title: Threat-Related Attention Bias Variability and Posttraumatic Stress.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Threat monitoring facilitates survival by allowing one to efficiently and accurately detect potential threats. Traumatic events can disrupt healthy threat monitoring, inducing biased and unstable threat-related attention deployment. Recent research suggests that greater attention bias variability, that is, attention fluctuations alternating toward and away from threat, occurs in participants with PTSD relative to healthy comparison subjects who were either exposed or not exposed to traumatic events. The current study extends findings on attention bias variability in PTSD.
  
  
  METHODS
  Previous measurement of attention bias variability was refined by employing a moving average technique. Analyses were conducted across seven independent data sets; in each, data on attention bias variability were collected by using variants of the dot-probe task. Trauma-related and anxiety symptoms were evaluated across samples by using structured psychiatric interviews and widely used self-report questionnaires, as specified for each sample.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Analyses revealed consistent evidence of greater attention bias variability in patients with PTSD following various types of traumatic events than in healthy participants, participants with social anxiety disorder, and participants with acute stress disorder. Moreover, threat-related, and not positive, attention bias variability was correlated with PTSD severity.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  These findings carry possibilities for using attention bias variability as a specific cognitive marker of PTSD and for tailoring protocols for attention bias modification for this disorder.
authors.affiliation: From the School of Psychological Sciences, the Sagol School of Neuroscience, and the Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel; the Division of Mental Health, Medical Corps, Israel Defense Forces, Israel; the Emergency Department, Tel Aviv Medical Center, Tel Aviv, Israel; the Center for Military Psychiatry and Neuroscience, Walter Reed Army Institute of Research, U.S. Army Medical Research and Materiel Command, Silver Spring, Md.; Darla Moore School of Business, University of South Carolina, Columbia; and the Intramural Research Program, NIMH, Bethesda, Md.
authors.forename: Reut
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Naim
authors.affiliation: From the School of Psychological Sciences, the Sagol School of Neuroscience, and the Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel; the Division of Mental Health, Medical Corps, Israel Defense Forces, Israel; the Emergency Department, Tel Aviv Medical Center, Tel Aviv, Israel; the Center for Military Psychiatry and Neuroscience, Walter Reed Army Institute of Research, U.S. Army Medical Research and Materiel Command, Silver Spring, Md.; Darla Moore School of Business, University of South Carolina, Columbia; and the Intramural Research Program, NIMH, Bethesda, Md.
authors.forename: Rany
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Abend
authors.affiliation: From the School of Psychological Sciences, the Sagol School of Neuroscience, and the Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel; the Division of Mental Health, Medical Corps, Israel Defense Forces, Israel; the Emergency Department, Tel Aviv Medical Center, Tel Aviv, Israel; the Center for Military Psychiatry and Neuroscience, Walter Reed Army Institute of Research, U.S. Army Medical Research and Materiel Command, Silver Spring, Md.; Darla Moore School of Business, University of South Carolina, Columbia; and the Intramural Research Program, NIMH, Bethesda, Md.
authors.forename: Ilan
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Wald
authors.affiliation: From the School of Psychological Sciences, the Sagol School of Neuroscience, and the Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel; the Division of Mental Health, Medical Corps, Israel Defense Forces, Israel; the Emergency Department, Tel Aviv Medical Center, Tel Aviv, Israel; the Center for Military Psychiatry and Neuroscience, Walter Reed Army Institute of Research, U.S. Army Medical Research and Materiel Command, Silver Spring, Md.; Darla Moore School of Business, University of South Carolina, Columbia; and the Intramural Research Program, NIMH, Bethesda, Md.
authors.forename: Sharon
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Eldar
authors.affiliation: From the School of Psychological Sciences, the Sagol School of Neuroscience, and the Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel; the Division of Mental Health, Medical Corps, Israel Defense Forces, Israel; the Emergency Department, Tel Aviv Medical Center, Tel Aviv, Israel; the Center for Military Psychiatry and Neuroscience, Walter Reed Army Institute of Research, U.S. Army Medical Research and Materiel Command, Silver Spring, Md.; Darla Moore School of Business, University of South Carolina, Columbia; and the Intramural Research Program, NIMH, Bethesda, Md.
authors.forename: Ofir
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Levi
authors.affiliation: From the School of Psychological Sciences, the Sagol School of Neuroscience, and the Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel; the Division of Mental Health, Medical Corps, Israel Defense Forces, Israel; the Emergency Department, Tel Aviv Medical Center, Tel Aviv, Israel; the Center for Military Psychiatry and Neuroscience, Walter Reed Army Institute of Research, U.S. Army Medical Research and Materiel Command, Silver Spring, Md.; Darla Moore School of Business, University of South Carolina, Columbia; and the Intramural Research Program, NIMH, Bethesda, Md.
