Fearful faces do not lead to faster attentional deployment in individuals with elevated psychopathic traits
Author
Hoppenbrouwers, S. S.
Munneke, J.
Kooiman, K. A.
Little, B.
Neumann, C. S.
Theeuwes, J.
Date
2017Source Title
Journal of Psychopathology and Behavioral Assessment
Print ISSN
0882-2689
Publisher
Springer New York LLC
Volume
39
Issue
4
Pages
596 - 604
Language
English
Type
ArticleItem Usage Stats
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Show full item recordAbstract
In the current study, a gaze-cueing experiment (similar to Dawel et al. 2015) was conducted in which the predictivity of a gaze-cue was manipulated (non-predictive vs highly predictive). This was done to assess the degree to which individuals with elevated psychopathic traits can use contextual information (i.e., the predictivity of the cue). Psychopathic traits were measured with the Self-Report Psychopathy Scale-Short Form (SRP-SF) in a mixed sample (undergraduate students and community members). Results showed no group difference in reaction times between high and non-predictive cueing blocks, suggesting that individuals with elevated psychopathic traits can indeed use contextual information when it is relevant. In addition, we observed that fearful facial expressions did not lead to a change in reaction times in individuals with elevated psychopathic traits, whereas individuals with low psychopathic traits showed speeded responses when confronted with a fearful face, compared to a neutral face. This suggests that fearful faces do not lead to faster attentional deployment in individuals with elevated psychopathic traits. © 2017, The Author(s).
Keywords
AttentionFear
Psychopathy
Response modulation hypothesis
Top-down attention
Association
Clinical assessment
Comparative study
Controlled study
Facial expression
Fear
Female
Gaze
Human
Information processing
Major clinical study
Male
Mental disease assessment
Outcome assessment
Psychopathy
Reaction time
Selective attention
Self report