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Li Q, Zhang X, Yang X, Pan N, Li X, Kemp GJ, Wang S, Gong Q. Pre-COVID brain network topology prospectively predicts social anxiety alterations during the COVID-19 pandemic. Neurobiol Stress 2023; 27:100578. [PMID: 37842018 PMCID: PMC10570707 DOI: 10.1016/j.ynstr.2023.100578] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/24/2023] [Revised: 09/12/2023] [Accepted: 09/30/2023] [Indexed: 10/17/2023] Open
Abstract
Background Social anxiety (SA) is a negative emotional response that can lead to mental health issues, which some have experienced during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Little attention has been given to the neurobiological mechanisms underlying inter-individual differences in SA alterations related to COVID-19. This study aims to identify neurofunctional markers of COVID-specific SA development. Methods 110 healthy participants underwent resting-state magnetic resonance imaging and behavioral tests before the pandemic (T1, October 2019 to January 2020) and completed follow-up behavioral measurements during the pandemic (T2, February to May 2020). We constructed individual functional networks and used graph theoretical analysis to estimate their global and nodal topological properties, then used Pearson correlation and partial least squares correlations examine their associations with COVID-specific SA alterations. Results In terms of global network parameters, SA alterations (T2-T1) were negatively related to pre-pandemic brain small-worldness and normalized clustering coefficient. In terms of nodal network parameters, SA alterations were positively linked to a pronounced degree centrality pattern, encompassing both the high-level cognitive networks (dorsal attention network, cingulo-opercular task control network, default mode network, memory retrieval network, fronto-parietal task control network, and subcortical network) and low-level perceptual networks (sensory/somatomotor network, auditory network, and visual network). These findings were robust after controlling for pre-pandemic general anxiety, other stressful life events, and family socioeconomic status, as well as by treating SA alterations as categorical variables. Conclusions The individual functional network associated with SA alterations showed a disrupted topological organization with a more random state, which may shed light on the neurobiological basis of COVID-related SA changes at the network level.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qingyuan Li
- Department of Interventional Therapy, National Cancer Center/National Clinical Research Center for Cancer/Cancer Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, Beijing, 100021, China
- Research Unit of Psychoradiology, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Chengdu, 610041, China
- Huaxi MR Research Center (HMRRC), Department of Radiology, West China Hospital of Sichuan University, Chengdu, 610041, China
- Functional & Molecular Imaging Key Laboratory of Sichuan Province, West China Hospital of Sichuan University, Chengdu, 610041, China
| | - Xun Zhang
- Research Unit of Psychoradiology, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Chengdu, 610041, China
- Huaxi MR Research Center (HMRRC), Department of Radiology, West China Hospital of Sichuan University, Chengdu, 610041, China
- Functional & Molecular Imaging Key Laboratory of Sichuan Province, West China Hospital of Sichuan University, Chengdu, 610041, China
| | - Xun Yang
- School of Public Affairs, Chongqing University, Chongqing, 400044, China
| | - Nanfang Pan
- Research Unit of Psychoradiology, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Chengdu, 610041, China
- Huaxi MR Research Center (HMRRC), Department of Radiology, West China Hospital of Sichuan University, Chengdu, 610041, China
- Functional & Molecular Imaging Key Laboratory of Sichuan Province, West China Hospital of Sichuan University, Chengdu, 610041, China
| | - Xiao Li
- Department of Interventional Therapy, National Cancer Center/National Clinical Research Center for Cancer/Cancer Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, Beijing, 100021, China
| | - Graham J. Kemp
- Liverpool Magnetic Resonance Imaging Centre (LiMRIC) and Institute of Life Course and Medical Sciences, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, L69 3BX, UK
| | - Song Wang
- Research Unit of Psychoradiology, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Chengdu, 610041, China
- Huaxi MR Research Center (HMRRC), Department of Radiology, West China Hospital of Sichuan University, Chengdu, 610041, China
- Functional & Molecular Imaging Key Laboratory of Sichuan Province, West China Hospital of Sichuan University, Chengdu, 610041, China
| | - Qiyong Gong
- Research Unit of Psychoradiology, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Chengdu, 610041, China
- Huaxi MR Research Center (HMRRC), Department of Radiology, West China Hospital of Sichuan University, Chengdu, 610041, China
- Department of Radiology, West China Xiamen Hospital of Sichuan University, Xiamen, 361000, China
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Neurobiological correlates and attenuated positive social intention attribution during laughter perception associated with degree of autistic traits. J Neural Transm (Vienna) 2023; 130:585-596. [PMID: 36808307 PMCID: PMC10049931 DOI: 10.1007/s00702-023-02599-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/20/2022] [Accepted: 02/03/2023] [Indexed: 02/21/2023]