authors.forename: Eyal
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Fruchter
authors.affiliation: From the School of Psychological Sciences, the Sagol School of Neuroscience, and the Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel; the Division of Mental Health, Medical Corps, Israel Defense Forces, Israel; the Emergency Department, Tel Aviv Medical Center, Tel Aviv, Israel; the Center for Military Psychiatry and Neuroscience, Walter Reed Army Institute of Research, U.S. Army Medical Research and Materiel Command, Silver Spring, Md.; Darla Moore School of Business, University of South Carolina, Columbia; and the Intramural Research Program, NIMH, Bethesda, Md.
authors.forename: Karen
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Ginat
authors.affiliation: From the School of Psychological Sciences, the Sagol School of Neuroscience, and the Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel; the Division of Mental Health, Medical Corps, Israel Defense Forces, Israel; the Emergency Department, Tel Aviv Medical Center, Tel Aviv, Israel; the Center for Military Psychiatry and Neuroscience, Walter Reed Army Institute of Research, U.S. Army Medical Research and Materiel Command, Silver Spring, Md.; Darla Moore School of Business, University of South Carolina, Columbia; and the Intramural Research Program, NIMH, Bethesda, Md.
authors.forename: Pinchas
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Halpern
authors.affiliation: From the School of Psychological Sciences, the Sagol School of Neuroscience, and the Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel; the Division of Mental Health, Medical Corps, Israel Defense Forces, Israel; the Emergency Department, Tel Aviv Medical Center, Tel Aviv, Israel; the Center for Military Psychiatry and Neuroscience, Walter Reed Army Institute of Research, U.S. Army Medical Research and Materiel Command, Silver Spring, Md.; Darla Moore School of Business, University of South Carolina, Columbia; and the Intramural Research Program, NIMH, Bethesda, Md.
authors.forename: Maurice L
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: Sipos
authors.affiliation: From the School of Psychological Sciences, the Sagol School of Neuroscience, and the Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel; the Division of Mental Health, Medical Corps, Israel Defense Forces, Israel; the Emergency Department, Tel Aviv Medical Center, Tel Aviv, Israel; the Center for Military Psychiatry and Neuroscience, Walter Reed Army Institute of Research, U.S. Army Medical Research and Materiel Command, Silver Spring, Md.; Darla Moore School of Business, University of South Carolina, Columbia; and the Intramural Research Program, NIMH, Bethesda, Md.
authors.forename: Amy B
authors.initials: AB
authors.lastname: Adler
authors.affiliation: From the School of Psychological Sciences, the Sagol School of Neuroscience, and the Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel; the Division of Mental Health, Medical Corps, Israel Defense Forces, Israel; the Emergency Department, Tel Aviv Medical Center, Tel Aviv, Israel; the Center for Military Psychiatry and Neuroscience, Walter Reed Army Institute of Research, U.S. Army Medical Research and Materiel Command, Silver Spring, Md.; Darla Moore School of Business, University of South Carolina, Columbia; and the Intramural Research Program, NIMH, Bethesda, Md.
authors.forename: Paul D
authors.initials: PD
authors.lastname: Bliese
authors.affiliation: From the School of Psychological Sciences, the Sagol School of Neuroscience, and the Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel; the Division of Mental Health, Medical Corps, Israel Defense Forces, Israel; the Emergency Department, Tel Aviv Medical Center, Tel Aviv, Israel; the Center for Military Psychiatry and Neuroscience, Walter Reed Army Institute of Research, U.S. Army Medical Research and Materiel Command, Silver Spring, Md.; Darla Moore School of Business, University of South Carolina, Columbia; and the Intramural Research Program, NIMH, Bethesda, Md.
authors.forename: Phillip J
authors.initials: PJ
authors.lastname: Quartana
authors.affiliation: From the School of Psychological Sciences, the Sagol School of Neuroscience, and the Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel; the Division of Mental Health, Medical Corps, Israel Defense Forces, Israel; the Emergency Department, Tel Aviv Medical Center, Tel Aviv, Israel; the Center for Military Psychiatry and Neuroscience, Walter Reed Army Institute of Research, U.S. Army Medical Research and Materiel Command, Silver Spring, Md.; Darla Moore School of Business, University of South Carolina, Columbia; and the Intramural Research Program, NIMH, Bethesda, Md.
authors.forename: Daniel S
authors.initials: DS
authors.lastname: Pine
authors.affiliation: From the School of Psychological Sciences, the Sagol School of Neuroscience, and the Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel; the Division of Mental Health, Medical Corps, Israel Defense Forces, Israel; the Emergency Department, Tel Aviv Medical Center, Tel Aviv, Israel; the Center for Military Psychiatry and Neuroscience, Walter Reed Army Institute of Research, U.S. Army Medical Research and Materiel Command, Silver Spring, Md.; Darla Moore School of Business, University of South Carolina, Columbia; and the Intramural Research Program, NIMH, Bethesda, Md.
authors.forename: Yair
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Bar-Haim
mesh_terms: D000063:Accidents, Traffic / Q000523:psychology*; D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001288:Attention / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008016:Life Change Events; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D013313:Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic / Q000523:psychology*; D055815:Young Adult