Targeting Biased Emotional Attention to Threat as a Dynamic Process in Time: Attention Feedback Awareness and Control Training (A-FACT)
Abstract
Recent findings suggest biases of emotional attention (BEA) may be expressed dynamically, fluctuating from moment to moment between overengagement and avoidance of emotional stimuli. We attempted to modify these temporal dynamics of BEA to threat among trait-anxious adults ( N = 61) using Attention Feedback Awareness and Control Training (A-FACT). A-FACT is a novel intervention methodology that delivers real-time feedback to a person concurrent with her/his dynamic BEA expression. We found that relative to a placebo control condition, A-FACT led to significantly reduced BEA dynamics toward and away from threat, temporal variability in BEA, and emotional reactivity to an anxiogenic stressor. Findings illustrate that BEA may be optimally conceptualized and quantified as a dynamic process in time and that intervention methods sensitive to and capable of targeting BEA process dynamics in real time—as in A-FACT—represent a promising new direction for cognitive bias modification research.
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Empirical research indicates several manifestations of anxiety-related ABs, which are commonly uncorrelated.
“Empirical research indicates several manifestations of anxiety-related ABs, which are commonly uncorrelated [6,18,25,53].”
From Anxiety and Threat-Related Attention: Cognitive-Motivational Framework and Treatment (2018) · cites this paper as [18]
Poor outcomes of conventional ABM may be explained if AB in orienting towards threat does not play a strong causal role in anxiety.
“Another explanation for poor outcomes concerns the target process: if AB in orienting towards threat does not play a strong causal role in anxiety, this may explain the inconsistent effects of ABM threat-avoidance training [6,11,12,18].”
From Anxiety and Threat-Related Attention: Cognitive-Motivational Framework and Treatment (2018) · cites this paper as [18]
Lack of consensus about why conventional ABM has inconsistent effects has encouraged development of alternative methods with preliminary efficacy data.
“Lack of consensus regarding why conventional ABM threat-avoidance training has inconsistent effects (discussed earlier) has encouraged the development of various alternative methods which have preliminary data suggesting efficacy”
From Anxiety and Threat-Related Attention: Cognitive-Motivational Framework and Treatment (2018) · cites this paper as [18]
Evidence for therapeutic efficacy of alternative ABM training methods is limited.
“Evidence for the therapeutic efficacy of alternative ABM training methods is limited.”
From Anxiety and Threat-Related Attention: Cognitive-Motivational Framework and Treatment (2018) · cites this paper as [18]
Several ABM training methods explicitly inform participants of training goals, which should facilitate goal-directed cognitive control.
“Several ABM training methods explicitly inform participants of the training goals, and this should also facilitate goal-directed cognitive control (adaptive ABM, A-FACT, enhanced positive search training).”
From Anxiety and Threat-Related Attention: Cognitive-Motivational Framework and Treatment (2018) · cites this paper as [18]
Preliminary nonclinical studies report short-term positive effects with several ABM methods.
“Preliminary nonclinical studies report short-term positive effects (e.g., reduced stress reactivity after singlesession training) with several methods (A-FACT, gamified ABM, person-identity matching, emotional face visual search training) [18,20,68,70].”
From Anxiety and Threat-Related Attention: Cognitive-Motivational Framework and Treatment (2018) · cites this paper as [18]
In most ABM training methods, nonthreat targets are more likely to appear in different locations from threat cues, encouraging attention-orienting away from threat.
“In most ABM training methods, nonthreat targets are more likely to appear in different locations [ 5 0 8 _ T D $ D I F F ] from threat cues, which encourages attention-orienting away from threat.”
From Anxiety and Threat-Related Attention: Cognitive-Motivational Framework and Treatment (2018) · cites this paper as [18]
Promoting awareness and top-down cognitive control of ABs may reduce anxiety.
“and that promoting awareness and top-down cognitive control of ABs may reduce anxiety”
From Anxiety and attention to threat: cognitive mechanisms and treatment with attention bias modification (2016) · cites this paper as Zvielli et al., 2015
Single-session A-FACT reduces ABs (towards and away from threat) in high trait anxious individuals.
“Their preliminary results suggest that single-session A-FACT reduces ABs (towards and away from threat)”
From Anxiety and attention to threat: cognitive mechanisms and treatment with attention bias modification (2016) · cites this paper as Zvielli et al., 2015
Single-session A-FACT reduces stress reactivity in high trait anxious individuals.
“and stress reactivity in high trait anxious individuals”
From Anxiety and attention to threat: cognitive mechanisms and treatment with attention bias modification (2016) · cites this paper as Zvielli et al., 2015
Attentional responses to threat in anxiety may be unstable and rapidly fluctuate between vigilance and avoidance.
“A-FACT is based on proposals that attentional responses to threat in anxiety may be unstable and rapidly fluctuate between vigilance and avoidance”
From Anxiety and attention to threat: cognitive mechanisms and treatment with attention bias modification (2016) · cites this paper as Zvielli et al., 2015
Single-session A-FACT reduces AB variability in high trait anxious individuals.
“AB variability”
From Anxiety and attention to threat: cognitive mechanisms and treatment with attention bias modification (2016) · cites this paper as Zvielli et al., 2015
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- Authors
- Zvielli, A., Amir, I., Goldstein, P., & Bernstein, A.
- Affiliations
- University of Haifa (IL)
- Corresponding author
- Bernstein, Amit
- Venue
- Clinical Psychological Science
- Publisher
- SAGE Publications
- Published
- 2015-06-26
- Volume
- 4
- Issue
- 2
- Pages
- 287-298
- ISSN
- 2167-7026 (ISSN-L)
- 2167-7034
- OpenAlex
- W2201071002
- Cited by
- 35
- References
- 45
- Citations by year
- 2024: 1 · 2023: 3 · 2022: 5 · 2021: 1 · 2020: 4 · 2019: 3 · 2018: 6 · 2017: 4 · 2016: 7 · 2015: 1
- FWCI
- 9.05
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Clinical Psychological Science (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Anxiety, Depression, Psychometrics, Treatment, Cognitive Processes
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Neural and Behavioral Psychology Studies
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Psychological Treatments and Assessments
- Keywords
- threats, trait anxiety, cognitive bias modification, temporal dynamics, real-time feedback, emotional reactivity
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