Self-reported Affective Responses Research Articles

Emotional Changes during Imagery Rescripting of Aversive Social Memories in Social Anxiety Disorder: A Randomized Controlled Trial

Introduction: Imagery rescripting (ImRs) is a psychotherapeutic intervention targeting aversive memories. During the three-phase intervention, patients reexperience their aversive memory (phase 1), observe the scene from their adult perspective, and intervene to help their former selves (phase 2), and reexperience it again with the positive changes (phase 3). Previous studies have rarely investigated emotional and regulatory processes taking place during the intervention. Objective: This randomized controlled trial investigated self-reported affective and physiological responses during ImRs. Methods: Seventy-seven patients with social anxiety disorder (SAD) were randomly assigned to a single session of ImRs or a control intervention (recall and discussion of the memory) targeting an aversive social memory. Heart rate (HR) and heart rate variability (HRV) were assessed during and post hoc ratings of positive and negative feelings after baseline and the intervention phases. Results: Relative to the control intervention, ImRs resulted in an initial increase in negative feelings from baseline to phase 1 and a following larger (phase 1 to phase 2) and more stable (phase 2 to phase 3) decrease in negative feelings/increase in positive feelings. On the physiological level, during ImRs compared to the control intervention, mean HR was significantly higher during phase 1 and HRV during phase 3, each compared to baseline. Conclusions: These results provide further information about the specific sequence of emotional responses on different response levels during ImRs, being consistent with known theories of emotional processing and supposed mechanisms of ImRs.

Emotion regulation in adolescents with major depression – Evidence from a combined EEG and eye-tracking study

BackgroundAdolescent major depression (MD) is characterized by deficits in emotion regulation (ER). Little is known about the neurophysiological correlates that are associated with these deficits. Moreover, the additional examination of visual attention during ER would allow a more in-depth understanding of ER deficits but has not yet been applied simultaneously. MethodsN = 33 adolescents with MD and n = 35 healthy controls (HCs) aged 12–18 years performed an ER task during which they either a) down-regulated their negative affective response to negative images via cognitive reappraisal or b) attended the images without changing their affective response. During the task, the Late Positive Potential (LPP), gaze fixations on emotional image aspects, and self-reported affective responses were collected simultaneously. ResultsCompared to HCs, adolescents with MD demonstrated reduced ER success based on self-report but did not differ in LPP amplitudes. Participants in both groups showed increased amplitudes in the middle LPP window when they reappraised negative pictures compared to when they attended them. Only in the HC group, increased LPP amplitudes during reappraisal were paralleled by more positive affective responses. LimitationThe applied stimuli were part of picture databases and might therefore have limited self-relevance. ConclusionsIncreased LPP amplitude during ER in both groups might be specific to adolescence and might suggest that ER at this age is challenging and requires a high amount of cognitive resources. These findings provide an important starting point for future interventional studies in youth MD.

When they cry: Tears facilitate responses toward members of socially disadvantaged groups.

Emotional tears are vehicles for bonding between individuals, even with those belonging to different social categories. Yet, little is known about the reactions they provoke toward members of underprivileged groups such as immigrants or the explanatory mechanisms of their effects. Across three experiments (with 546 adults) using standardized images of emotional displays, we tested the effects of tears on cognitive inferences (of warmth and competence) and self-reported affective responses (such as compassion or discomfort), and both directly and indirectly on self-reported prosocial behavioral intentions toward an immigrant male. Compared with nontearful (i.e., neutral and sad) expressions, observers perceived a tearful immigrant as warmer but not as less competent (except for study 3). They also felt more compassion (but not discomfort) and were more willing to offer an immigrant person emotional (i.e., to approach and comfort) and instrumental support (i.e., to donate money to an organization helping immigrants but not volunteer their time). Inferred warmth and felt compassion (or compassion-related emotions) explained the effects of tears on emotional support and donation intentions. This research highlights the need to study emotion expression in the context of interethnic and, more broadly, intergroup relations and the effects of emotional tears beyond the willingness to provide immediate assistance. We also discuss implications that tears might have for promoting different types of solidarity with members of underprivileged groups such as immigrants. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).

