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Studies in Cognitive Processing During Worry

Studies in Cognitive Processing During Worry Three experiments were conducted to examine the cognitive processing biases during worry or positive imagery. Participants were classified as worriers or non-worriers on the basis of normative data for the Penn State Worry Questionnaire (PSWQ). Experiment 1 was a directed forgetting task using threat and non-threat words. Experiment 2 was a Stroop task, and Experiment 3 was a dot-probe task, also using threat and non-threat words as targets. Across all three experiments, worriers exhibited lower cognitive bias during positive imagery compared to during worry, whereas non-worriers did not show a difference in memory or response latency for all three experiments. A fourth experiment was conducted to determine whether there was a differential rate of catastrophic thinking or positive imagery in association with worry level. It was found that worriers catastrophized more rapidly when instructed, and more slowly engaged in positive imagery. Collectively, these results suggest that positive imagery reduces cognitive bias among worriers, and additional research is warranted to determine how this may contribute to treatment of worry-based conditions. http://www.deepdyve.com/assets/images/DeepDyve-Logo-lg.png Cognitive Therapy and Research Springer Journals

Studies in Cognitive Processing During Worry

Cognitive Therapy and Research , Volume 29 (3) – Jan 1, 2005

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References (44)

Publisher
Springer Journals
Copyright
Copyright © 2005 by Springer Science + Business Media, Inc.
Subject
Psychology; Clinical Psychology; Cognitive Psychology
ISSN
0147-5916
eISSN
1573-2819
DOI
10.1007/s10608-005-4268-3
Publisher site
See Article on Publisher Site

Abstract

Three experiments were conducted to examine the cognitive processing biases during worry or positive imagery. Participants were classified as worriers or non-worriers on the basis of normative data for the Penn State Worry Questionnaire (PSWQ). Experiment 1 was a directed forgetting task using threat and non-threat words. Experiment 2 was a Stroop task, and Experiment 3 was a dot-probe task, also using threat and non-threat words as targets. Across all three experiments, worriers exhibited lower cognitive bias during positive imagery compared to during worry, whereas non-worriers did not show a difference in memory or response latency for all three experiments. A fourth experiment was conducted to determine whether there was a differential rate of catastrophic thinking or positive imagery in association with worry level. It was found that worriers catastrophized more rapidly when instructed, and more slowly engaged in positive imagery. Collectively, these results suggest that positive imagery reduces cognitive bias among worriers, and additional research is warranted to determine how this may contribute to treatment of worry-based conditions.

Journal

Cognitive Therapy and ResearchSpringer Journals

Published: Jan 1, 2005

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