Latysheva,
Anna (4/10) Worry, maladaptive perfectionism, and attentional bias (Paul
Ramirez, Ph.D.; Howard McGuire, Ph.D.; Gary Kose, Ph.D.)
This study examined the relationship
between worry, maladaptive perfectionism, and attention. It compared worry
intensity and worry content in relation to attentional bias and maladaptive
perfectionism Maladaptive perfectionism was proposed to moderate the
relationship between worry and attention, increasing attentional bias.
Additionally, the study explored the role of concern over one's emotions in the
process of worry. The present study compared worry intensity and worry content
on how they may affect one's ability to attend to visual stimuli. 128 college
students were randomly divided into two groups. One group was instructed to
worry intensely. Another group was asked to worry about specific personally
relevant content. The two groups were then compared on a number of self-report
measures. Both groups completed a computer-generated attention task. The
study's findings indicated that worry intensity and worry content overlapped.
Worry did not significantly impact attentional bias, as was hypothesized.
Moreover, maladaptive perfectionism did not moderate the relationship between
worry and attention. The exploratory analysis suggested that worry content was
associated with positive affect. However, the higher or more intense worry, the
more likely participants were concerned over anxiety and depressed mood.
Additionally, among individuals for whom anxiety was a stable trait, rather
than a transitional state, difficulty with affective control related was
strongly associated with the attentional bias.