Does context matter in misophonia? A multi-method experimental investigation.

Misophonia is a recently defined disorder in which certain aversive repetitive sounds and associated stimuli elicit distressing and impairing affective, behavioral, and physiological responses. The responses in misophonia may be stronger when the sound is produced by close friends and family, suggesting that the context in which a triggering cue occurs may have an important role in misophonia. As such, the goal of this study was to test experimentally whether the context of the sound source influences affective and psychophysiological responses to triggering stimuli in misophonia. Sixty one adults with misophonia and 45 controls listened to audio recordings (8 s) of human eating, animals eating, and human mouth smacking sounds (without eating). After a break, the same audio recordings were presented embedded within videos of human eating (congruent stimuli), animals eating (congruent stimuli), and, in the mouth smacking condition, with visually incongruent stimuli (hands playing in mud or in a bowl with a watery dough). Psychophysiological responses-skin conductance response (SCR) and heart rate (HR), and self-reported affective responses (valence, arousal, dominance) were gathered during the experiment in a laboratory. Participants with misophonia assessed all the stimuli as more negative and arousing than the controls, and reported feeling less dominant with respect to the sounds. Animal and mouth smacking sounds were assessed by all the participants as less negative and arousing than human eating sounds, but only in the audio-video conditions. SCR data partially confirmed increased psychophysiological arousal in misophonia participants during an exposure to mouth sounds, but did not reflect the self-report changes in response to different contexts. Misophonia participants had deeper deceleration of HR than controls during human eating sound with congruent video stimuli, while there was no group difference during human mouth smacking with incongruent video stimuli. Results suggest that the context of mouth sounds influences affective experiences in adults with misophonia, but also in participants without misophonia. Presentation of animal eating sounds with congruent visual stimuli, or human mouth smacking sounds with incongruent stimuli, decreased self-report reaction to common misophonic triggers.

Emotional memory in the lab: Using the Trier Social Stress Test to induce a sensory-rich and personally meaningful episodic experience

A myriad of clinical theories places emotional memory or mental representations at the root of mental disorders. Various cognitive-behavioural interventions are based on the assumption that targeting the underlying emotional memory is the working mechanism of treatment efficacy. To test the assumptions about the role of emotional memory in the development, maintenance, and treatment of mental disorders, we first need to establish ecologically valid paradigms that can induce emotional memory in the lab. For this, we used the Trier Social Stress Test (TSST), a standardized protocol to elicit social distress, paired with a neutral unfamiliar ambient odour, to create a sensory-rich and personally meaningful episodic experience. Seven days later, participants (N = 132) reactivated the memory of the TSST with the aid of auditory, olfactory, and visual retrieval cues, during which their heart rate and self-reported affective responses were collected. Although increases in heart rate were only observed during encoding, and not at retrieval, self-report ratings showed that cues which directly referred to the aversive experience evoked more negative valence, arousal, and feelings of lack of control during memory reactivation compared to control cues across sensory modalities. These findings are indicative of successful memory induction and corroborate the utility of ambient odours as retrieval aids. Moreover, the self-reported response to the reactivated emotional memory correlated with individual differences in indices of (social) anxiety and depression. Thereby, we provide preliminary evidence of the translational significance of this paradigm that offers potential for being a model to induce ecologically valid emotional memory in the lab.

Development of a Mobile Assessment Tool for Understanding Social Comparison Processes Among Individuals With Schizophrenia: Two-Phase Survey Study.

