Uncertainty is associated with increased selective attention and sustained stimulus processing
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Uncertainty about future threat has been found to be associated with an overestimation of threat probability and is hypothesized to elicit additional allocation of attention. We used event-related potentials to examine uncertainty-related dynamics in attentional allocation, exploiting brain potentials' high temporal resolution and sensitivity to attention. Thirty participants performed a picture-viewing task in which cues indicated the subsequent picture valence. A certain-neutral and a certain-aversive cue accurately predicted subsequent picture valence, whereas an uncertain cue did not. Participants overestimated the effective frequency of aversive pictures following the uncertain cue, both during and after the task, signifying expectancy and covariation biases, and they tended to express lower subjective valences for aversive pictures presented after the uncertain cue. Pictures elicited increased P2 and LPP amplitudes when their valence could not be predicted from the cue. For the LPP, this effect was more pronounced in response to neutral pictures. Uncertainty appears to enhance the engagement of early phasic and sustained attention for uncertainly cued targets. Thus, defensive motivation related to uncertainty about future threat elicits specific attentional dynamics implicating prioritization at various processing stages, especially for nonthreatening stimuli that tend to violate expectations.
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Studies have reported increased late positive potential (LPP) amplitude for uncertain aversive cues compared with certain safe cues in threat-of-shock designs.
“studies have reported increased LPP amplitude for uncertain aversive cues compared with certain safe cues in threat-of-shock designs (21, 31)”
From Anticipatory threat responses mediate the relationship between mindfulness and anxiety: A cross-sectional study (2022) · cites this paper as [21]
The early LPP increases in response to cues for threat of shock and during resolution of uncertainty, and decreases to signify uncertainty-related avoidance.
“The early LPP increases in response to cues for threat of shock (Bublatzky, & Schupp, 2012) and during resolution of uncertainty (Dieterich, Endrass, & Kathmann, 2016), and decreases to signify uncertainty-related avoidance (Gole, Schäfer, & Schienle, 2012).”
From Uncertainty increases neural indices of attention in obsessive-compulsive disorder (2017) · cites this paper as Dieterich, Endrass, & Kathmann, 2016
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Uncertainty increases neural indices of attention in obsessive-compulsive disorder
Dieterich, R., Endrass, T., & Kathmann, N. (2017) · Depression and Anxiety · doi:10.1002/da.22655 · Cited by 22 · see citing works
Self-citationXu, Y., Huang, W., Yan, X., Lu, F., & Li, M. (2022) · Frontiers in Public Health · doi:10.3389/fpubh.2022.988577 · Cited by 2 · see citing works
“, paying more early phasic and sustained attention to uncertain target cueing) (21) and avoidance, which aims to decrease uncertainty (22).”
BackgroundResultInfluential
- Authors
- Dieterich, R., Endrass, T., & Kathmann, N.
- Affiliations
- Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin (DE)
- Corresponding author
- Dieterich, Raoul
- Venue
- Cognitive, Affective, & Behavioral Neuroscience
- Published
- 2016-01-25
- Volume
- 16
- Issue
- 3
- Pages
- 447-456
- ISSN
- 1530-7026 (ISSN-L)
- 1531-135X
- OpenAlex
- W2262446438
- Semantic Scholar
- 1849b3ff6f4c9770300d2dd6cdae59bf7a4bf161
- Cited by
- 76
- References
- 71
- Citations by year
- 2026: 5 · 2025: 8 · 2024: 12 · 2023: 3 · 2022: 14 · 2021: 9 · 2020: 8 · 2019: 6 · 2018: 5 · 2017: 5
- FWCI
- 3.40
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- bronze
- doi.org
- Licence
- www.springer.com/tdm (tdm)
- Locations
- Cognitive Affective & Behavioral Neuroscience (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Neural and Behavioral Psychology Studies
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Anxiety, Depression, Psychometrics, Treatment, Cognitive Processes
- Physical Sciences › Computer Science › Computer Vision and Pattern Recognition › Visual Attention and Saliency Detection
- Keywords
- uncertainty, expectancy bias, attention allocation, selective attention, sustained attention, P2 component, late positive potential, defensive motivation, threat prediction, aversive stimuli
- MeSH terms
- Adolescent, Adult, Attention, Brain, Brain Mapping, Electroencephalography, Emotions, Evoked Potentials, Female, Humans, Male, Photic Stimulation, Visual Perception, Uncertainty, Young Adult
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