Mood in relation to subclinical obsessive-compulsive symptoms

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Psychiatry
• Psychology

Background:

• Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is classified as an anxiety disorder.
• OCD exhibits comorbidity with affective and impulsive-compulsive disorders, including depression and substance use disorders.
• Subclinical OCD symptoms are prevalent in nonclinical populations and share neurobiological underpinnings with clinical OCD.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the relationship between the severity of obsessions and compulsions and emotional states in a nonclinical community sample.
• To explore potential shared neurobiological substrates for emotional and behavioral regulation.

Main Methods:

• Utilized the Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale (Y-BOCS) to measure obsession and compulsion severity.
• Employed the Profile of Mood States (POMS) to assess emotional intensity, including negative (anger, depression, tension, confusion, fatigue) and positive (vigor) emotions.
• Analyzed data from a nonclinical community sample, controlling for demographic factors and psychoactive drug use.

Main Results:

• A significant positive correlation was found between the severity of obsessions and compulsions and the intensity of negative emotions.
• No significant relationship was observed between symptom severity and positive emotional states (vigor).
• These associations remained significant irrespective of demographic variables and the frequency of psychoactive drug use.

Conclusions:

• The findings suggest that common neurobiological substrates, likely within prefrontal-subcortical/limbic circuits, underlie emotional and behavioral regulation.
• Normal variations in these circuits in the general population may contribute to the manifestation of subclinical OCD symptoms and emotional dysregulation.
• This research highlights the continuity between clinical and subclinical OCD and their shared neurobiological basis with emotional processing.