Abstract
Laughter plays an important role in group formation, signaling social belongingness by indicating a positive or negative social intention towards the receiver. In adults without autism, the intention of laughter can be correctly differentiated without further contextual information. In autism spectrum disorder (ASD), however, differences in the perception and interpretation of social cues represent a key characteristic of the disorder. Studies suggest that these differences are associated with hypoactivation and altered connectivity among key nodes of the social perception network. How laughter, as a multimodal nonverbal social cue, is perceived and processed neurobiologically in association with autistic traits has not been assessed previously. We investigated differences in social intention attribution, neurobiological activation, and connectivity during audiovisual laughter perception in association with the degree of autistic traits in adults [N = 31, Mage (SD) = 30.7 (10.0) years, nfemale = 14]. An attenuated tendency to attribute positive social intention to laughter was found with increasing autistic traits. Neurobiologically, autistic trait scores were associated with decreased activation in the right inferior frontal cortex during laughter perception and with attenuated connectivity between the bilateral fusiform face area with bilateral inferior and lateral frontal, superior temporal, mid-cingulate and inferior parietal cortices. Results support hypoactivity and hypoconnectivity during social cue processing with increasing ASD symptoms between socioemotional face processing nodes and higher-order multimodal processing regions related to emotion identification and attribution of social intention. Furthermore, results reflect the importance of specifically including signals of positive social intention in future studies in ASD.
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3
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Wiegand A, Munk MHJ, Drohm S, Fallgatter AJ, MacIsaac JL, Kobor MS, Nieratschker V, Kreifelts B. Neural correlates of attentional control in social anxiety disorder: the impact of early-life adversity and DNA methylation. J Psychiatry Neurosci 2021; 46:E663-E674. [PMID: 34916236 PMCID: PMC8687622 DOI: 10.1503/jpn.210064] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/23/2021] [Revised: 08/10/2021] [Accepted: 10/10/2021] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Social anxiety disorder is characterized by intense fear and avoidance of social interactions and scrutiny by others. Although alterations in attentional control seem to play a central role in the psychopathology of social anxiety disorder, the neural underpinnings in prefrontal brain regions have not yet been fully clarified. METHODS The present study used functional MRI in participants (age 18-50 yr) with social anxiety disorder (n = 42, 31 female) and without (n = 58, 33 female). It investigated the interrelation of the effects of social anxiety disorder and early-life adversity (a main environmental risk factor of social anxiety disorder) on brain activity during an attentional control task. We applied DNA methylation analysis to determine whether epigenetic modulation in the gene encoding the glucocorticoid receptor, NR3C1, might play a mediating role in this process. RESULTS We identified 2 brain regions in the left and medial prefrontal cortex that exhibited an interaction effect of social anxiety disorder and early-life adversity. In participants with low levels of early-life adversity, neural activity in response to disorder-related stimuli was increased in association with social anxiety disorder. In participants with high levels of early-life adversity, neural activity was increased only in participants without social anxiety disorder. NR3C1 DNA methylation partly mediated the effect of social anxiety disorder on brain activity as a function of early-life adversity. LIMITATIONS The absence of behavioural correlates associated with social anxiety disorder limited functional interpretation of the results. CONCLUSION These findings demonstrate that the neurobiological processes that underlie social anxiety disorder might be fundamentally different depending on experiences of early-life adversity. Long-lasting effects of early-life adversity might be encoded in NR3C1 DNA methylation and entail alterations in social anxiety disorder-related activity patterns in the neural network of attentional control.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ariane Wiegand
- From the Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Tübingen Center for Mental Health, Eberhard Karls University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany (Wiegand, Munk, Drohm, Fallgatter, Nieratschker, Kreifelts); the International Max Planck Research School for Cognitive and Systems Neuroscience, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany (Wiegand); the Department of Biology, Technische Universität Darmstadt, Darmstadt, Germany (Munk); the Department of Medical Genetics, University of British Columbia-BC Children's Hospital Research Institute, Vancouver, BC (MacIsaac, Kobor); and the Werner Reichardt Centre for Integrative Neuroscience, Tübingen, Germany (Nieratschker)
