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Uncomfortably numb : new evidence for suppressed emotional reactivity in response to body-threats in those predisposed to sub-clinical dissociative experiences
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Dewe, Hayley, Watson, Derrick G. and Braithwaite, Jason J. (2016) Uncomfortably numb : new evidence for suppressed emotional reactivity in response to body-threats in those predisposed to sub-clinical dissociative experiences. Cognitive Neuropsychiatry, 21 (5). pp. 377-401. doi:10.1080/13546805.2016.1212703 ISSN 1354-6805.
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Official URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/13546805.2016.1212703
Abstract
Introduction: Depersonalization and derealization disorders refer to feelings of detachment and dissociation from one’s ‘self’ or surroundings. A reduced sense of self (or ‘presence’) and emotional ‘numbness’ is thought to be mediated by aberrant emotional processing due to biases in self-referent multi-sensory integration. This emotional ‘numbing’ is often accompanied by suppressed autonomic arousal to emotionally salient stimuli.
Methods: 118 participants completed the Cambridge Depersonalization scale (Sierra & Berrios, 2000) as an index of dissociative anomalous experience. Participants took part in a novel ‘Implied Body-Threat Illusion’ task; a pantomimed injection procedure conducted directly onto their real body (hand). Objective psychophysiological data were recorded via standardised threat-related skin conductance responses and finger temperature measures.
Results: Individuals predisposed to depersonalization / derealization revealed suppressed skin conductance responses towards the pantomimed body-threat. Although the task revealed a reliable reduction in finger temperature as a fear response, this reduction was not reliably associated with measures of dissociative experience.
Conclusions: The present findings significantly extend previous research by revealing emotional suppression via a more direct body-threat task, even for sub-clinical groups. The findings are discussed within probabilistic and predictive-coding frameworks of multisensory integration underlying a coherent sense of self.
Item Type: | Journal Article | ||||||
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Alternative Title: | |||||||
Subjects: | R Medicine > RC Internal medicine > RC0321 Neuroscience. Biological psychiatry. Neuropsychiatry | ||||||
Divisions: | Faculty of Science, Engineering and Medicine > Science > Psychology | ||||||
Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH): | Dissociative disorders., Depression, Mental -- Diagnosis. | ||||||
Journal or Publication Title: | Cognitive Neuropsychiatry | ||||||
Publisher: | Psychology Press | ||||||
ISSN: | 1354-6805 | ||||||
Official Date: | 28 July 2016 | ||||||
Dates: |
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Volume: | 21 | ||||||
Number: | 5 | ||||||
Page Range: | pp. 377-401 | ||||||
DOI: | 10.1080/13546805.2016.1212703 | ||||||
Status: | Peer Reviewed | ||||||
Publication Status: | Published | ||||||
Access rights to Published version: | Restricted or Subscription Access | ||||||
Date of first compliant deposit: | 14 July 2016 | ||||||
Date of first compliant Open Access: | 28 July 2017 | ||||||
Funder: | Bial Foundation | ||||||
Grant number: | #15/14 | ||||||
Related URLs: |
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