C Novara | PubMed Health

PubMed2001

Compulsive checking and selective processing of threatening information.

Threatening stimuli are processed differently from neutral ones by anxious and obsessive-compulsive subjects. In the present research, processing of threatening words was compared with that of neutral words for two groups of Italian students, one with high mean and one with low mean score on Checking, a subscale of the Padua Inventory. Two tests were given, a computerized version of the emotional Stroop task and a later recognition test under incidental learning conditions. The expected interference effect on the Stroop task for those scoring high on Checking was confirmed. These results suggest an association between compulsive checking and bias in the first automatic stages of processing of threatening stimuli.

Adult↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Coping and cognitive processing style in HIV-positive subjects.

BACKGROUND: People's reactions to traumatic events are mediated by their subjective style of coping. This is of particular importance for HIV+ patients, mainly in the first phases of the disease. This work aimed at examining whether an 'acceptance' style of coping, as opposed to a 'mental disengagement' style, selectively influences the first stages of the processing of neutral, emotional and HIV-related information. METHOD: Two groups of 11 HIV+ asymptomatic subjects were chosen according to their coping strategies, acceptance or mental disengagement, as measured by Coping Orientations to the Problems Experienced (COPE). Twenty-two patients completed the Emotional Stroop Task and an incidental memory recognition task containing neutral, emotional and HIV-related stimuli. RESULTS: Analysis of reaction times (RTs) on the Emotional Stroop Task showed that HIV+ subjects have longer RTs for emotional and HIV-related than for neutral words. Instead, no effect was found as regards interaction with style of coping. CONCLUSION: Results confirmed a processing bias of emotional information, whereas Acceptance and Mental disengagement strategies, as measured by the COPE scales, did not appear to influence information processing.

Adaptation, Psychological↗