scholarly journals Emotional Response Inhibition: A Shared Neurocognitive Deficit in Eating Disorder Symptoms and Nonsuicidal Self-Injury

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 104
Author(s):  
Kenneth J. D. Allen ◽  
M. McLean Sammon ◽  
Kathryn R. Fox ◽  
Jeremy G. Stewart

Eating disorder (ED) symptoms often co-occur with non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI). This comorbidity is consistent with evidence that trait negative urgency increases risk for both of these phenomena. We previously found that impaired late-stage negative emotional response inhibition (i.e., negative emotional action termination or NEAT) might represent a neurocognitive mechanism for heightened negative urgency among people with NSSI history. The current study evaluated whether relations between negative urgency and ED symptoms similarly reflect deficits in this neurocognitive process. A total of 105 community adults completed an assessment of ED symptoms, negative urgency, and an emotional response inhibition task. Results indicated that, contrary to predictions, negative urgency and NEAT contributed independent variance to the prediction of ED symptoms, while controlling for demographic covariates and NSSI history. Worse NEAT was also uniquely associated with restrictive eating, after accounting for negative urgency. Our findings suggest that difficulty inhibiting ongoing motor responses triggered by negative emotional reactions (i.e., NEAT) may be a shared neurocognitive characteristic of ED symptoms and NSSI. However, negative urgency and NEAT dysfunction capture separate variance in the prediction of ED-related cognitions and behaviors, distinct from the pattern of results we previously observed in NSSI.

Author(s):  
Kenneth J.D. Allen ◽  
M. McLean Sammon ◽  
Kathryn R. Fox ◽  
Jeremy G. Stewart

Eating disorder (ED) symptoms often co-occur with nonsuicidal self-injury (NSSI). This comorbidity is consistent with evidence that trait negative urgency increases risk for both of these phenomena. We previously found that impaired late-stage negative emotional response inhibition (i.e., negative emotional action termination or NEAT) might represent a neurocognitive mechanism for heightened negative urgency among people with NSSI history. The current study evaluated whether relations between negative urgency and ED symptoms similarly reflect deficits in this neurocognitive process. One hundred and five community adults completed an assessment of ED symptoms, negative urgency, and an emotional response inhibition task. Results indicated that, contrary to predictions, negative urgency and NEAT contributed independent variance to the prediction of ED symptoms, while controlling for demographic covariates and NSSI history. Worse NEAT was also uniquely associated with restrictive eating, after accounting for negative urgency. Our findings suggest that difficulty inhibiting ongoing motor responses triggered by negative emotional reactions (i.e., NEAT) may be a shared neurocognitive characteristic of ED symptoms and NSSI. However, negative urgency and NEAT dysfunction capture separate variance in the prediction of ED-related cognitions and behaviors, distinct from the pattern of results we previously observed in NSSI.


2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kenneth Javad Dale Allen ◽  
D.Phil. Jill Miranda Hooley

Negative urgency, the self-reported tendency to act impulsively when distressed, increases risk for nonsuicidal self-injury (NSSI). Prior research also suggests that NSSI is associated with impaired negative emotional response inhibition (NERI), a cognitive process theoretically related to negative urgency. Specifically, individuals with a history of NSSI had difficulty inhibiting behavioral responses to negative affective images in an Emotional Stop-Signal Task, but not to those depicting positive or neutral content. The present study sought to replicate this finding, determine whether this deficit extends to an earlier stage of NERI, and explore whether impairment in these two stages of emotional inhibitory control helps explain the relationship between negative urgency and NSSI. To address these aims, 88 adults with NSSI histories (n = 45) and healthy control participants (n = 43) without NSSI history or psychopathology completed a clinical interview, symptom inventories, an impulsivity questionnaire, and behavioral impulsivity tasks measuring early and late emotional response inhibition. The NSSI group had worse late NERI than the control group on the Emotional Stop-Signal Task, but no group differences were observed in early NERI on an Emotional Go/no-go task. However, both early and late stages of NERI accounted for independent variance in negative urgency. We additionally found that late NERI explained variance in the association between negative urgency and NSSI. These results suggest that impulsive behavior in NSSI may involve specifically impaired inhibitory control over negative emotional impulses during late response inhibition, and that this cognitive deficit might reflect one mechanism or pathway to elevated negative urgency among people who self-injure.


