinction. In experiment 2, high IU was associated only with larger skin conductance responding to the learned cues with threatening properties during extinction i.e. mildly aversive tone. These findings suggest that uncertainty in combination with threat, even when mild, disrupts extinction in high IU individuals. Such findings help us understand the link between IU and threat extinction, and its relevance to anxiety disorder pathology.

scholarly journals Effects of intolerance of uncertainty on subjective and psychophysiological measures during fear acquisition and delayed extinction

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maren Klingelhöfer-Jens ◽  
Jayne Morriss ◽  
Tina B Lonsdorf
Keyword(s):  
Fear Conditioning ◽  
Skin Conductance ◽  
Intolerance Of Uncertainty ◽  
Acquisition Training ◽  
Extinction Training ◽  
Future Directions ◽  
Psychophysiological Measures ◽  
Learned Fear ◽  
Startle Blink

Individuals who score high in self-reported Intolerance of Uncertainty (IU) tend to find uncertainty unacceptable and aversive. In recent years, research has shed light on the role of IU in modulating subjective (i.e. expectancy ratings) and psychophysiological responses (i.e. skin conductance) across different classical fear conditioning procedures, particularly that of immediate extinction. However, there remain gaps in understanding how IU, in comparison to other negative emotionality traits (STAI-T), impact different types of subjective and psychophysiological measures during different classical fear conditioning procedures. Here, we analyzed IU, STAI-T, subjective (i.e. fear ratings) and psychophysiological (i.e. skin conductance, auditory startle blink) data recorded during fear acquisition training and 24h-delayed extinction training (n = 66). Higher IU, over STAI-T, was: (1) significantly associated with greater fear ratings to the learned fear cue during fear acquisition training, and (2) at trend associated with greater fear ratings to the learned fear versus safe cue during delayed extinction training. Both IU and STAI-T were not related to skin conductance or auditory startle blink during fear acquisition training and delayed extinction training. These results add to and extend our current understanding of the role of IU on subjective and physiological measures during different fear conditioning procedures, particularly that of delayed extinction training. Implications of these findings and future directions are discussed.

scholarly journals Oxytocin enhances the recovery of eye-contact induced autonomic arousal: A treatment mechanism study with placebo-controlled design

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicky Daniels ◽  
Jellina Prinsen ◽  
Javier R. Soriano ◽  
Kaat Alaerts
Keyword(s):  
Skin Conductance ◽  
Stress Responses ◽  
Social Stress ◽  
Eye Contact ◽  
Pivotal Role ◽  
Controlled Study ◽  
Autonomic Arousal ◽  
Social Responsiveness ◽  
Skin Conductance Responses

AbstractThe neuropeptide oxytocin (OT) is suggested to exert a pivotal role in a variety of complex human behaviors, including trust, attachment, social perception and fear-regulation. Previous studies have demonstrated that intranasal administration of OT reduces subjective and neuroendocrine stress responses and dampens amygdala reactivity. Moreover, OT has been proposed to modulate activity of the autonomic nervous system.Here, we conducted a double-blind, placebo-controlled study with 56 men, to investigate whether a single-dose of OT (24 IU) modulates sympathetic autonomic arousal upon live dyadic gaze interactions. To do so, electro-dermal recordings of skin conductance were performed during the engagement of eye contact with a live model in a naturalistic two-person social context.In accordance to prior research, direct eye gaze elicited a significant enhancement in skin conductance responses, but OT did not specifically enhance or dampen the overall magnitude (amplitude) of the autonomic arousal response. Administration of OT did facilitate the recovery of skin conductance responses back to baseline (increased steepness of recovery slope), indicating a role of OT in restoring homeostatic balance. Notably, the treatment-effect on autonomic recovery was most prominent in participants with low self-reported social responsiveness and high attachment avoidance, indicating that person-dependent factors play a pivotal role in determining OT treatment-responses. Behaviorally, OT significantly reduced self-reported feelings of tension and (at trend-level) worrying about how one presents oneself.Together, these observations add further evidence to a role of OT in reducing subjective and autonomic stress responses, primarily by facilitating restoration of homeostatic balance after (social) stress-induced perturbation.

scholarly journals An Exploration of the Mechanism of Action of an Equine-Assisted Intervention

