Attentional bias in post-traumatic stress symptoms or anxiety

Many studies provided the existence of attentional bias in individuals with post-traumatic stress-symptom (PTSS) or students with anxiety. However, results remain unclear concerning the type of alteration (vigilance or disengagement) and specificity of attentional bias (for negative information or trauma-related information). To address these issues, 131 students completed a visual search task with a lexical decision component and clinical scales (for PTSS and anxiety). Attentional bias (vigilance and disengagement) and word valences (neutral words, negative words and trauma-related words) were controlled. Three groups were distinguished: no symptom, PTSS and anxious groups. No symptom group was characterized by facilitation in the attentional treatment for negative information. PTSS group presented a disengagement bias for negative and trauma-related information. When anxiety symptoms were associated with PTSS, in this group, it led to difficulties in vigilance. The anxious group showed difficulties only for negative words in vigilance. These data suggest that sub-clinical PTSS and anxiety symptoms altered differently information processing. These findings highlight the need for research on trauma populations and anxiety, and to pursue studies on comorbidity in PTSS.