BackgroundDigital tools may help to address social deficits in schizophrenia, particularly those that engage social comparison processes (ie, evaluating oneself relative to others). Yet, little is known about social comparison processes in schizophrenia or how best to capture between- versus within-person variability, which is critical to engaging comparisons in digital interventions.ObjectiveThe goals of this pilot study were to (1) better understand affective responses to social comparisons among individuals with schizophrenia, relative to healthy controls, using a validated global self-report measure; and (2) test a new brief, mobile assessment of affective responses to social comparison among individuals with schizophrenia, relative to the full measure. This study was conducted in 2 phases.MethodsWe first compared self-reported affective responses to social comparisons between individuals with schizophrenia (n=39) and healthy controls (n=38) using a traditional self-report measure, at 2 time points. We examined the temporal stability in responses and differences between groups. We then evaluated the performance of brief, mobile assessment of comparison responses among individuals with schizophrenia, completed over 12 weeks (n=31).ResultsIndividuals with schizophrenia showed greater variability in affective responses to social comparison than controls on traditional measures and completed an average of 7.46 mobile assessments over 12 weeks. Mobile assessments captured within-person variability in affective responses in the natural environment (intraclass correlation coefficients of 0.40-0.60). Average scores for mobile assessments were positively correlated with responses to traditional measures.ConclusionsAffective responses to social comparison vary both between and within individuals with schizophrenia and capturing this variability via smartphone surveys shows some evidence of feasibility. As affective variability is a potential indicator of poor outcomes among individuals with mental health conditions, in the future, a brief, mobile assessment of affective responses to social comparisons may be useful for screening among individuals with schizophrenia. Further research on this process is needed to identify when specific comparison messaging may be most effective in digital interventions and could suggest new therapeutic targets for illnesses such as schizophrenia.

Experimentally-manipulated perceptions of good sleep predict greater reactivity to and poorer recovery from a social stressor in university students

Objective The present study was conducted to examine the impact of experimentally-manipulated perceptions of sleep on self-reported affective reactivity and recovery from a social stressor in undergraduate students. Design The study design is experimental, as the participants were randomly assigned to either good or poor perceived sleep quality conditions. Main outcome measures The impact of condition on self-reported affective responses to and recovery from the social stressor were assessed as well as whether the observed effects were moderated by stress, rumination, and depression. Results Participants in the good sleep condition reported increased negative affect (NA) after the social stressor and after a six-minute recovery period relative to participants in the poor sleep condition; participants in the former condition also reported heightened NA post-recovery relative to baseline (a comparison that was non-significant for participants in the poor sleep condition). The effect of condition on NA post-stressor and post-recovery was moderated by depression and rumination, with important implications for participants in the good sleep condition in particular. Conclusions These findings may have resulted from participant expectations about the impacts of sleep on their behaviour, although additional research remains to be conducted to identify the mechanism responsible for the obtained pattern of results.

Meditating in Virtual Reality 2: Phenomenology of Vividness, Egocentricity and Absorption-Immersion

The current study was designed to replicate and extend previous findings that demonstrate the efficacy of virtual reality (VR) technology to facilitate salient experiences of positive affect and wellbeing in response to meditative tasks, by (1) evaluating the phenomenological variables vividness, egocentricity, and immersiveness, as mediators of variability in positive affective response, and by (2) evaluating individual differences in trait absorption as a predictor of variability in positive affective response. The current experiment included 48 undergraduate students, all of whom completed both a brief VR and non-VR guided meditation session. Participants self-reported affective and meditative responses after each session using a battery of questionnaires. Participants experienced greater positive affect in response to VR versus non-VR guided meditation. Further, higher positive affect in response to VR meditation was (1) partially mediated by the experience of higher immersiveness, which was partially mediated by the experience of higher egocentricity in turn, and (2) predicted by higher trait absorption. Guided meditation in VR is associated with increased positive affect in comparison to non-VR meditation partly due to its effects on egocentricity and immersiveness, especially among participants high in trait absorption.

Effects of self-affirmation on emotion and cardiovascular responses.

Self-affirmation is the act of focusing on important aspects of the self, such as personal values and characteristics. We used a within-participants design (N = 125) to examine cardiovascular reactivity and self-reported affective responses to the practice of self-affirmation. In the self-affirmation condition, we asked participants to write about their top-ranked personal value for 5 min and used a writing exercise unrelated to personal values in the control condition. The International Affective Picture System was used to induce positive and negative emotion. Results showed that participants had greater high frequency heart rate variability and respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA) when practicing self-affirmation. During negative emotion induction, self-affirmation also led to lower maximum heart rate, higher RSA, and lower ratings of negative affect. Our findings suggest that the act of focusing on an important aspect of self has beneficial effects on psychological and physiological well-being.

Comment on Solberg and Jensenius: The Temporal Dynamics of Embodied Pleasure in Music

In the paper 'Pleasurable and Intersubjective Embodied Experiences of Electronic Dance Music', Ragnhild Torvanger Solberg and Alexander Refsum Jensenius report on a study in which the movements and self-reported affective responses of a group of dancing participants were recorded and related to structural properties of Electronic Dance Music. They observed that, compared with tracks that had a relatively flat dynamic development, tracks which included a 'break-down', 'build-up' and 'drop' of textural layers were associated with greater changes in movement amount and higher ratings of pleasure. Here I comment on their results and methodological approach and use the opportunity to address the continuous pleasure that was treated as a control in this experiment, discussing some reasons why affective responses to music with more evenly distributed dynamic progressions are so often ignored.

Nonsynonymous HTR2C polymorphism predicts cortisol response to psychosocial stress II: Evidence from two samples

The 5-HT2C receptor is the primary serotonin receptor located in the corticotrophin releasing hormone (CRH) neurons of the hypothalamus. These neurons initiate the signaling cascade that culminates in cortisol release. Therefore, genetic variation in the 5-HT2C receptor gene (HTR2C) is a prime candidate for affecting cortisol reactivity to stress. Accordingly, we examined the association of a nonsynonymous polymorphism (Cys23Ser; rs6318) in HTR2C with stress reactivity in two Trier Social Stress Tests conducted at separate sites. In both Study 1 (N=128) and Study 2 (N=185), Cys23 homozygous females and hemizygous males had greater cortisol reactivity. There was no relation between this polymorphism and self-reported affective response (Studies 1 and 2) or cardiovascular reactivity (Study 2). Additionally, the short/short genotype of a polymorphism (5-HTTLPR) in the serotonin transporter gene was associated with greater cortisol reactivity in Study 1 as well as in Study 2 (previously reported). The Cys23Ser polymorphism and the 5-HTTLPR were independently associated with cortisol reactivity in both studies. These findings emphasize the important role of genetic variation in the serotonin system on regulating cortisol reactivity to social evaluative stress. Comparison of the present associations with those of prior studies underscores the likely importance of situational and psychological factors in determining the direction and magnitude of the association between genotype and phenotype.

Measurement of self-reported affective feelings when an aperitif is consumed in an ecological setting

The aim of this study was to measure self-reported affective responses—emotion and mood—in an ecological setting when an aperitif is consumed before dinner at a restaurant. The product of interest was an aperitif drink, a “Kir” (a traditional French alcoholic aperitif made of white wine with fruit liquor), which was presented to participants in an experimental restaurant, after which participants had a three-course dinner. The specific influence of the Kir on affective responses was studied in relation to its fruit liquor composition: apricot, grapefruit, and raspberry. Two approaches were used to measure self-reported affective responses, each involving a different questionnaire. The first approach was related to the measure of immediate feelings by using the ScentMove® questionnaire while participants were consuming their aperitif. Results showed that the three Kir variants were not discriminated. The second approach consisted of measuring mood change across the whole dinner experience, before the aperitif, after the aperitif, and after the dinner, by using the Visual Analog Mood Scales (VAMS). Results showed that the raspberry Kir variant was associated with a significant decrease in two negative mood attributes, tense and anxious, after the participants had the aperitif, as compared with their initial mood state assessed before the aperitif. This study demonstrates therefore that mood state changes can be measured in a natural environment and highlights that these changes are product dependent, the most familiar Kir variant being associated with a greater decrease in negative mood states. However, considering the lack of Kir variant discrimination while participants consumed their aperitif and considering the limited long-term moods’ changes across the dinner, this study also emphasizes and discusses the limits of the measures of emotion in ecological settings. Finally, it is suggested to conduct more studies, which compare the measure of self-reported affective feelings in both laboratory settings and ecological settings.

