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Evidence for an attentional bias for washing- and checking-relevant stimuli in obsessive–compulsive disorder

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 May 2009

STEFFEN MORITZ ,
ADRIAN VON MÜHLENEN ,
SARAH RANDJBAR ,
SUSANNE FRICKE  and
LENA JELINEK
STEFFEN MORITZ*
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Medical Center Hamburg—Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany
ADRIAN VON MÜHLENEN
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology, University of Warwick, Coventry, UK
SARAH RANDJBAR
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Medical Center Hamburg—Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany
SUSANNE FRICKE
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Medical Center Hamburg—Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany
LENA JELINEK
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Medical Center Hamburg—Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany
*
*Correspondence and reprint requests to: Steffen Moritz, Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Medical Center Hamburg—Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany. E-mail: moritz@uke.uni-hamburg.de
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Abstract

There is equivocal evidence whether or not patients with obsessive–compulsive disorder (OCD) share an attentional bias for concern-related material and if so, whether this reflects hypervigilance towards or problems to disengage from disorder-related material. In a recent study, we failed to detect an attentional bias in OCD patients using an emotional variant of the inhibition of return (IOR) paradigm containing OCD-relevant and neutral words. We reinvestigated the research question with a more stringent design that addressed potential moderators. A new IOR paradigm was set up using visual stimuli. Forty-two OCD patients and 31 healthy controls were presented with neutral (e.g., cup), anxiety-relevant (e.g., shark), checking-relevant (e.g., broken door), and washing-relevant (e.g., dirty toilet) cue pictures at one of two possible locations. Following a short or long interval sensitive to automatic versus controlled processes, a simple target stimulus appeared at either the cued or the uncued location. OCD patients responded significantly slower to targets that were preceded by an OCD-relevant cue. Results lend support to the claim that OCD patients share a processing abnormality for concern-related visual material. (JINS, 2009, 15, 365–371.)

Keywords

Obsessive–compulsive disorderCheckingAttentionAttentional biasInhibition of returnAnxiety disorders
Type
Research Articles
Information
Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society , Volume 15 , Issue 3 , May 2009 , pp. 365 - 371
Copyright
Copyright © The International Neuropsychological Society 2009

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