Animals ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (6) ◽  
pp. 303 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ann Hemingway ◽  
Sid Carter ◽  
Andrew Callaway ◽  
Emma Kavanagh ◽  
Shelley Ellis
Keyword(s):  
Skin Conductance ◽  
Mechanism Of Action ◽  
Mixed Method ◽  
Temporal Change ◽  
Skin Conductance Responses ◽  
Equine Assisted ◽  
Emotional Landscape ◽  
Method Approach ◽  
Healthy Participants

Though long alluded to, there is now an accumulation of evidence of the vital contribution that emotion makes to learning. Within this broad advance in understanding is a growing body of research emphasising the embodied nature of this emotion-based learning. The study presented here is a pilot study using a mixed-method approach (combining both physiological and experiential methodologies) to give a picture of the “emotional landscape” of people’s learning through the intervention under study. This has allowed researchers to examine mediating pathways that may underlie any effects of an equine-assisted intervention. This study specifically focuses on examining the role of emotion. The intervention under study was used with young people with chronic mental health and behavioural problems for whom talk-based interventions were not working. Nine healthy participants aged 18–24 undertook the equine intervention, with an initial group having emotion-related psycho-physiological changes (skin conductance responses) measured while viewing their experience on video, and a further two participants experiencing a development of the methodology as their physiological responses were captured in real time during the intervention. The sessions were analysed by a group of five cross-disciplinary researchers to determine when significant learning episodes occurred, and the findings were that this learning was associated with powerful skin conductance responses. The qualitative element of the research entailed the participants watching themselves on video undertaking the equine intervention. They were asked to stop the video and share any changes in emotion at any point while watching. All participants experienced a positive temporal change in mood as the intervention progressed. All results supported the findings that emotional arousal occurred in relation to the participants asking the horse to perform a task. This paper will offer two novel contributions: (1) description of a new methodology for investigating the mechanism of action occurring in this type of intervention and (2) findings from the exploration of the intervention via psycho-physiological and experiential mechanisms.

Does Personality Modulate Skin Conductance Responses to Emotional Stimuli?

2010 ◽  
Vol 31 (3) ◽  
pp. 124-129 ◽  
Author(s):  
Solange Mardaga ◽  
Michel Hansenne
Keyword(s):  
Skin Conductance ◽  
Recovery Time ◽  
Emotional Reactivity ◽  
Normal Subjects ◽  
Emotional Valence ◽  
Subjective Ratings ◽  
Emotional Stimuli ◽  
Emotional Responsiveness ◽  
Skin Conductance Responses ◽  
Emotional Pictures

Several studies showed that personality modulates emotional responsiveness, though most of them used subjective ratings as the measure of emotion. The present study extends personality-emotion relationship findings to psychophysiological methods, more precisely to skin conductance responses (SCRs). SCRs were recorded in 54 normal subjects following the presentation of neutral and emotional pictures. Results showed that half-recovery time was modulated by harm avoidance (HA) as a function of emotional valence: Low-HA subjects showed longer half-recovery time following the presentation of pleasant pictures relative to neutral ones, whereas high-HA subjects showed no extended half-recovery time. These results support the hypothesis that personality modulates some aspects of somatic emotional reactivity, and together with previous results, they suggest that this phenomenon is highly dependent upon the characteristics of the emotional material.

scholarly journals Environmental transmission of generalized anxiety disorder from parents to children: worries, experiential avoidance, and intolerance of uncertainty

2017 ◽  
Vol 19 (2) ◽  
pp. 137-147 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Anxiety Disorder ◽  
Generalized Anxiety Disorder ◽  
Experiential Avoidance ◽  
Cognitive Styles ◽  
Intolerance Of Uncertainty ◽  
Generalized Anxiety ◽  
Verbal Information ◽  
Child Transmission ◽  
Potential Threat ◽  
Theoretical Approaches

Generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) runs in families. Building on recent theoretical approaches, this review focuses on potential environmental pathways for parent-to-child transmission of GAD. First, we address child acquisition of a generalized pattern of fearful/anxious and avoidant responding to potential threat from parents via verbal information and via modeling. Next, we address how parenting behaviors may contribute to maintenance of fearful/anxious and avoidant reactions in children. Finally, we consider intergenerational transmission of worries as a way of coping with experiential avoidance of strong negative emotions and with intolerance of uncertainty. We conclude that parents with GAD may bias their children's processing of potential threats in the environment by conveying the message that the world is not safe, that uncertainty is intolerable, that strong emotions should be avoided, and that worry helps to cope with uncertainty, thereby transmitting cognitive styles that characterize GAD. Our review highlights the need for research on specific pathways for parent-to-child transmission of GAD.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document