Is distress tolerance an approach behavior? An examination of frontal alpha asymmetry and distress tolerance in adolescents

Frontal EEG asymmetry, relatively greater left-than-right frontal activity (rLFA), has been associated with mood symptoms and approach versus withdrawal behaviors. Distress tolerance (DT), a transdiagnostic behavior, has yet to be examined as an approach behavior using rLFA. Adolescents (N = 20; M age = 14.53, SD = 2.09) completed a frustrating mirror-tracing task which provided an index of DT. Higher resting rLFA was associated with lower DT. The results are the first to identify a relationship between cortical activation and distress tolerance in adolescents. rLFA appears to be a neurophysiological index of behaviors associated with approach motivation and escape from punishment or aversive situations.