Year: 2025
Type: article
Study design: Observational Study
Abstract: Background: This study aimed to investigate interpretation bias in breast cancer patients exhibiting post-traumatic stress symptoms (PTSS), which may affect their cognitive and emotional processing of ambiguous stimuli. Understanding this bias could help inform interventions to address cognitive distortions in this population. Methods: A total of 234 breast cancer patients were assessed for PTSS using the Impact of Event Scale (IES). Based on their PTSS status, 40 participants were randomly selected from both PTSS-positive and PTSS-negative groups, resulting in 80 participants. All participants completed an ambiguous facial expression judgment task. Results: The PTSS group showed significantly higher proportions of "sad" judgments and longer reaction times than the non-PTSS group across all levels of facial expression ambiguity, suggesting increased cognitive load when interpreting ambiguous emotional stimuli. Conclusion: Breast cancer patients with PTSS exhibit a marked negative interpretation bias, which may exacerbate cognitive distortions. These findings highlight the importance of addressing interpretation biases in therapeutic interventions for this population.
Source: Frontiers in Psychology
Institutions: Weifang University, Weifang Medical University
Language: English
Topic: Cancer survivorship and care
Subfield: Oncology
Field: Medicine
Domain: Health Sciences
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $3,801
OpenAlex ID: W4411449304