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4
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Plate RC, Zhao S, Katz C, Graber E, Daley G, Corbett N, All K, Neumann CS, Waller R. Are you laughing with me or at me? Psychopathic traits and the ability to distinguish between affiliation and dominance laughter cues. J Pers 2021; 90:631-644. [PMID: 34714936 DOI: 10.1111/jopy.12687] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/24/2021] [Revised: 10/20/2021] [Accepted: 10/26/2021] [Indexed: 12/01/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE Laughter conveys important information that supports social communication and bonding. Research suggests that unique acoustic properties distinguish laughter that promotes affiliation from laughter that conveys dominance, but little is known about potential individual differences in laughter interpretation or contagion based on these specified social functions of laughter. Psychopathy is associated with both affiliative deficits (e.g., lack of empathy and impaired social bonding) and behaviors that assert social dominance (e.g., manipulativeness). Thus, relationships between psychopathic traits and impaired laughter interpretation or contagion could give insight into etiological pathways to psychopathy. METHOD In two studies conducted with four independent samples (total N = 770), participants categorized laughter clips that varied in the degree of affiliation or dominance conveyed. RESULTS Participants overall drew rich and accurate social inferences from dominant and affiliative laughter and modulated their interest in joining in with laughter based on the type and degree of affiliation and dominance conveyed. However, individuals higher in psychopathic traits failed to distinguish between laughter types and did not modulate their level of engagement based on laughter features. CONCLUSIONS The results suggest a potential mechanism that underlies the broader social difficulties associated with psychopathic traits.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rista C Plate
- Department of Psychology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Sylvia Zhao
- Department of Psychology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Chloe Katz
- Department of Psychology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Edie Graber
- Department of Psychology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Grace Daley
- Department of Psychology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Natalie Corbett
- Department of Psychology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Katherine All
- Department of Psychology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Craig S Neumann
- Department of Psychology, University of North Texas, Denton, Texas, USA
| | - Rebecca Waller
- Department of Psychology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
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5
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Bas-Hoogendam JM, van Steenbergen H, Cohen Kadosh K, Westenberg PM, van der Wee NJA. Intrinsic functional connectivity in families genetically enriched for social anxiety disorder - an endophenotype study. EBioMedicine 2021; 69:103445. [PMID: 34161885 PMCID: PMC8237289 DOI: 10.1016/j.ebiom.2021.103445] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/18/2021] [Revised: 05/18/2021] [Accepted: 06/04/2021] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Social anxiety disorder (SAD) is a serious psychiatric condition with a high prevalence, and a typical onset during childhood/adolescence. The condition runs in families, but it is largely unknown which neurobiological characteristics transfer this genetic vulnerability ('endophenotypes'). Using data from the Leiden Family Lab study on SAD, including two generations of families genetically enriched for SAD, we investigated whether social anxiety (SA) co-segregated with changes in intrinsic functional connectivity (iFC), and examined heritability. METHODS Functional MRI data were acquired during resting-state in 109 individuals (56 males; mean age: 31·5, range 9·2-61·5 years). FSL's tool MELODIC was used to perform independent component analysis. Six networks of interest (default mode, dorsal attention, executive control, frontoparietal, limbic and salience) were identified at the group-level and used to generate subject-specific spatial maps. Voxel-wise regression models, with SA-level as predictor and voxel-wise iFC as candidate endophenotypes, were performed to investigate the association with SA, within masks of the networks of interest. Subsequently, heritability was estimated. FINDINGS SA co-segregated with iFC within the dorsal attention network (positive association in left middle frontal gyrus and right postcentral gyrus) and frontoparietal network (positive association within left middle temporal gyrus) (cluster-forming-threshold z>2·3, cluster-corrected extent-threshold p<0·05). Furthermore, iFC of multiple voxels within these clusters was at least moderately heritable. INTERPRETATION These findings provide initial evidence for increased iFC as candidate endophenotype of SAD, particularly within networks involved in attention. These changes might underlie attentional biases commonly present in SAD. FUNDING Leiden University Research Profile 'Health, Prevention and the Human Lifecycle'.
