Effects Of Cognitive Bias Modification Research Articles

The effect of training to target cognitive biases towards social rejection in eating disorders.

This study examined the effect of cognitive bias modification for interpretation (CBM-I) training in Korean women with eating disorders (EDs). Sixty-three women with EDs participated in the study. Participants were randomly assigned to the intervention group where they received six sessions of CBM-I training (n=31) in addition to treatment-as-usual or were put on a waiting list (n=32). Participants' interpretation and attention biases, emotion regulation, affect, and ED psychopathology were assessed at baseline, end-of-intervention (4weeks), and follow-up (8weeks). Participants who completed the CBM-I training displayed greater reductions in negative interpretation bias (Δη2 =0.107) and emotion dysregulation (Δη2=0.085) with medium to large effect sizes compared to the control group, which were maintained from baseline to follow-up. Disengagement from negative faces and a focus on positive faces was found in the intervention group with a moderate effect size at the end-of-intervention (Δη2=0.090). Both intervention and control groups showed improvements in ED psychopathology. Baseline neuroticism was positively correlated with CBM-I effect. The results suggest that modifying interpretation bias towards ambiguous social stimuli might be an effective adjuvant treatment to reduce negative expectations of social situations and improve emotion regulation in women with bulimia nervosa and anorexia nervosa.

Chronotype and emotion processing: a pilot study testing timing of online cognitive bias modification training

BackgroundCircadian rhythms influence cognitive performance which peaks in the morning for early chronotypes and evening for late chronotypes. It is unknown whether cognitive interventions are susceptible to such synchrony effects...

The effectiveness of cognitive bias modification in reducing substance use in detained juveniles: An RCT

Background and objectiveYoung offenders show high levels of substance use. Treatment programs within detention settings are less effective. Cognitive bias modification (CBM) is a promising supplement to substance use treatment. This study tests the effectiveness of CBM in young offenders to reduce cannabis and alcohol use, and delinquent recidivism. MethodA randomized controlled trial added CBM to treatment as usual (TAU), among 181 youth in juvenile detention centers. In a factorial design, participants were randomly assigned to either active- or sham-training for two varieties of CBM, targeting attentional-bias (AtB) and approach-bias (ApB) for their most used substance. Substance use was measured with the Alcohol and Cannabis Use Disorder Identification Tests. Delinquent recidivism was measured with the International Self-Report Delinquency (ISRD) survey. ResultsAt pretest, participants showed AtB but no ApB for both substances. For alcohol, a decrease was found in AtB in the active-training group. For cannabis, a decrease was found in AtB for both active- and sham-training groups. Regardless of condition, no effects were found on substance use or ISRD scores at follow-up. LimitationsThe sample is judicial, not clinical, as is the setting. TAU and participant goals are not necessarily substance related. ConclusionsYoung offenders show a significant attentional-bias towards substance cues. CBM changed attentional-biases but not substance use. Combining CBM with a motivational intervention is advised. Follow-up research should better integrate CBM with running treatment programs. New developments regarding CBM task design could be used that link training better to treatment.

The Effects of Cognitive Bias Modification on Hostile Interpretation Bias and Aggressive Behavior: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis

The Effects of Cognitive Bias Modification on Hostile Interpretation Bias and Aggressive Behavior: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis

Cognitive bias modification for adult's depression: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

This study aimed to elucidate the effect of cognitive bias modification on depression. This research included 10 randomized studies searching four major databases: PubMed, Embase, PsycINFO, and Cochrane Library, with a total sample size of 467. Moreover, they were examined for quality and possible publication bias. Cognitive bias modification (CBM) had statistically significant results, g = -0.64, 95% CI = [-0.97-0.32]. The interpretation of cognitive bias modification shows the highest effect size, g = -1.45, 95% CI = [-2.05-0.88]. When the training place is located in the laboratory, the training effect is significant, g = -1.11, 95% CI = [-1.62-0.61]. The difference is statistically significant when the training environment was changed to home, g = -0.28, 95% CI = [-0.51-0.05]. CBM has a statistical effect on moderate-to-severe depression, g = -0.70, 95% CI = [-1.04-0.36]. We found that CBM had a moderate therapeutic effect on depression, whether the setting was at home or in the lab. Especially when the interpretation of cognitive bias modification (CBM-I) was used, we got the highest effect value. Furthermore, CBM has a statistical effect on moderate-to-severe depression.

