Hypomanic trait is associated with a hypovigilant automatic attentional response to social cues of danger.
OBJECTIVE
Hypomania in bipolar disorders is characterized by disinhibited, fearless and reward-seeking behavior. This behavioral pattern suggests that early and automatic responding to socio-emotional cues such as facial expressions might be aberrant in hypomania. The present study tested the predictions that participants selected on hypomania-like trait would show hypovigilant responses to facial cues of danger and increased responses to facial cues of reward.


METHODS
From a group of 513, the 16 most trait-hypomanic individuals were selected by use of a shortened version of an established self-report instrument, the General Behavior Inventory (GBI). Their spatial-attentional responses after perception of dynamic fearful and happy facial gaze cues were compared with those of 12 controls.


RESULTS
The group difference for full GBI hypomania scores was reliable (p=0.000). Individuals with elevated hypomanic traits clearly demonstrated attentional hypovigilance after perception of fearful, laterally gazing faces (p=0.009). In addition, unlike controls, they demonstrated reliable attentional responding to happy gaze cues (p=0.007).


CONCLUSIONS
These data provide the first experimental evidence that hypomania-like trait is associated with hypovigilant, fearless responding to the social cue of an emotionally expressive gaze.
Putman
Peter
P
Affective Neuroscience, Helmholtz Institute, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands. pputman@fsw.leidenuniv.nl
Saevarsson
Styrmir
S
van Honk
Jack
J
D001143:Arousal / Q000502:physiology*; D001288:Attention / Q000502:physiology*; D001714:Bipolar Disorder / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000523:psychology; D003463:Cues; D004644:Emotions / Q000502:physiology*; D005149:Facial Expression; D005239:Fear / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D006240:Happiness; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009042:Motivation; D010555:Personality Inventory / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D011930:Reaction Time / Q000502:physiology; D012201:Reward; D012938:Social Perception; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014796:Visual Perception