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Affiliation(s)
- Janna Marie Bas-Hoogendam
- Institute of Psychology, Leiden University, Wassenaarseweg 52, 2333, AK, Leiden, the Netherlands; Department of Psychiatry, Leiden University Medical Center, Albinusdreef 2, 2333, ZA, Leiden, the Netherlands; Leiden Institute for Brain and Cognition, Leiden, the Netherlands.
| | - Henk van Steenbergen
- Institute of Psychology, Leiden University, Wassenaarseweg 52, 2333, AK, Leiden, the Netherlands; Leiden Institute for Brain and Cognition, Leiden, the Netherlands.
| | | | - P Michiel Westenberg
- Institute of Psychology, Leiden University, Wassenaarseweg 52, 2333, AK, Leiden, the Netherlands; Leiden Institute for Brain and Cognition, Leiden, the Netherlands.
| | - Nic J A van der Wee
- Department of Psychiatry, Leiden University Medical Center, Albinusdreef 2, 2333, ZA, Leiden, the Netherlands; Leiden Institute for Brain and Cognition, Leiden, the Netherlands.
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6
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Martinelli A, Kreifelts B, Wildgruber D, Bernhard A, Ackermann K, Freitag CM, Schwenck C. Aggression differentially modulates neural correlates of social intention attribution to benevolent, tickling and taunting laughter: An fMRI study in children and adolescents. Soc Neurosci 2021; 16:303-316. [PMID: 33759708 DOI: 10.1080/17470919.2021.1908420] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/21/2022]
Abstract
Human laughter is a powerful means of communicating social intention, ranging from welcoming and friendly to hostile and ridiculing. To be communicated accurately, the recipient must correctly identify the laugher's underlying social intention. Regular misattribution of the social intention of others has been associated with maladaptive psychosocial development, in particular with aggressive behavior. We investigated the relationship between self-reported aggressive behavior and the neural correlates of social intention attributions to different audiovisual laughter types in 50 healthy children and adolescents (29 female, 10-18 years, M 15.5, SD 2.2) using functional magnetic resonance imaging. Trial-by-trial associations of neural response and behavioral attributions were distinctly modulated by aggression for benevolent versus taunting and tickling laughter. With increasing aggression, hostile misattributions of benevolent laughter were associated with decreased dorsolateral prefrontal and anterior insular cortex activation. In contrast, hostile attributions of taunting and tickling laughter were associated with increased superior frontal, superior temporal, medial prefrontal, supplementary motor, and anterior and mid-cingulate cortex activation. We argue that aggression may be associated with down-regulated emotional saliency of benevolent laughter, whereas up-regulated neural responses to taunting laughter may underlie a heightened sensitivity to hostility or acceptance of taunting behavior in more aggressive individuals.
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Affiliation(s)
- A Martinelli
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, University Hospital Frankfurt, Goethe University, Frankfurt Am Main, Germany
| | - B Kreifelts
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Hospital Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
| | - D Wildgruber
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Hospital Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
| | - A Bernhard
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, University Hospital Frankfurt, Goethe University, Frankfurt Am Main, Germany
| | - K Ackermann
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, University Hospital Frankfurt, Goethe University, Frankfurt Am Main, Germany
| | - C M Freitag
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, University Hospital Frankfurt, Goethe University, Frankfurt Am Main, Germany
| | - C Schwenck
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, University Hospital Frankfurt, Goethe University, Frankfurt Am Main, Germany.,Department of Special Needs Educational and Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology, University of Giessen, Giessen, Germany
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7
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Kreifelts B, Ethofer T, Wiegand A, Brück C, Wächter S, Erb M, Lotze M, Wildgruber D. The Neural Correlates of Face-Voice-Integration in Social Anxiety Disorder. Front Psychiatry 2020; 11:657. [PMID: 32765311 PMCID: PMC7381153 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyt.2020.00657] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/13/2020] [Accepted: 06/24/2020] [Indexed: 12/04/2022] Open