Evaluation of the Effect of Cognitive Bias Modification and Mental Imagery on Visual and Verbal Memory

Introduction: The present study aims to investigate the effectiveness of cognitive bias modification and mental imagery on visual and verbal memory of female high school students in Yazd city.
 Methods: The present experimental study was conducted based on a pretest-posttest pre-posttest design along with a control group. Four high schools from district 2 education of Yazd were selected by cluster sampling method and 15 students from each high school were randomly selected and placed into three experimental and a control group. Initially, all subjects were tested by Wechsler memory scale. The subjects were exposed to eight different educational sessions. The experimental groups included (Experimental group 1: Cognitive bias modification training group), (Experimental group 2: Mental imagery training group), and (Experimental groups 3: Cognitive bias modification and Mental imaging training). The control group had no intervention. After completing the experimental group training, the 4 groups were tested by the Wechsler memory scale.
 Results: cognitive bias modification training and mental imagery training significantly affected visual memory (P = 0.001, F = 24.264) and this effect was 57%, while the effect of cognitive bias modification training and mental imagery had a significant effect on verbal memory (P = 0.053, F = 2.7226) and had an effect of 13%. It is therefore confirmed that cognitive bias modification training and mental imagery enhance learners' visual and verbal memory performance.
 Conclusion: Such interventions can have a significant contribution in learning, school efficiency, and medical clinical treatments.

Attention and interpretation cognitive bias change: A systematic review and meta-analysis of bias modification paradigms

This systematic review and meta-analysis examines the effect of Cognitive Bias Modification for attention (CBM-A) and interpretation (CBM-I) on reducing the targeted biases and investigates moderators of each approach. PsycINFO, PsychArticles, and PubMED databases were searched for randomized-controlled studies published before March 2020 with pre- and post-CBM cognitive bias outcome measures, resulting in 91 CBM-A (n = 5914 individuals) and 70 CBM-I samples (n = 4802 individuals). Random-effects models and Hedge's g calculation showed significant medium overall effects of bias reduction with moderate to high heterogeneity (CBM-A g = 0.49 [0.36, 0.64], I2 = 85.19%; CBM-I g = 0.58 [0.48, 0.68], I2 = 70.92%). Effect sizes did not differ between approaches and remained significant after trim-and-fill adjustment for possible publication bias. Moderator variables were investigated with meta-regression and subgroup analyses. Participant age, symptom type, control condition and number of trials moderated CBM-A; student and clinical status moderated CBM-I effect size. Results support attention and interpretation modification in controlled laboratory and variable (online) training settings for non-clinical and clinical samples across various symptom types (anxiety, depression, substance use, eating disorders). Further empirical evidence is necessary to determine optimal sample and methodological combinations most strongly associated with adaptive behavioral outcomes.

Cognitive Biases and Addictive Disorders: A Bibliometric Review

Introduction: Since the early 2000s, there have been extensive investigations into cognitive biases in addictive disorders. The advances in the field have led to the discovery that cognitive bias exists in substance disorders and could in turn be modified. To date, there have been primary studies and meta-analysis demonstrating the existence of these biases and the effectiveness of cognitive bias modification (i.e., whereby such biases are retrained). There remains a lack of understanding of how the field has progressed and the research gaps, in light of the evidences provided by these primary studies. Objectives: A bibliometric analysis of the publications to date was performed to provide a map of the work that has been done so far. This would help researchers to better understand the development of cognitive bias research, the direction of the research, and the recent trends. Methods: For the purposes of this bibliometric research, Web of Science (WOS) was used in the identification of relevant articles. To identify the relevant articles, the following search strategy was implemented, that of ((((((TS = (“cognitive bias”)) OR TS = (“attention bias”)) OR TS = (“approach bias”)) OR TS = (“avoidance bias)) OR TS = (“interpretative bias”))). Bibliometric data analysis was conducted based on the identified articles. Results: A total of 161 citations were eventually included. These citations were published between 1994 and 2022. The average number of citations per documents was 26.73. Of these 161 citations, 122 were articles, 2 were editorials, 3 were corrections to the original manuscript, 5 were reviews, and 29 were meeting abstracts. The analysis of the trend of topics has shown that researchers were focused on understanding and gaining insights into cognitive biases and potentially examining the association between cognitive biases and cravings and aggression in the early days. Over the years, there has been an evolution into examining specific unconscious biases, namely, that of attention and approach biases. In the most recent years, the investigations have been more focused on examining bias modification/retraining. Conclusions: From our knowledge, this is the first bibliometric analysis that has been undertaken to explore all the publications related to cognitive bias in the field of addiction. The insights gained from this article could inform future research.

The effects of cognitive bias modification for attention and interpretation on the postoperative psychological resilience and quality of life of patients with pituitary adenoma: a randomized trial.

