title: Schizotypy and specificity of negative emotions on an emotional Stroop paradigm in the general population.
abstract: Attentional-interference using emotional Stroop tasks (ESTs) is greater among individuals in the general population with positive (versus negative) schizotypal traits; specifically in response to negatively (versus positively) valenced words, potentially capturing threat-sensitivity. Variability in attentional-interference as a function of subcategories of negatively valenced words (and in relation to schizotypal traits) remains underexplored in EST studies. We examined attentional-interference across negative word subcategories (fear/anger/sadness/disgust), and in relation to positive schizotypy, among non-clinical individuals in the general population reporting varying degrees of schizotypal traits. As hypothesized, performance differed across word subcategories, though the pattern varied from expectation. Attentional-interference was greater for fear and sadness compared to anger; and analogous for fear, disgust, and sadness. In the high schizotypy group, positive schizotypal traits were directly associated with attentional-interference to disgust. Attentional-interference was comparable between high- and low-positive schizotypy. Results suggest negative emotion subcategories may differentially reflect threat-sensitivity. Disgust-sensitivity may be particularly salient in (non-clinical) positive schizotypy. Findings have implications for understanding negative emotion specificity and variability in stimulus presentation modality when studying threat-related attentional-interference. Finally, disgust-related attentional-interference may serve as a cognitive correlate of (non-clinical) positive schizotypy. Expanding this research to prodromal populations will help explore disgust-related attentional-interference as a potential cognitive marker of positive symptoms.
authors.affiliation: Brooklyn College, Queens College and The Graduate Center of The City University of New York, New York, NY, USA.
authors.forename: Beril
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Yaffe
authors.affiliation: Brooklyn College, Queens College and The Graduate Center of The City University of New York, New York, NY, USA. Electronic address: DWalder@brooklyn.cuny.edu.
authors.forename: Deborah J
authors.initials: DJ
authors.lastname: Walder
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D001288:Attention / Q000502:physiology*; D004644:Emotions / Q000502:physiology*; D005239:Fear / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D012569:Schizotypal Personality Disorder / Q000523:psychology*; D057190:Stroop Test; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Attentional interference; Disgust; Healthy; Positive; Psychosis; Threat