Abstract
Faces and voices are very important sources of threat in social anxiety disorder (SAD), a common psychiatric disorder where core elements are fears of social exclusion and negative evaluation. Previous research in social anxiety evidenced increased cerebral responses to negative facial or vocal expressions and also generally increased hemodynamic responses to voices and faces. But it is unclear if also the cerebral process of face-voice-integration is altered in SAD. Applying functional magnetic resonance imaging, we investigated the correlates of the audiovisual integration of dynamic faces and voices in SAD as compared to healthy individuals. In the bilateral midsections of the superior temporal sulcus (STS) increased integration effects in SAD were observed driven by greater activation increases during audiovisual stimulation as compared to auditory stimulation. This effect was accompanied by increased functional connectivity with the visual association cortex and a more anterior position of the individual integration maxima along the STS in SAD. These findings demonstrate that the audiovisual integration of facial and vocal cues in SAD is not only systematically altered with regard to intensity and connectivity but also the individual location of the integration areas within the STS. These combined findings offer a novel perspective on the neuronal representation of social signal processing in individuals suffering from SAD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Benjamin Kreifelts
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Thomas Ethofer
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany.,Department for Biomedical Magnetic Resonance, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Ariane Wiegand
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Carolin Brück
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Sarah Wächter
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Michael Erb
- Department for Biomedical Magnetic Resonance, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Martin Lotze
- Functional Imaging Group, Department for Diagnostic Radiology and Neuroradiology, University of Greifswald, Greifswald, Germany
| | - Dirk Wildgruber
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
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Not intended, still embarrassed: Social anxiety is related to increased levels of embarrassment in response to unintentional social norm violations. Eur Psychiatry 2020; 52:15-21. [DOI: 10.1016/j.eurpsy.2018.03.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/28/2017] [Revised: 02/16/2018] [Accepted: 03/07/2018] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
AbstractBackground:Social anxiety disorder (SAD) is associated with altered social norm (SN) processing: SAD-patients rate stories on SN violations as more inappropriate and more embarrassing than healthy participants, with the most prominent effect for stories on unintentional SN violations (i.e. committing a blunder). Until now it’s unknown how levels of social anxiety (SA) are related to ratings of SN violations in the general population, in which SA-symptoms are present at a continuum. More insight in this relationship could improve our understanding of the symptom profile of SAD. Therefore, we investigated the relation between ratings of SN violations and SA-levels in the general population.Methods:Adults and adolescents (n = 87) performed the revised Social Norm Processing Task (SNPT-R) and completed self-report questionnaires on social anxiety. Repeated-measures ANCOVAs were used to investigate the effect of SA on the ratings of inappropriateness and embarrassment.Results:As hypothesized, participants with higher SA-levels rated SN violations as more inappropriate and more embarrassing. Whereas participants with low-to-intermediate SA-levels rated unintentional SN violations as less embarrassing than intentional SN violations, participants with high SA-levels (z-score SA ≥ 1.6) rated unintentional SN violations as equally embarrassing as intentional SN violations.Conclusion:These findings indicate that increased embarrassment for unintentional SN violations is an important characteristic of social anxiety. These high levels of embarrassment are likely related to the debilitating concern of socially-anxious people that their skills and behavior do not meet expectations of others, and to their fear of blundering. This concern might be an important target for future therapeutic interventions.