Negative emotions such as anxiety and depression may have a bearing on patients' psychological resilience and quality of life (QoL) following surgery. Cognitive bias modification (CBM) for attention and interpretation has been confirmed to alleviate anxiety and depression. However, the psychological effects of CBM attention and interpretation on Chinese patients with pituitary adenoma have hardly received research attention. This prospective interventional study enrolled 100 patients undergoing surgical treatment for pituitary adenoma. Participants were divided into an experimental group and a control group, with 50 cases in each group. Baseline characteristics of included patients were collected. Patients in the control group were given routine training, and those in experimental group received routine training plus CBM attention and interpretation training. The Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale (CD-RISC) was used to assess patients' psychological resilience. The patients' levels of anxiety and depression were assessed using the Self-rating Anxiety Scale (SAS) and Self-rating Depression Scale (SDS). QoL was assessed based on the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer QoL Questionnaire (EORTC QLQ-C30). No statistical difference was found between the 2 groups in CD-RISC, SAS, SDS, or QoL score at baseline (P>0.05). After CBM training, psychological resilience and QoL in the experimental group improved, and the levels of anxiety and depression decreased (P<0.05). Furthermore, the experimental group showed statistically superior psychological resilience and QoL than the control group. The levels of anxiety and depression in the experimental group were statistically lower than those in the control group (P<0.05). CBM for attention and interpretation effectively improves the psychological resilience of patients and reduces the symptoms of anxiety and depression, thus improving patients' postoperative QoL. Chinese Clinical Trial Registry Identifier: ChiCTR2100045899.

Examining the effectiveness of cognitive bias modification for perfectionism in exploration of the mediating and moderating effects of body dissatisfaction and self-efficacy

The relationship between perfectionism, body dissatisfaction, and self-efficacy is unclear. This study attempted to distinguish the relationship between different dimensions of perfectionism and to examine how they relate to body dissatisfaction and self-efficacy. Experiment 1 examined the effectiveness of two types of Cognitive Bias Modification for Interpretation (CBM-I) techniques in the induction of perfectionism. Experiment 2 explored the mediation and moderation effects of perfectionism facets, body dissatisfaction, and self-efficacy in the induction of perfectionism. Participants were randomly assigned to one of the four CBM-I conditions and completed self-report measures of trait and state perfectionism, body dissatisfaction, self-efficacy, as well as a behavioural task that assessed perfectionistic behaviours before and after the CBM-I induction. The results indicated no significant differences in perfectionism between the experimental groups and the control groups following the perfectionism induction. Using baseline participant characteristics, body dissatisfaction was found to mediate socially-prescribed perfectionism and self-efficacy. Self-oriented perfectionism moderated the association between body dissatisfaction and self-efficacy. State perfectionism may not be influenced by a single session (30 trials) of CBM-I training. Treatment targeting body dissatisfaction may enhance self-efficacy in socially-prescribed perfectionists. Further, interventions that decrease self-oriented perfectionism may reduce body dissatisfaction while increasing self-efficacy.

Modification of hostile interpretation bias and self-reported aggression in juvenile delinquents: A randomized controlled trial

Background/ObjectiveThe social information processing model holds that aggressive behavior is closely related to the hostile interpretation of ambiguous social cues, suggesting the possibility that an intervention that reduces hostile interpretations could reduce aggression. This study in Mainland China evaluated the remediating effects of cognitive bias modification for interpretation (CBM-I) on the hostile interpretation bias and self-reported aggressive behaviors of male juvenile delinquents, taking into account initial hostile interpretation bias as a possible moderator of the intervention effect. MethodFifty-six male juvenile delinquents aged 16-18 were recruited and randomly assigned to the CBM-I group (n = 28) or the Waiting-List group (n = 28). Interpretation bias and self-reported aggressive behavior were assessed at pre-test and post-test. ResultsThe positive interpretations of participants in the CBM-I group were significantly increased compared with participants in the Waiting-List group. The intervention effect of CBM-I on self-reported physical aggression was significant only for juvenile delinquents with high pre-test hostile interpretation bias. ConclusionsCBM-I can significantly improve the positive interpretation bias of juvenile delinquents, and reduce the self-reported physical aggression for some male juvenile delinquents. The results have implications for providing low-cost and high-efficiency intervention for juvenile delinquents’ self-reported aggression behavior.

