Cited by 28Anxiety, Depression, Psychometrics, Treatment, Cognitive ProcessesMemory and Neural MechanismsEating Disorders and Behaviors

Heterogeneity in Fear Processing across and within Anxiety, Eating, and Compulsive Disorders

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Fyer, Abby J., Schneier, Franklin R., Simpson, Helen Blair, Choo, Tse Hwei, Tacopina, Stephanie, Kimeldorf, Marcia B., Steinglass, Joanna E., Wall, Melanie +1 more·2020·Journal of Affective Disorders

Abstract

Background To assess within and across diagnosis variability we examined fear processing in healthy controls (HC) and three diagnostic groups that share symptoms of pathological anxiety: obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD); social anxiety disorder (SAD), and anorexia nervosa (AN).Methods Unmedicated adults (N=166) participated in a paradigm assessing associative fear acquisition, extinction, extinction recall, and fear renewal. Data were analyzed from two perspectives: comparison of each disorder to HC and exploratory latent class analysis (LCA) of the combined data.Results The diagnosis-based analyses indicated significantly increased fear renewal in OCD and trends toward decreased extinction recall in OCD and increased renewal in SAD. The LCA indicated four Response Types, none of which were congruent with the diagnostic categories. Most participants had a normative response (50%) or a moderate extinction recall deficit (30%). The two remaining groups (8% each) had more extreme responses: one showed complete failure of extinction recall; the other persistent arousal in expectation of, but prior to, actual conditioning (threat sensitivity).Limitations Due to small sample size (N=20) results for AN are regarded as preliminary.Conclusions Our diagnosis-based findings are consistent with previous data suggesting an association between pathological anxiety and difficulties maintaining fear extinction. The LCA reveal substantial within-diagnosis heterogeneity in fear processing and support inclusion of empirically driven approaches as a complement to standard analyses. This heterogeneity may also have implications for treatment, particularly cognitive behavioral therapy, which relies on strengthening extinction recall and requires patients to tolerate anxious expectation in order to engage with feared situations.

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  1. [9]First MB, Spitzer RL, Gibbon M, Williams J (2002). Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV-TR Axis I Disorders, Research Version, Patient Edition. (SCID-I/P) New York: Biometrics Research, New York State Psychiatric Institute.

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Authors
Fyer, A. J., Schneier, F. R., Simpson, H. B., Choo, T. H., Tacopina, S., Kimeldorf, M. B., Steinglass, J. E., Wall, M., & Walsh, B. T.
Affiliations
  • Columbia University Irving Medical Center (US)
  • New York State Psychiatric Institute (US)
Corresponding author
Fyer, Abby J.
Venue
Journal of Affective Disorders
Publisher
Elsevier BV
Published
2020-10
Volume
275
Pages
329-338
ISSN
0165-0327 (ISSN-L)
OpenAlex
W3044296426
Cited by
28
References
51
Citations by year
2026: 5 · 2025: 4 · 2024: 7 · 2023: 4 · 2022: 3 · 2021: 5
FWCI
2.90
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • Journal of Affective Disorders (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (acceptedVersion)
  • PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
Funders
National Institute of Mental Health
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Anxiety, Depression, Psychometrics, Treatment, Cognitive Processes
  • Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Memory and Neural Mechanisms
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Eating Disorders and Behaviors
Keywords
fear processing, fear extinction, fear renewal, extinction recall, obsessive-compulsive disorder, social anxiety disorder, anorexia nervosa, latent class analysis, threat sensitivity, cognitive behavioral therapy, anxiety disorders
MeSH terms
Adult, Anxiety, Anxiety Disorders, Compulsive Personality Disorder, Extinction, Psychological, Fear, Humans

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