Brain, body, and cognition: Neural, physiological and self-report correlates of phobic and normative fear

The phobic fear response appears to resemble an intense form of normal threat responding that can be induced in a nonthreatening situation. However, normative and phobic fear are rarely contrasted directly, thus the degree to which these two types of fear elicit similar neural and bodily responses is not well understood. To examine biological correlates of normal and phobic fear, 21 snake phobic and 21 nonphobic controls saw videos of slithering snakes, attacking snakes and fish in an event-related fMRI design. Simultaneous eletrodermal, pupillary, and self-reported affective responses were collected. Nonphobic fear activated a network of threat-responsive brain regions and involved pupillary dilation, electrodermal response and self-reported affect selective to the attacking snakes. Phobic fear recruited a large array of brain regions including those active in normal fear plus additional structures and also engendered increased pupil dilation, electrodermal and self-reported responses that were greater to any snake versus fish. Importantly, phobics showed greater between- and within-subject concordance among neural, electrodermal, pupillary, and subjective report measures. These results suggest phobic responses recruit overlapping but more strongly activated and more extensive networks of brain activity as compared to normative fear, and are characterized by greater concordance among neural activation, peripheral physiology and self-report. It is yet unclear whether concordance is unique to psychopathology, or rather simply an indicator of the intense fear seen in the phobic response, but these results underscore the importance of synchrony between brain, body, and cognition during the phobic reaction.

Redundancy analysis of autonomic and self-reported, responses to induced emotions

The issue of concordance among the elements of emotional states has been prominent in the literature since Lang (1968) explored the topic in relation to therapy for anxiety. Since that time, a consensus has emerged that concordance among these components is relatively low. To address this issue, redundancy analysis, a technique for examining directional relationships between two sets of multivariate data, was applied to data from a previously published study (Stephens, Christie, & Friedman, 2010). Subjects in this study listened to emotion-inducing music and viewed affective films while a montage of autonomic variables, as well as self-reported affective responses, were recorded. Results indicated that approximately 27–28% of the variance in self-reported affect could be explained by autonomic variables, and vice-versa. When all of the constraints of this emotion research paradigm are considered, these levels of explained variance indicate substantial coherence between feelings and physiology during the emotion inductions. These results are considered vis-à-vis the low levels of coherence that have often been reported in the literature.

Affective response to the menstrual cycle as a predictor of self-reported affective response to alcohol and alcohol use

Past research suggests that women with premenstrual syndrome (PMS) have higher levels of alcohol use/abuse. The present study was conducted to test the hypothesis that women with diverse patterns of affective response to the menstrual cycle (PMS pattern, mid-cycle pattern, and noncyclical pattern) would show mean-level differences on measures of self-reported affective response to alcohol, alcohol use, and sleep changes following alcohol use. All participants from an initial study of n = 213 college-aged women who had prospectively completed daily questionnaires for two full menstrual cycles were asked to complete a one-time retrospective questionnaire regarding their alcohol use and typical affective response when consuming alcohol. From that original study, n = 161 also participated in the present study. Results showed significant differences, in the expected direction, on three out of five measures (hard alcohol use, negative affective response to alcohol, and change in sleep following alcohol use). Women in the PMS pattern group reported (retrospectively) higher levels of hard alcohol use, a less negative affective response associated with alcohol use, and lower levels of sleep changes in relation to alcohol use, as compared to the mid-cycle group. The discussion considers potential mechanisms that may be responsible for these associations (i.e., GABA(A) modulation).

Neural circuitry underlying affective response to peer feedback in adolescence.

Peer feedback affects adolescents' behaviors, cognitions and emotions. We examined neural circuitry underlying adolescents' emotional response to peer feedback using a functional neuroimaging paradigm whereby, 36 adolescents (aged 9-17 years) believed they would interact with unknown peers postscan. Neural activity was expected to vary based on adolescents' perceptions of peers and feedback type. Ventrolateral prefrontal cortex (vlPFC) activity was found when adolescents indicated how they felt following feedback (acceptance or rejection) from peers of low vs high interest. Greater activation in both cortical (e.g. superior temporal gyrus, insula, anterior cingulate) and subcortical (e.g. striatum, thalamus) regions emerged in response to acceptance vs rejection feedback. Response to acceptance also varied by age and gender in similar regions (e.g. superior temporal gyrus, fusiform, insula), with greater age-related increases in activation to acceptance vs rejection for females than males. Affective response to rejection vs acceptance did not yield significantly greater neural activity in any region. vlPFC response suggests cognitive flexibility in reappraising initial perceptions of peers following feedback. Striatal response suggests that acceptance is a potent social reward for adolescents, an interpretation supported by more positive self-reported affective response to acceptance than rejection from high- but not low-interest peers.

