Computational modelling of attentional bias towards threat in paediatric anxiety.

ABSTRACT: Computational modelling can be used to precisely characterize the cognitive processes involved in attentional biases towards threat, yet so far has only been applied in the context of adult anxiety. Furthermore, studies investigating attentional biases in childhood anxiety have largely used tasks that conflate automatic and controlled attentional processes. By using a perceptual load paradigm, we separately investigate contributions from automatic and controlled processes to attentional biases towards negative stimuli and their association with paediatric anxiety. We also use computational modelling to investigate these mechanisms in children for the first time. In a sample of 60 children (aged 5-11 years) we used a perceptual load task specifically adapted for children, in order to invest

SUBMITTER: Thompson A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8244064 | biostudies-literature | 2021 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature