PlumX Metrics
Embed PlumX Metrics

Explicit Facial Emotion Processing in Patients with Dissociative Seizures

Psychosomatic Medicine, ISSN: 1534-7796, Vol: 78, Issue: 7, Page: 874-885
2016
  • 28
    Citations
  • 0
    Usage
  • 73
    Captures
  • 0
    Mentions
  • 0
    Social Media
Metric Options:   Counts1 Year3 Year

Metrics Details

Article Description

Objective There have, as yet, been few experimental studies of explicit facial affect recognition in patients with dissociative seizures (DS). The aim of the study was to examine explicit recognition and physiological responses to facial expressions in this group, relative to healthy controls. Methods Forty patients with DS and 43 controls completed a computerized test of facial affect recognition, including five basic expressions (happiness, anger, disgust, fear, neutral). Recognition accuracy, emotional intensity judgements, and skin conductance levels and responses were dependent measures. Analyses controlled for a range of potentially confounding variables, including anxiety, depression, and medication effects. Results The DS group was less accurate at identifying facial expressions than controls (p =.005, η 2 p = 0.10). No group difference emerged for intensity judgements (p =.72, η 2 p = 0.002). Mean skin conductance levels were higher in the DS group relative to controls (p =.046, η 2 p = 0.053). However, a subgroup of DS patients showed attenuated skin conductance responses to the facial stimuli, compared with controls (p =.015, η 2 p = 0.18). These differences could not be accounted for by possible confounding variables. Recognition accuracy for neutral faces correlated negatively with trauma scores (r = -0.486, p =.002) and abandonment concerns (r = -0.493, p =.002) in the DS group. Conclusions Patients with DS showed reduced recognition accuracy for facial affect, despite accurately perceiving its intensity. Elevated autonomic arousal may characterize patients with DS in general, alongside reduced phasic autonomic responses to facial expressions in some patients with the disorder.

Provide Feedback

Have ideas for a new metric? Would you like to see something else here?Let us know