title: Negative affective pictures can elicit physical symptoms in high habitual symptom reporters.
abstract: The present study aimed to explore the role of a brief negative affective state on symptom reporting. Non-clinical high (n = 24) and low (n = 24) habitual symptom reporters viewed four picture series (160 s per series) varying in affective content: neutral, general positive, general negative and symptom-related. Participants rated each picture series on valence, dominance and arousal, and reported their affective state and somatic symptoms experienced during the series. Results showed that all participants reported higher levels of negative affect during the negative and symptom-related picture series compared with the positive and neutral picture series. Only high habitual symptom reporters also reported more bodily symptoms after viewing the negative and symptom-related pictures. The findings allude to a learned association between negative emotional states and symptom reporting in high habitual symptom reporters.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, University of Leuven, 3000 Leuven, Belgium. katleen.bogaerts@psy.kuleuven.be
authors.forename: Katleen
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Bogaerts
authors.forename: Thomas
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Janssens
authors.forename: Steven
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: De Peuter
authors.forename: Ilse
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Van Diest
authors.forename: Omer
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Van den Bergh
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000339:Affect; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D010775:Photic Stimulation; D010781:Photography; D013001:Somatoform Disorders / Q000503:physiopathology*; D055815:Young Adult