2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ann F. Haynos ◽  
Lisa M. Anderson ◽  
Autumn J. Askew ◽  
Michelle G. Craske ◽  
Carol B. Peterson

AbstractAccumulating psychobiological data implicate reward disturbances in the persistence of anorexia nervosa (AN). Evidence suggests that individuals with AN demonstrate decision-making deficits similar to those with mood and anxiety disorders that cause them to under-respond to many conventionally rewarding experiences (e.g., eating, interacting socially). In contrast, unlike individuals with other psychiatric disorders, individuals with AN simultaneously over-respond to rewards associated with eating-disorder behaviors (e.g., restrictive eating, exercising). This pattern of reward processing likely perpetuates eating-disorder symptoms, as the rewards derived from eating-disorder behaviors provide temporary relief from the anhedonia associated with limited responsivity to other rewards. Positive Affect Treatment (PAT) is a cognitive-behavioral intervention designed to target reward deficits that contribute to anhedonia in mood and anxiety disorders, including problems with reward anticipation, experiencing, and learning. PAT has been found to promote reward responsivity and clinical improvement in mood and anxiety disorders. This manuscript will: (1) present empirical evidence supporting the promise of PAT as an intervention for AN; (2) highlight nuances in the maintaining processes of AN that necessitate adaptations of PAT for this population; and (3) suggest future directions in research on PAT and other reward-based treatments that aim to enhance clinical outcomes for AN.


2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Kari Eiring ◽  
Trine Wiig Hage ◽  
Deborah Lynn Reas

Abstract Background Despite common misconceptions, an individual may be seriously ill with a restrictive eating disorder without an outwardly recognizable physical sign of the illness. The aim of this qualitative study was to investigate the perspectives of individuals who have previously battled a restrictive eating disorder who were considered “not sick enough” by others (e.g., peers, families, healthcare professionals) at some point during their illness, and to understand the perceived impact on the illness and recovery. Such misconceptions are potentially damaging, and have been previously linked with delayed help-seeking and poorer clinical outcomes. Methods Seven women who had recovered from anorexia nervosa or atypical anorexia nervosa participated in semi-structured interviews. Interviews were transcribed and interpretive phenomenological analysis was used. Results Three main themes emerged: (1) dealing with the focus upon one’s physical appearance while battling a mental illness, (2) “project perfect”: feeling pressure to prove oneself, and (3) the importance of being seen and understood. Participants reported that their symptoms were occasionally met with trivialization or disbelief, leading to shame, confusion, despair, and for some, deterioration in eating disorder symptoms which drove further weight loss. In contrast, social support and being understood were viewed as essential for recovery. Conclusion To facilitate treatment seeking and engagement, and to optimize chances of recovery, greater awareness of diverse, non-stereotypical presentations of restrictive eating disorders is needed which challenge the myth that weight is the sole indicator of the presence or severity of illness.


Author(s):  
Kyle T. Ganson ◽  
Rachel F. Rodgers ◽  
Sarah K. Lipson ◽  
Tamara J. Cadet ◽  
Michelle Putnam

2014 ◽  
Vol 37 (3) ◽  
pp. 504-511 ◽  
Author(s):  
Angelina Yiu ◽  
Brianna J. Turner ◽  
Brianne K. Layden ◽  
Alexander L. Chapman ◽  
Shannon L. Zaitsoff

2021 ◽  
pp. 103865
Author(s):  
Taylor A. Burke ◽  
Kenneth J.D. Allen ◽  
Ryan W. Carpenter ◽  
David M. Siegel ◽  
Marin M. Kautz ◽  
...  

2021 ◽  
Vol 5 ◽  
pp. 239821282110582
Author(s):  
Kenneth J. D. Allen ◽  
Sheri L. Johnson ◽  
Taylor A. Burke ◽  
M. McLean Sammon ◽  
Christina Wu ◽  
...  

Performance on an emotional stop-signal task designed to assess emotional response inhibition has been associated with Negative Urgency and psychopathology, particularly self-injurious behaviors. Indeed, difficulty inhibiting prepotent negative responses to aversive stimuli on the emotional stop-signal task (i.e. poor negative emotional response inhibition) partially explains the association between Negative Urgency and non-suicidal self-injury. Here, we combine existing data sets from clinical (hospitalised psychiatric inpatients) and non-clinical (community/student participants) samples aged 18–65 years ( N = 450) to examine the psychometric properties of this behavioural task and evaluate hypotheses that emotional stop-signal task metrics relate to distinct impulsive traits among participants who also completed the UPPS-P ( n = 223). We specifically predicted associations between worse negative emotional response inhibition (i.e. commission errors during stop-signal trials representing negative reactions to unpleasant images) and Negative Urgency, whereas commission errors to positive stimuli – reflecting worse positive emotional response inhibition – would relate to Positive Urgency. Results support the emotional stop-signal task’s convergent and discriminant validity: as hypothesised, poor negative emotional response inhibition was specifically associated with Negative Urgency and no other impulsive traits on the UPPS-P. However, we did not find the hypothesised association between positive emotional response inhibition and Positive Urgency. Correlations between emotional stop-signal task performance and self-report measures were the modest, similar to other behavioural tasks. Participants who completed the emotional stop-signal task twice ( n = 61) additionally provide preliminary evidence for test–retest reliability. Together, findings suggest adequate reliability and validity of the emotional stop-signal task to derive candidate behavioural markers of neurocognitive functioning associated with Negative Urgency and psychopathology.


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