Depressive Symptoms in Late Pregnancy Disrupt Attentional Processing of Negative–Positive Emotion

This study investigated biases for negative-positive information in component processes of visual attention (initial shift vs. maintenance of gaze) among women in late pregnancy with or without depressive symptoms. Eye movements were recorded while participants viewed a series of picture pairs depicting negative, positive, and neutral scenes. Initial orienting (latency and percentage of first fixation) and gaze duration were computed. Compared with neutral pictures, the group with major depressive symptoms (MDS) were less able to sense the positive emotion-related pictures and were over-responsive to negative emotion-related pictures. The group with suspicious depressive symptoms (SDS) had an attention bias toward both positive and negative emotion-related pictures. The group with no depressive symptoms (NDS) had an attention bias toward positive emotion-related pictures and had an initial attention avoidance tendency for negative emotion-related pictures. The initial gaze direction bias score for negative emotion-related pictures was positively correlated with the severity of depressive symptoms. Therefore, women with a risk of perinatal depression have a significant bias toward negative stimuli. Hypervigilant emotion processing during pregnancy may increase a woman's susceptibility to depression during late pregnancy. Attention away from negative information or attention toward positive information may provide a way of buffering emotional responses

Attentional bias · Audiology · Cognition · Depression (economics · Depressive symptoms · Developmental psychology · Eye movement · Fixation (population genetics · Gaze · Negative emotion · Population · Psychiatry · Attachment and Relationship Dynamics · Clinical Psychology · Maternal Mental Health During Pregnancy and Postpartum · Medicine · Neuroendocrine regulation and behavior · Neuroscience · Psychology

• Depressive self-focus bias following failure

  Open Access•Jean Monéger, Ghina Harika‐Germaneau et al.•Frontiers in Psychiatry•2024

  Incluir item

• Parental Sensitivity and Responsiveness as Mediators Between Postpartum Mental Health and Bonding in Mothers and Fathers

  Open Access•Sandra Nakić Radoš•Frontiers in Psychiatry•2021

  Incluir item

• Perinatal mental illness

  Open Access•Michael W O’hara, Michael W O'Hara et al.•Best Practice & Research Clinical…•2014

  Incluir item

• Prevalence of paternal depression in pregnancy and the postpartum

  Open Access•Emily E Cameron, Ivan D Sedov et al.•Journal of Affective Disorders•2016

  Incluir item

• Prevalence of Depression During Pregnancy

  Heather A Bennett, Adrienne Einarson et al.•Obstetrics and Gynecology•2004

  Incluir item

• Onset Timing, Thoughts of Self-harm, and Diagnoses in Postpartum Women With Screen-Positive Depression Findings

  Katherine L Wisner, Dorothy K Y Sit et al.•JAMA Psychiatry•2013

  Incluir item

• Eye tracking of attention in the affective disorders

  Open Access•Thomas Armstrong, Bunmi O Olatunji•Clinical Psychology Review•2012

  Incluir item

• Non-psychotic mental disorders in the perinatal period

  Open Access•Louise M Howard, Emma Molyneaux et al.•The Lancet•2014

  Incluir item

• The amygdala

  Open Access•M Davis, Paul J Whalen•Molecular Psychiatry•2001

  Incluir item

• Postpartum depression effects on early interactions, parenting, and safety practices

  Open Access•Tiffany Field•Infant Behavior and Development•2010

  Incluir item

• Emotion

  Joseph E Ledoux•Annual Review of Psychology•1995

  Incluir item

• Attentional Biases for Negative Interpersonal Stimuli in Clinical Depression.

  Ian H Gotlib, Elena N Krasnoperova et al.•Journal of Abnormal Psychology•2004

  Incluir item

• A systematic review of studies validating the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale in antepartum and postpartum women

  Open Access•J Gibson, K McKenzie‐McHarg et al.•Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavica•2009

  Incluir item

• A meta-analysis of the magnitude of biased attention in depression

  Open Access•Andrew Peckham, Andrew D Peckham et al.•Depression and Anxiety•2010

  Incluir item

• Detection of Postnatal Depression

  Open Access•J L Cox, J M Holden et al.•The British Journal of Psychiatry•1987

  Incluir item

• Social Situation of Expectant Mothers and Alexithymia 31 Years Later in Their Offspring

  Matti Joukamaa, Pirkko Kokkonen et al.•Psychosomatic Medicine•2003

  Incluir item

• Malleability of attentional bias for positive emotional information and anxiety vulnerability

  Charles T Taylor, Jessica Bomyea et al.•Emotion•2011

  Incluir item

• Intergenerational Association of Alexithymic Characteristics for College Students and Their Mothers

  Open Access•Isao Fukunishi, Wayne Paris•Psychological Reports•2001

  Incluir item

• Cutting stress off at the pass

  Stéphane Daniel Dandeneau, Mark W Baldwin et al.•Journal of Personality and Social…•2007

  Incluir item