The Affective Impact of Financial Skewness on Neural Activity and Choice

Few finance theories consider the influence of “skewness” (or large and asymmetric but unlikely outcomes) on financial choice. We investigated the impact of skewed gambles on subjects' neural activity, self-reported affective responses, and subsequent preferences using functional magnetic resonance imaging (FMRI). Neurally, skewed gambles elicited more anterior insula activation than symmetric gambles equated for expected value and variance, and positively skewed gambles also specifically elicited more nucleus accumbens (NAcc) activation than negatively skewed gambles. Affectively, positively skewed gambles elicited more positive arousal and negatively skewed gambles elicited more negative arousal than symmetric gambles equated for expected value and variance. Subjects also preferred positively skewed gambles more, but negatively skewed gambles less than symmetric gambles of equal expected value. Individual differences in both NAcc activity and positive arousal predicted preferences for positively skewed gambles. These findings support an anticipatory affect account in which statistical properties of gambles—including skewness—can influence neural activity, affective responses, and ultimately, choice.

Psychoaffective Differences between Sexually Functional and Dysfunctional Men in Response to a Sexual Experience

Although anxiety and depression have long been implicated as factors in the development and maintenance of sexual dysfunction, other emotional states, more typical and within the range of normality, have received little attention. Aim. To investigate key differences in self-reported affective responses between sexually functional and dysfunctional males in the context of a sexual episode with their partner. Participants were men seeking treatment at a urology clinic for either a sexual problem (N=79) or another urological disorder (N=16). Individuals rated their affective state across 28 descriptors in response to a partnered sexual experience. The 28-item Psychoaffective Response Form consisted of items assessing positive and negative affect. Principle components analysis was used to identify major underlying positive and negative factors. Significant differences were found on nearly all 28 measures of affective response as well as five major underlying factors constructed from those measures. Dysfunctional men more strongly endorsed negative affects and functional men more strongly endorsed positive affects, even though all suffered from a significant urological health issue. No differences existed in sexual desire or the value ascribed to sexual intimacy, suggesting that negative feelings were specifically associated with inadequate sexual performance and not general health concerns. These findings reiterate the importance of addressing patients' emotional issues as part of any overall treatment strategy.

The Influence of Exercise Intensity on Frontal Electroencephalographic Asymmetry and Self-Reported Affect

The “feel better” effect of exercise has been well established, but the optimal intensity needed to elicit a positive affective response is controversial. In addition, the mechanisms underlying such a response are unclear. To clarify these issues, female undergraduate students were monitored for electroencephalographic (EEG) and self-reported affective responses during the recovery period following rest, low, moderate, and high intensities of treadmill running, each lasting 30 min. Frontal EEG asymmetry and self-reported vigor scores following exercise at all three intensities were significantly elevated compared to those observed following rest. The results suggest that steady-state aerobic exercise bouts executed at varying intensities induce a similar affective response during the recovery period when assessed at both the behavioral and psychophysiological levels.

The Influence of Exercise Intensity on Frontal Electroencephalographic Asymmetry and Self-Reported Affect

The “feel better” effect of exercise has been well established, but the optimal intensity needed to elicit a positive affective response is controversial. In addition, the mechanisms underlying such a response are unclear. To clarify these issues, female undergraduate students were monitored for electroencephalographic (EEG) and self-reported affective responses during the recovery period following rest, low, moderate, and high intensities of treadmill running, each lasting 30 min. Frontal EEG asymmetry and self-reported vigor scores following exercise at all three intensities were significantly elevated compared to those observed following rest. The results suggest that steady-state aerobic exercise bouts executed at varying intensities induce a similar affective response during the recovery period when assessed at both the behavioral and psychophysiological levels.