Sequential priming in the detection of the facial expression: new approach in the study of emotional detection

The effective detection of those facial expressions that alert us to a possible threat is adaptive. Hence the reason that studies on face sampling have involved analysing how this process occurs, with evidence to show that the eyes focus mainly on the upper side of the face; nevertheless, no clear determination has been made of the relationship between the efficacy in detection (speed and accuracy) and the way in which emotions are visually tracked on the face. A sequential priming task was therefore held in which the four quadrants of the face were displayed consecutively, for 50 ms each one, and in a different order (24 sequences). The results reveal a quicker response when the priming sequence begins in the upper part, continues downward to the right-hand side of the face, and then follows an anti-clockwise direction. The results are discussed in the light of studies using the Eye-Tracking technique

La eficacia en ladetección de las expresiones faciales que nos alertan deuna posible amenaza es adaptativa. Por esta razón, los estudios sobre rastreo facial se han interesado en el análisis de este proceso, encontrándose evidenciasde quela miradase enfoca prioritariamente a la parte superior del rostro; sin embargo, no se ha establecido de manera clara la relación entre la eficacia en la detección (velocidad y precisión)y la forma en la que se rastrean las expresiones faciales emocionales. Con el objetivo de aportarclaridad en este punto, se realizó una tarea de priming secuencial en la que se mostraban los cuatro cuadrantes de la cara de manera consecutiva, durante 50 ms cada uno, y en un orden diferente (24 secuencias). Los resultados mostraron una respuesta más rápida cuando las secuencias de priming comenzaban en la parte superior, continuabanhacia abajo en el lado derecho, y posteriormente seguían la dirección contraria a la agujas del reloj. Se discuten losresultados a la luz de los estudios que utilizan la técnica de Eye-Tracking

Emotional regulation processes: influence on pain and disability in fibromyalgia patients.

OBJECTIVES: Fibromyalgia (FM) is a chronic syndrome characterised by widespread musculoskeletal pain associated with other symptoms, including psychological distress. While negative mood (anxiety, depression, and anger) has been widely explored in FM, few studies have investigated emotional dysregulation. Our purpose was to evaluate problems in the processes of emotional regulation and to explore their influence on the severity of pain and disability. METHODS: Emotional regulations, anxiety, depression, anger, pain and disability were evaluated in 47 FM patients and 47 healthy subjects. Regression analyses were performed to evaluate the role that emotional regulation processes have on pain severity and disability of FM patients. RESULTS: Results showed that although FM patients do not differ in terms of the attention paid to their emotional states, FM patients had greater difficulties in the emotional regulation process. In addition, emotional rejection and interference are two variables that influence the pain severity and disability. CONCLUSIONS: FM patients need to be trained in strategies for regulating their emotions, in order to achieve a reduction in negative mood states, as well as their impact in pain and disability.

Brain functional connectivity after cognitive-bias modification and behavioral changes in abstinent alcohol-use disorder patients.

The use of the cognitive-bias modification (CBM) method has emerged as a therapeutic complement in the treatment of alcoholism, producing changes at behavioral and brain level. Nevertheless, the impact of the CBM procedure could be improved by the memory retrieval-extinction process (REP). Different studies have demonstrated that the retrieval of drug memories before extinction training later reduced the reinstatement of drug-seeking behavior. The main aim of this work was to study the effect of the CBM procedure itself, as well as in combination with the activation of alcohol-related memories, on the brain oscillatory activity of abstinent patients with alcohol-use disorder. The study sample comprised 33 patients divided into three groups: A-CBM (alcohol-related memory activation + CBM), N-CBM (neutral memory activation + CBM) and N-INT (no-intervention) groups. A resting-state EEG was obtained before and after each protocol, along with the assessment of the automatic action tendencies. A-CBM group showed a general alpha synchronization increase after the protocol, while the other groups did not show any significant change. Besides, A-CBM group showed significant intra and inter-group differences in the automatic action tendencies after the protocol, reflected in higher avoidance bias toward appetitive, aversive and without context alcohol-related stimuli. The alpha phase synchronization increase could be the neural manifestation of the conditioning produced between the alcohol-related stimuli and the automatic avoidance response. Moreover, the activation of the alcohol-related memories favors this conditioning with those alcohol-related stimuli associated with the activated memories, because it increases their threat level for the abstinence maintenance.