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Ryan Smith
@rssmith.bsky.social

Very excited to congratulate Ning Li and @clairelavalley.bsky.social on their new paper published in Molecular Psychiatry. "Directed exploration is reduced by an aversive interoceptive state induction in healthy individuals but not in those with affective disorders" (nature.com/articles/s41...) 🧵👇

nature.comDirected exploration is reduced by an aversive interoceptive state induction in healthy individuals but not in those with affective disorders - Molecular PsychiatryMolecular Psychiatry - Directed exploration is reduced by an aversive interoceptive state induction in healthy individuals but not in those with affective disorders

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Ryan Smith
@rssmith.bsky.social

We combined the Horizon Task with a somatic (interoceptive) anxiety induction using breathing resistance. Both healthy individuals and those diagnosed with anxious depression participated (N=58 and 61, respectively).

Ryan Smith
@rssmith.bsky.social

Anxiety induction reduced directed (but not random) exploration in healthy individuals, but not in those diagnosed with anxious depression. Directed exploration was also associated with scores on a cognitive reflection test.

Ryan Smith
@rssmith.bsky.social

In general, results suggest state anxiety may interfere with reflection on relative uncertainty and reduce DE in healthy individuals, while consistently elevated anxiety in anxious depression may lead to compensatory strategies that reduce sensitivity to this effect.