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Ethofer T, Stegmaier S, Koch K, Reinl M, Kreifelts B, Schwarz L, Erb M, Scheffler K, Wildgruber D. Are you laughing at me? Neural correlates of social intent attribution to auditory and visual laughter. Hum Brain Mapp 2019; 41:353-361. [PMID: 31642167 PMCID: PMC7268062 DOI: 10.1002/hbm.24806] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/30/2019] [Revised: 08/30/2019] [Accepted: 09/15/2019] [Indexed: 01/17/2023] Open
Abstract
Laughter is a multifaceted signal, which can convey social acceptance facilitating social bonding as well as social rejection inflicting social pain. In the current study, we addressed the neural correlates of social intent attribution to auditory or visual laughter within an fMRI study to identify brain areas showing linear increases of activation with social intent ratings. Negative social intent attributions were associated with activation increases within the medial prefrontal cortex/anterior cingulate cortex (mPFC/ACC). Interestingly, negative social intent attributions of auditory laughter were represented more rostral than visual laughter within this area. Our findings corroborate the role of the mPFC/ACC as key node for processing “social pain” with distinct modality‐specific subregions. Other brain areas that showed an increase of activation included bilateral inferior frontal gyrus and right superior/middle temporal gyrus (STG/MTG) for visually presented laughter and bilateral STG for auditory presented laughter with no overlap across modalities. Similarly, positive social intent attributions were linked to hemodynamic responses within the right inferior parietal lobe and right middle frontal gyrus, but there was no overlap of activity for visual and auditory laughter. Our findings demonstrate that social intent attribution to auditory and visual laughter is located in neighboring, but spatially distinct neural structures.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thomas Ethofer
- Department of General Psychiatry, University of Tuebingen, Tuebingen, Germany.,Department of Biomedical Resonance, University of Tuebingen, Tuebingen, Germany
| | - Sophia Stegmaier
- Department of General Psychiatry, University of Tuebingen, Tuebingen, Germany
| | - Katharina Koch
- Department of General Psychiatry, University of Tuebingen, Tuebingen, Germany
| | - Maren Reinl
- Department of General Psychiatry, University of Tuebingen, Tuebingen, Germany
| | - Benjamin Kreifelts
- Department of General Psychiatry, University of Tuebingen, Tuebingen, Germany
| | - Lena Schwarz
- Department of General Psychiatry, University of Tuebingen, Tuebingen, Germany
| | - Michael Erb
- Department of Biomedical Resonance, University of Tuebingen, Tuebingen, Germany
| | - Klaus Scheffler
- Department of Biomedical Resonance, University of Tuebingen, Tuebingen, Germany.,Max-Planck-Institute for Biological Cybernetics, University of Tuebingen, Tuebingen, Germany
| | - Dirk Wildgruber
- Department of General Psychiatry, University of Tuebingen, Tuebingen, Germany
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10
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Tuned to voices and faces: Cerebral responses linked to social anxiety. Neuroimage 2019; 197:450-456. [PMID: 31075391 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2019.05.018] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/25/2019] [Revised: 04/23/2019] [Accepted: 05/06/2019] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Voices and faces are the most common sources of threat in social anxiety (SA) where the fear of negative evaluation and social exclusion is the central element. SA itself is spectrally distributed among the general population and its clinical manifestation, termed social anxiety disorder, is one of the most common anxiety disorders. While heightened cerebral responses to angry or contemptuous facial or vocal expressions are well documented, it remains unclear if the brain of socially anxious individuals is generally more sensitive to voices and faces. Using functional magnetic resonance imaging, we investigated how SA affects the cerebral processing of voices and faces as compared to various other stimulus types in a study population with greatly varying SA (N = 50, 26 female). While cerebral voice-sensitivity correlated positively with SA in the left temporal voice area (TVA) and the left amygdala, an association of face-sensitivity and SA was observed in the right fusiform face area (FFA) and the face processing area of the right posterior superior temporal sulcus (pSTSFA). These results demonstrate that the increase of cerebral responses associated with social anxiety is not limited to facial or vocal expressions of social threat but that the respective sensory and emotion processing structures are also generally tuned to voices and faces.
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11
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Cerebral resting state markers of biased perception in social anxiety. Brain Struct Funct 2018; 224:759-777. [PMID: 30506458 DOI: 10.1007/s00429-018-1803-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/18/2018] [Accepted: 11/24/2018] [Indexed: 01/29/2023]
Abstract
Social anxiety (SA) comprises a multitude of persistent fears around the central element of dreaded negative evaluation and exclusion. This very common anxiety is spectrally distributed among the general population and associated with social perception biases deemed causal in its maintenance. Here, we investigated cerebral resting state markers linking SA and biased social perception. To this end, resting state functional connectivity (RSFC) was assessed as the neurobiological marker in a study population with greatly varying SA using fMRI in the first step of the experiment. One month later the impact of unattended laughter-exemplifying social threat-on a face rating task was evaluated as a measure of biased social perception. Applying a dimensional approach, SA-related cognitive biases tied to the valence, dominance and arousal of the threat signal and their underlying RSFC patterns among central nodes of the cerebral emotion, voice and face processing networks were identified. In particular, the connectivity patterns between the amygdalae and the right temporal voice area met all criteria for a cerebral mediation of the association between SA and the laughter valence-related interpretation bias. Thus, beyond this identification of non-state-dependent cerebral markers of biased perception in SA, this study highlights both a starting point and targets for future research on the causal relationships between cerebral connectivity patterns, SA and biased perception, potentially via neurofeedback methods.
