Human Research & Engineering Directorate, U.S. Army Research Laboratory, Aberdeen, MD, USA; Department of Biobehavioral Health, The Pennsylvania State University, State College, PA, USA.
Human Research & Engineering Directorate, U.S. Army Research Laboratory, Aberdeen, MD, USA.
Int J Psychophysiol. 2021 Jan;159:60-70. doi: 10.1016/j.ijpsycho.2020.08.018. Epub 2020 Oct 16.
The present study employed an ex-Gaussian model of response times (RTs) to elucidate the cognitive processes related to experimentally induced state anxiety (SA) and vagally mediated heart rate variability (vmHRV), an indicator of adaptive responses in both cognitive and affective domains. Participants (n = 110) completed a dual task composed of (i) a flanker attention and (2) working memory load task, while SA was induced by threat of noise. Electrocardiography was measured during the dual task and during four baseline periods in order to calculate vmHRV. RTs on the flanker task were fit to an ex-Gaussian distribution, which estimated three RT parameters: mu (Gaussian mean), sigma (Gaussian SD), and tau (combination of exponential mean and SD). First, findings indicate that threat of noise was associated with reductions in mu and tau, suggesting that SA might improve attention and motor responding. Second, higher resting vmHRV was associated with lower tau (averaged across conditions) and stronger threat-related decreases in tau. Third, intra-individual decreases in vmHRV were accompanied by concomitant decreases in tau. These findings support roles for trait and state vagal control in guiding adaptive anxiety-related (and anxiety-unrelated) attentional responses. Findings are consistent with extant theories that emphasize functional interrelations among emotion, cognition, and vagal function.
本研究采用了一种外伽马模型的反应时间（RTs）来阐明与实验诱导的状态焦虑（SA）和迷走神经介导的心率变异性（vmHRV）相关的认知过程，vmHRV 是认知和情感领域适应性反应的一个指标。参与者（n=110）完成了一个由（i）侧翼注意和（2）工作记忆负荷任务组成的双重任务，而 SA 是通过噪声威胁引起的。在双重任务期间和四个基线期间测量心电图，以计算 vmHRV。侧翼任务的 RT 符合外伽马分布，该分布估计了三个 RT 参数：mu（高斯均值）、sigma（高斯标准差）和 tau（指数均值和标准差的组合）。首先，研究结果表明，噪声威胁与 mu 和 tau 的降低有关，这表明 SA 可能会改善注意力和运动反应。其次，较高的静息 vmHRV 与较低的 tau（在所有条件下平均）和较强的与威胁相关的 tau 降低有关。第三，个体内部 vmHRV 的减少伴随着 tau 的相应减少。这些发现支持了特质和状态迷走神经控制在指导适应性焦虑相关（和非焦虑相关）注意力反应中的作用。这些发现与强调情绪、认知和迷走神经功能之间功能相互关系的现有理论一致。