Effect of Cognitive Bias Modification on Early Relapse Among Adults Undergoing Inpatient Alcohol Withdrawal Treatment

More than half of patients with alcohol use disorder who receive inpatient withdrawal treatment relapse within weeks of discharge, hampering subsequent uptake and effectiveness of psychological and pharmacologic interventions. Cognitive bias modification (CBM) improves outcomes after alcohol rehabilitation, but the efficacy of delivering CBM during withdrawal treatment has not yet been established. To test the hypothesis that CBM would increase the likelihood of abstaining from alcohol during the 2 weeks following discharge from inpatient withdrawal treatment. In a randomized clinical trial, 950 patients in 4 inpatient withdrawal units in Melbourne, Australia, were screened for eligibility between June 4, 2017, and July 14, 2019, to receive CBM or sham treatment. Patients with moderate or severe alcohol use disorder aged 18 to 65 years who had no neurologic illness or traumatic brain injury were eligible. Two-week follow-up, conducted by researchers blinded to the participant's condition, was the primary end point. Both per-protocol and intention-to-treat analysis were conducted. Randomized to 4 consecutive daily sessions of CBM designed to reduce alcohol approach bias or sham training not designed to modify approach bias. Primary outcome was abstinence assessed using a timeline followback interview. Participants were classified as abstinent (no alcohol use in the first 14 days following discharge) or relapsed (any alcohol use during the first 14 days following discharge or lost to follow-up). Of the 950 patients screened for eligibility, 338 did not meet inclusion criteria, 108 were discharged before being approached, and 192 refused. Of the 312 patients who consented (referred sample), 12 withdrew before being randomized. In the final population of 300 randomized patients (CBM, n = 147; sham, n = 153), 248 completed the intervention and 272 completed the follow-up. Of the 300 participants (173 [57.7%] men; mean [SD] age, 43.47 [10.43] years), 7 patients (3 controls, 4 CBM) withdrew after finding the training uncomfortable. Abstinence rates were 42.5% (95% CI, 34.3%-50.6%) in controls and 54.4% (95% CI, 46.0%-62.8%) in CBM participants, yielding an 11.9% (95% CI, 0.04%-23.8%; P = .04) difference in abstinence rates. In a per-protocol analysis including only those who completed 4 sessions of training and the follow-up, the difference in abstinence rate between groups was 17.0% (95% CI, 3.8%-30.2%; P = .008). The findings of this clinical trial support the efficacy of CBM for treatment of alcohol use disorder. Being safe and easy to implement, requiring only a computer and joystick, and needing no specialist staff/training, CBM could be routinely offered as an adjunctive intervention during withdrawal treatment to optimize outcomes. Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry Identifier: ACTRN12617001241325.

The effect of cognitive bias modification for interpretation (CBM-I) on social anxiety and mood: Compared text-based scenarios training with picture-word cue training.

The effect of cognitive bias modification for interpretation (CBM-I) on social anxiety and mood: Compared text-based scenarios training with picture-word cue training.

Neural correlates of cognitive bias modification for interpretation.

The effectiveness of cognitive bias modification for interpretation (CBM-I), a treatment method employed to reduce social anxiety (SA), has been examined. However, the neural correlates of CBM-I remain unclear, and we aimed to elucidate brain activities during intervention and activity changes associated with CBM-I effectiveness in a pre–post intervention comparison. Healthy participants divided into two groups (CBM, control) were scanned before, during and after intervention using functional magnetic resonance imaging. Ambiguous social situations followed by positive outcomes were repeatedly imagined by the CBM group during intervention, while half of the outcomes in the control group were negative. Whole-brain analysis revealed that activation of the somatomotor and somatosensory areas, occipital lobe, fusiform gyrus and thalamus during intervention was significantly greater in the CBM than in the control group. Furthermore, altered activities in the somatomotor and somatosensory areas, occipital lobe and posterior cingulate gyrus during interpreting ambiguous social situations showed a significant group × change in SA interaction. Our result suggests that when facing ambiguous social situations, positive imagery instilled by CBM-I is recalled, and interpretations are modified to contain social reward. These findings may help to suggest an alternative manner of enhancing CBM-I effectiveness from a cognitive-neuroscience perspective.

