title: Visual selective attention in body dysmorphic disorder, bulimia nervosa and healthy controls.
abstract: Cognitive behavioral models postulate that selective attention plays an important role in the maintenance of body dysmorphic disorder (BDD). It is suggested that individuals with BDD overfocus on perceived defects in their appearance, which may contribute to the excessive preoccupation with their appearance.
  
  
  
  The present study used eye tracking to examine visual selective attention in individuals with BDD (n=19), as compared to individuals with bulimia nervosa (BN) (n=21) and healthy controls (HCs) (n=21). Participants completed interviews, questionnaires, rating scales and an eye tracking task: Eye movements were recorded while participants viewed photographs of their own face and attractive as well as unattractive other faces.
  
  
  
  Eye tracking data showed that BDD and BN participants focused less on their self-rated most attractive facial part than HCs. Scanning patterns in own and other faces showed that BDD and BN participants paid as much attention to attractive as to unattractive features in their own face, whereas they focused more on attractive features in attractive other faces. HCs paid more attention to attractive features in their own face and did the same in attractive other faces.
  
  
  
  Results indicate an attentional bias in BDD and BN participants manifesting itself in a neglect of positive features compared to HCs. Perceptual retraining may be an important aspect to focus on in therapy in order to overcome the neglect of positive facial aspects. Future research should aim to disentangle attentional processes in BDD by examining the time course of attentional processing.
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, University of Bamberg, Markusplatz 3, 96047 Bamberg, Germany. Electronic address: ines.kollei@uni-bamberg.de.
authors.forename: Ines
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Kollei
authors.affiliation: Department of Child and Adolescent Mental Health, University Hospital of Erlangen, Schwabachanlage 6/10, 91054 Erlangen, Germany. Electronic address: stefanie.horndasch@uk-erlangen.de.
authors.forename: Stefanie
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Horndasch
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, University Hospital of Erlangen, Schwabachanlage 6, 91054 Erlangen, Germany. Electronic address: yesim.erim@uk-erlangen.de.
authors.forename: Yesim
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Erim
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, University of Wuppertal, Max-Horkheimer-Str. 20, 42097 Wuppertal, Germany. Electronic address: martin@uni-wuppertal.de.
authors.forename: Alexandra
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Martin
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001288:Attention; D057215:Body Dysmorphic Disorders / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000523:psychology*; D001828:Body Image / Q000523:psychology; D052018:Bulimia Nervosa / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000523:psychology*; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D005133:Eye Movements; D005145:Face; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires
keywords: Body dysmorphic disorder; Body image; Bulimia nervosa; Eye tracking; Selective attention