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12
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Feasibility of NIRS-based neurofeedback training in social anxiety disorder: behavioral and neural correlates. J Neural Transm (Vienna) 2018; 126:1175-1185. [DOI: 10.1007/s00702-018-1954-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/30/2018] [Accepted: 11/04/2018] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
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13
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Martinelli A, Kreifelts B, Wildgruber D, Ackermann K, Bernhard A, Freitag CM, Schwenck C. Aggression modulates neural correlates of hostile intention attribution to laughter in children. Neuroimage 2018; 184:621-631. [PMID: 30266262 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2018.09.066] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/08/2018] [Revised: 09/01/2018] [Accepted: 09/24/2018] [Indexed: 10/28/2022] Open
Abstract
The tendency to interpret nonverbal social signals as hostile in intention is associated with aggressive responding, poor social functioning and mental illness, and can already be observed in childhood. To investigate the neural correlates of such hostile attributions of social intention, we performed a functional magnetic imaging study in 10-18 year old children and adolescents. Fifty healthy participants rated videos of laughter, which they were told to imagine as being directed towards them, as friendly versus hostile in social intention. Hostile intention ratings were associated with neural response in the right temporal voice area (TVA). Moreover, self-reported trait physical aggression modulated this relationship in both the right TVA and bilateral lingual gyrus, with stronger associations between hostile intention ratings and neural activation in children with higher trait physical aggression scores. Functional connectivity results showed decreased connectivity between the right TVA and left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex with increasing trait physical aggression for making hostile social intention attributions. We conclude that children's social intention attributions are more strongly related to activation of early face and voice-processing regions with increasing trait physical aggression.
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Affiliation(s)
- A Martinelli
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Psychosomatics and Psychotherapy, University Hospital Frankfurt, Goethe University, Deutschordenstrasse 50, 60327, Frankfurt am Main, Germany.
| | - B Kreifelts
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University of Tübingen, Calwerstrasse 14, 72076, Tübingen, Germany
| | - D Wildgruber
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University of Tübingen, Calwerstrasse 14, 72076, Tübingen, Germany
| | - K Ackermann
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Psychosomatics and Psychotherapy, University Hospital Frankfurt, Goethe University, Deutschordenstrasse 50, 60327, Frankfurt am Main, Germany
| | - A Bernhard
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Psychosomatics and Psychotherapy, University Hospital Frankfurt, Goethe University, Deutschordenstrasse 50, 60327, Frankfurt am Main, Germany
| | - C M Freitag
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Psychosomatics and Psychotherapy, University Hospital Frankfurt, Goethe University, Deutschordenstrasse 50, 60327, Frankfurt am Main, Germany
| | - C Schwenck
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Psychosomatics and Psychotherapy, University Hospital Frankfurt, Goethe University, Deutschordenstrasse 50, 60327, Frankfurt am Main, Germany; Department of Special Needs Educational and Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology, University of Giessen, Otto-Behaghel-Straße 10C, 35394, Giessen, Germany
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14
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Ehlis AC, Barth B, Hudak J, Storchak H, Weber L, Kimmig ACS, Kreifelts B, Dresler T, Fallgatter AJ. Near-Infrared Spectroscopy as a New Tool for Neurofeedback Training: Applications in Psychiatry and Methodological Considerations. JAPANESE PSYCHOLOGICAL RESEARCH 2018. [DOI: 10.1111/jpr.12225] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/13/2023]
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15
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Oeldorf-Hirsch A, Birnholtz J, Hancock JT. Your post is embarrassing me: Face threats, identity, and the audience on Facebook. COMPUTERS IN HUMAN BEHAVIOR 2017. [DOI: 10.1016/j.chb.2017.03.030] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/20/2022]
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16
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Kreifelts B, Brück C, Ethofer T, Ritter J, Weigel L, Erb M, Wildgruber D. Prefrontal mediation of emotion regulation in social anxiety disorder during laughter perception. Neuropsychologia 2017; 96:175-183. [DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2017.01.016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/21/2015] [Revised: 01/11/2017] [Accepted: 01/13/2017] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
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17
