title: Approaching anger in schizophrenia: What an implicit task tells you that self-report does not.
abstract: Motivational deficits are important determinants of impaired social functioning in schizophrenia, yet we know very little about their precise nature. One influential model of motivation distinguishes between approach and avoidance neurobiological systems that impact the tendency to approach rewarding and avoid threatening stimuli. The current study evaluated approach and avoidance motivational tendencies using both implicit and explicit measures. One-hundred and sixteen individuals with schizophrenia and 73 healthy controls completed the implicit Approach Avoidance Task (AAT) which provides a reaction time-based measure of approach and avoidance tendencies for happy and angry faces, and the Behavioral Inhibition/Behavioral Activation System Scale (BIS/BAS), a self-report measure of approach and avoidance tendencies. The patient sample was re-administered the AAT four weeks later to evaluate re-test reliability. At baseline, patients showed a significant tendency to approach (rather than avoid) angry faces on the AAT. This same pattern was replicated at the follow-up assessment. In contrast, on the BIS/BAS, patients reported significantly elevated BIS scores, reflecting increased avoidance of aversive, anxiety-inducing stimuli. Results suggest a discrepancy between patients' implicit behavioral tendency to approach angry faces and their self-reported avoidance of aversive stimuli.
authors.affiliation: Department of Veterans Affairs VISN 22 Mental Illness Research, Education, and Clinical Center, Los Angeles, CA, United States; UCLA Semel Institute for Neuroscience & Human Behavior, David Geffen School of Medicine, United States. Electronic address: lenafelice@ucla.edu.
authors.forename: L Felice
authors.initials: LF
authors.lastname: Reddy
authors.affiliation: Department of Veterans Affairs VISN 22 Mental Illness Research, Education, and Clinical Center, Los Angeles, CA, United States; UCLA Semel Institute for Neuroscience & Human Behavior, David Geffen School of Medicine, United States.
authors.forename: Michael F
authors.initials: MF
authors.lastname: Green
authors.affiliation: Department of Veterans Affairs VISN 22 Mental Illness Research, Education, and Clinical Center, Los Angeles, CA, United States; UCLA Semel Institute for Neuroscience & Human Behavior, David Geffen School of Medicine, United States.
authors.forename: Jonathan K
authors.initials: JK
authors.lastname: Wynn
authors.affiliation: Behavioural Science Institute, Radboud University Nijmegen, Netherlands.
authors.forename: Mike
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Rinck
authors.affiliation: Department of Veterans Affairs VISN 22 Mental Illness Research, Education, and Clinical Center, Los Angeles, CA, United States; UCLA Semel Institute for Neuroscience & Human Behavior, David Geffen School of Medicine, United States.
authors.forename: William P
authors.initials: WP
authors.lastname: Horan
mesh_terms: D000786:Anger; D001362:Avoidance Learning; D001364:Awareness; D002755:Choice Behavior; D000066499:Facial Recognition; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009042:Motivation; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests; D011930:Reaction Time; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012559:Schizophrenia / Q000175:diagnosis*; D012565:Schizophrenic Psychology; D057566:Self Report; D012919:Social Behavior
keywords: Approach; Avoidance; Motivation; Schizophrenia