Anger and Pavlovian Bias: Integrating Laboratory Task Performance and Ecological Momentary Assessment

Joseph Wonderlich

Advisor: Sarah Fischer, PhD, Department of Psychology

Committee Members: James Thompson, Tara Chaplin

Online Location, Online
July 27, 2020, 09:00 AM to 11:00 AM

Abstract:

The majority of human behaviors are thought to be goal-directed, meaning people act in a certain way to achieve a desired outcome. However, many symptoms of psychopathology are associated with impulsive behavioral choices inconsistent with an individual’s goals. Research using laboratory tasks suggests this might be due to Pavlovian Bias, which can work against goal-orientated behavior. However, the extant literature on impulsive, maladaptive behaviors suggests that changes in affect highly impact impulsivity. No research has examined the impact of mood on Pavlovian Bias. Thus, it is unknown whether changes in mood may impact one’s ability to overcome Pavlovian bias. Additionally, given the nature of laboratory tasks, it’s unclear whether these tasks have ecological validity.  Thus, this study’s goal was to examine the impact of increased negative affect on Pavlovian bias and to see if individual differences in Pavlovian bias components might moderate the trajectory of negative affect before and after an impulsive behavior. In Study 1, 30 individuals completed a Pavlovian Bias task, a 4-way orthogonal Go/No-Go task, before and after an anger mood induction. Results from the task revealed that while anger induction did not change one’s overall Pavlovian Bias score, individuals where more likely to make more mistakes in the Go to Avoid (Pavlovian-Incongruent) trials after the mood induction compared to all other trials. In Study 2, the same 30 individuals completed a two-week EMA protocol, in which they responded to prompts assessing affect and impulsive behaviors several times a day. EMA data revealed negative mood significantly increased before and decreased after impulsive behaviors. Additionally, changes in the percent correct of Go to Avoid trials moderated the trajectory of negative affect before and after impulsive behaviors. Specifically, individuals who experienced a greater decrease in their percent correct of Go to Avoid trials required less of an increase in negative affect before engaging in impulsive behavior. Findings from both of these studies suggest that anger induction can impact one’s ability to engage in goal-orientated behaviors that are approach driven conditions. Furthermore, individual differences in task performance after an anger mood induction may impact the daily experience of negative affect and impulsive behaviors.