How Anxious are You Right Now? Using Ecological Momentary Assessment to Evaluate the Effects of Cognitive Bias Modification for Social Threat Interpretations

Reducing one’s tendency to interpret ambiguous situations negatively can improve symptoms of social anxiety. This study examines the effectiveness of a 1-week period of online Cognitive Bias Modification for Interpretations (CBM-I) for socially anxious individuals. In addition to measuring intervention effectiveness through traditional trait measures, this study investigates whether associated state measures are sensitive to intervention effects in daily life. One-hundred and six participants scoring high on a measure of trait social anxiety completed two in-lab sessions separated by 5 weeks of ecological momentary assessment, with 51 participants randomly assigned to receive the online CBM-I intervention halfway through the 5-week monitoring period. CBM-I training was more effective than monitoring alone in reducing trait negative interpretation bias, indicating target engagement. However, this change was not reliably accompanied by changes on other cognitive processing style outcomes. Further, while trait and state social anxiety symptoms and fear of negative evaluation improved, these changes were not unique to the CBM-I intervention group. This study demonstrates the challenges and opportunities associated with investigating intervention effects in daily life.

A Preliminary Study on the Effect of Cognitive Bias Modification on the Attribution of Positive Social Outcomes in Socially Anxious Individuals

A Preliminary Study on the Effect of Cognitive Bias Modification on the Attribution of Positive Social Outcomes in Socially Anxious Individuals

P.848 The effects of cognitive bias modification alone versus during reconsolidation of binge-eating memories: Electrophysiological and behavioural changes during response inhibition

P.848 The effects of cognitive bias modification alone versus during reconsolidation of binge-eating memories: Electrophysiological and behavioural changes during response inhibition

Codesigning a mobile gamified attention bias modification intervention: research protocol

IntroductionAdvances in experimental psychology has highlighted the need to modify underlying automatic cognitive biases, such as attentional biases. While prior research has documented the effectiveness of cognitive bias modification, such...

Combining oxytocin and cognitive bias modification training in a randomized controlled trial: Effects on trust in maternal support

Background and objectivesResearch on the social effects of intranasal oxytocin in children is scarce. Oxytocin has been proposed to have clearer beneficial effects when added to social learning paradigms. The current study tested this proposition in middle childhood by assessing effects of cognitive bias modification (CBM) training and oxytocin on trust in maternal support. MethodsChildren (N = 100, 8–12 years) were randomly assigned to one of two training conditions: CBM training aimed at increasing trust or neutral placebo training. Within each training condition, half the participants received oxytocin and half a placebo. Main and interaction effects were assessed on measures of trust-related interpretation bias and trust. We explored whether child characteristics moderated intervention effects. ResultsChildren in the CBM training were faster to interpret maternal behaviour securely versus insecurely. Effects did not generalize to interpretation bias measures or trust. There were no main or interaction effects of oxytocin. Exploratory moderation analyses indicated that combining CBM training with oxytocin had less positive effects on trust for children with more internalizing problems. LimitationsAs this was the first study combining CBM and oxytocin, replication of the results is needed. ConclusionsThis study combined a social learning paradigm with oxytocin in children. CBM training was effective at an automatic level of processing. Oxytocin did not enhance CBM effects or independently exert effects. Research in larger samples specifying when oxytocin might have beneficial effects is necessary before oxytocin can be used as intervention option in children.

Persecutory delusions: effects of Cognitive Bias Modification for Interpretation and the Maudsley Review Training Programme on social anxiety, jumping to conclusions, belief inflexibility and paranoia

Background and objectivesThe Threat Anticipation Model (Freeman, 2007) implicates social anxiety, jumping to conclusions (JTC) and belief inflexibility in persecutory delusions. We investigated whether Cognitive Bias Modification for Interpretation (CBM-I; Turner et al., 2011) improves social anxiety by targeting negative interpretation bias of ambiguous social information. We determined whether the Maudsley Review Training Programme (MRTP; Waller et al., 2011) improves JTC, belief inflexibility and paranoia. We also explored effects of CBM-I on JTC/belief inflexibility and paranoia, as well as the MRTP on social anxiety. MethodsTwelve participants from Early Intervention and Recovery Services in East Anglia completed measures of social anxiety, paranoia, JTC and belief inflexibility. A concurrent multiple baseline case series design was used. ResultsThree of twelve participants improved in social anxiety following CBM-I, paranoia improved in 6/12 cases. CBM-I had no effect on JTC/belief inflexibility. The MRTP improved JTC and/or belief inflexibility in 9/12 cases, while improving paranoia for 6/12 individuals. The MRTP improved social anxiety in one case. LimitationsThe small sample size and large effects necessary for single case series designs limit the generality of findings. These are discussed in more detail. ConclusionsThis study suggests that whilst both CBM-I and the MRTP may have a positive impact on paranoia and social anxiety, the effects on JTC/belief inflexibility are largely specific to the MRTP. Relationships between social anxiety, JTC, belief inflexibility and paranoia existed in 10/12 individuals, supporting the Threat Anticipation Model.