Briggs-Gowan Margaret J, Pollak Seth D, Grasso Damión, Voss Joel, Mian Nicholas D, Zobel Elvira, McCarthy Kimberly J, Wakschlag Lauren S, Pine Daniel S
Department of Psychiatry, University of Connecticut School of Medicine, Farmington, CT, USA.
Department of Psychology and Waisman Center, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, USA.
J Child Psychol Psychiatry. 2015 Nov;56(11):1194-1201. doi: 10.1111/jcpp.12397.
Attention bias toward threat is associated with anxiety in older youth and adults and has been linked with violence exposure. Attention bias may moderate the relationship between violence exposure and anxiety in young children. Capitalizing on measurement advances, this study examines these relationships at a younger age than previously possible.
Young children (mean age 4.7, ±0.8) from a cross-sectional sample oversampled for violence exposure (N = 218) completed the dot-probe task to assess their attention biases. Observed fear/anxiety was characterized with a novel observational paradigm, the Anxiety Dimensional Observation Scale. Mother-reported symptoms were assessed with the Preschool Age Psychiatric Assessment and Trauma Symptom Checklist for Young Children. Violence exposure was characterized with dimensional scores reflecting probability of membership in two classes derived via latent class analysis from the Conflict Tactics Scales: Abuse and Harsh Parenting.
Family violence predicted greater child anxiety and trauma symptoms. Attention bias moderated the relationship between violence and anxiety.
Attention bias toward threat may strengthen the effects of family violence on the development of anxiety, with potentially cascading effects across childhood. Such associations maybe most readily detected when using observational measures of childhood anxiety.
对威胁的注意力偏差与青少年及成年人的焦虑有关，且与暴力暴露相关。注意力偏差可能会调节幼儿暴力暴露与焦虑之间的关系。利用测量方法的进步，本研究在比以往更小的年龄阶段考察了这些关系。
从暴力暴露超抽样的横断面样本中选取的幼儿（平均年龄4.7岁，±0.8）（N = 218）完成点探测任务以评估其注意力偏差。通过一种新颖的观察范式——焦虑维度观察量表对观察到的恐惧/焦虑进行表征。母亲报告的症状通过学前儿童精神病学评估和幼儿创伤症状清单进行评估。暴力暴露通过维度得分来表征，该得分反映了通过潜在类别分析从冲突策略量表得出的两类中的归属概率：虐待和严厉养育。
家庭暴力预示着儿童有更高的焦虑和创伤症状。注意力偏差调节了暴力与焦虑之间的关系。
对威胁的注意力偏差可能会增强家庭暴力对焦虑发展的影响，并可能在整个童年期产生连锁反应。当使用儿童焦虑的观察性测量方法时，这种关联可能最容易被发现。