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Pell MD, Rothermich K, Liu P, Paulmann S, Sethi S, Rigoulot S. Preferential decoding of emotion from human non-linguistic vocalizations versus speech prosody. Biol Psychol 2015; 111:14-25. [PMID: 26307467 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsycho.2015.08.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 76] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/17/2015] [Revised: 08/04/2015] [Accepted: 08/19/2015] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
This study used event-related brain potentials (ERPs) to compare the time course of emotion processing from non-linguistic vocalizations versus speech prosody, to test whether vocalizations are treated preferentially by the neurocognitive system. Participants passively listened to vocalizations or pseudo-utterances conveying anger, sadness, or happiness as the EEG was recorded. Simultaneous effects of vocal expression type and emotion were analyzed for three ERP components (N100, P200, late positive component). Emotional vocalizations and speech were differentiated very early (N100) and vocalizations elicited stronger, earlier, and more differentiated P200 responses than speech. At later stages (450-700ms), anger vocalizations evoked a stronger late positivity (LPC) than other vocal expressions, which was similar but delayed for angry speech. Individuals with high trait anxiety exhibited early, heightened sensitivity to vocal emotions (particularly vocalizations). These data provide new neurophysiological evidence that vocalizations, as evolutionarily primitive signals, are accorded precedence over speech-embedded emotions in the human voice.
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Affiliation(s)
- M D Pell
- School of Communication Sciences and Disorders, McGill University, Montreal, Canada; International Laboratory for Brain, Music, and Sound Research, Montreal, Canada.
| | - K Rothermich
- School of Communication Sciences and Disorders, McGill University, Montreal, Canada
| | - P Liu
- School of Communication Sciences and Disorders, McGill University, Montreal, Canada
| | - S Paulmann
- Department of Psychology and Centre for Brain Science, University of Essex, Colchester, United Kingdom
| | - S Sethi
- School of Communication Sciences and Disorders, McGill University, Montreal, Canada
| | - S Rigoulot
- International Laboratory for Brain, Music, and Sound Research, Montreal, Canada
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18
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Wildgruber D, Kreifelts B. Evolutionary perspectives on emotions and their link to intentions, dispositions and behavior: Comment on "The quartet theory of human emotions: An integrative and neurofunctional model" by S. Koelsch et al. Phys Life Rev 2015; 13:89-91. [PMID: 25911257 DOI: 10.1016/j.plrev.2015.04.013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/14/2015] [Accepted: 04/15/2015] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Dirk Wildgruber
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University of Tübingen, Germany.
| | - Benjamin Kreifelts
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University of Tübingen, Germany
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19
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Duval ER, Javanbakht A, Liberzon I. Neural circuits in anxiety and stress disorders: a focused review. Ther Clin Risk Manag 2015; 11:115-26. [PMID: 25670901 PMCID: PMC4315464 DOI: 10.2147/tcrm.s48528] [Citation(s) in RCA: 114] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Anxiety and stress disorders are among the most prevalent neuropsychiatric disorders. In recent years, multiple studies have examined brain regions and networks involved in anxiety symptomatology in an effort to better understand the mechanisms involved and to develop more effective treatments. However, much remains unknown regarding the specific abnormalities and interactions between networks of regions underlying anxiety disorder presentations. We examined recent neuroimaging literature that aims to identify neural mechanisms underlying anxiety, searching for patterns of neural dysfunction that might be specific to different anxiety disorder categories. Across different anxiety and stress disorders, patterns of hyperactivation in emotion-generating regions and hypoactivation in prefrontal/regulatory regions are common in the literature. Interestingly, evidence of differential patterns is also emerging, such that within a spectrum of disorders ranging from more fear-based to more anxiety-based, greater involvement of emotion-generating regions is reported in panic disorder and specific phobia, and greater involvement of prefrontal regions is reported in generalized anxiety disorder and posttraumatic stress disorder. We summarize the pertinent literature and suggest areas for continued investigation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elizabeth R Duval
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Michigan Health System, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
| | - Arash Javanbakht
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Michigan Health System, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
| | - Israel Liberzon
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Michigan Health System, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
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