Work

Neuroimaging studies of pediatric social anxiety: paradigms, pitfalls and a new direction for investigating the neural mechanisms

Year: 2013

Type: article

Abstract: Social Anxiety Disorder (SAD) is a common and debilitating condition that typically manifests in adolescence. Here we describe cognitive factors engaged by brain-imaging tasks, which model the peer-based social interactions that evoke symptoms of SAD. We then present preliminary results from the Virtual School paradigm, a novel peer-based social interaction task. This paradigm is designed to investigate the neural mechanisms mediating individual differences in social response flexibility and in participants' responses to uncertainty in social contexts. We discuss the utility of this new paradigm for research on brain function and developmental psychopathology.

Source: Biology of Mood & Anxiety Disorders

DOI: 10.1186/2045-5380-3-14

Authors: Johanna M Jarcho, Ellen Leibenluft, Olga Lydia Walker, Nathan A Fox, Daniel S Pine, Eric E Nelson

Institutions: National Institutes of Health, National Institute of Mental Health, University of Maryland, College Park

Language: English

Topic: Anxiety, Depression, Psychometrics, Treatment, Cognitive Processes

Subfield: Experimental and Cognitive Psychology

Field: Psychology

Domain: Social Sciences

SDG: Good health and well-being

Open Access status: hybrid

Funder: National Institute of Mental Health