Dickinson College, Carlisle, PA, USA.
University of Pittsburgh, School of Medicine, WPH, 3811 O'Hara St., Pittsburgh, PA, 15213, USA.
Cogn Affect Behav Neurosci. 2023 Dec;23(6):1568-1580. doi: 10.3758/s13415-023-01123-2. Epub 2023 Sep 19.
Repetitive thinking about negative emotions or events is strongly associated with worse mental health, whereas repetitive positive thought is generally believed to be beneficial. This observation is at odds with the idea that all forms of repetitive thinking share underlying neural mechanisms. To resolve this apparent discrepancy, the present study examined relationships between subjective affect and neural mechanisms during periods of sustained processing of positive (savoring) and negative (rumination) emotion. We also examined potential common moderators of savoring and rumination including memory specificity and sleep quality. Results indicated that individuals who experience high positive affect during savoring also are likely to experience more intense negative affect during rumination. fMRI-derived brain activity revealed common mechanisms of rumination and savoring. Memory specificity had common effects on neural correlates of rumination and savoring; sleep quality was not associated with mechanisms of savoring or rumination. These results suggest that repetitive engagement with positive and negative affect is similar both subjectively and mechanistically. Clinical interventions for rumination may benefit from capitalizing on preserved capacity for savoring.
反复思考消极情绪或事件与更差的心理健康密切相关，而反复积极思考通常被认为是有益的。这一观察结果与所有形式的重复思维都具有潜在的神经机制这一观点相矛盾。为了解决这一明显的差异，本研究考察了在持续处理积极（品味）和消极（反刍）情绪期间主观情绪和神经机制之间的关系。我们还研究了品味和反刍的潜在共同调节因素，包括记忆特异性和睡眠质量。结果表明，在品味过程中体验到高正性情绪的个体在反刍过程中也可能经历更强烈的负性情绪。功能磁共振成像（fMRI）衍生的大脑活动揭示了反刍和品味的共同机制。记忆特异性对反刍和品味的神经相关物具有共同影响；睡眠质量与品味或反刍的机制无关。这些结果表明，积极和消极情绪的反复参与在主观上和机制上是相似的。针对反刍的临床干预措施可能受益于利用品味的保留能力。
