Electrocortical evidence for vigilance-avoidance in Generalized Anxiety Disorder
Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 6, 2026

Reducing State Anxiety Using Working Memory Maintenance
Published on: July 19, 2017
1Department of Psychology, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, New York, USA.
Abstract:
Both exaggerated and attenuated responses to emotional stimuli have been documented in Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD). Event-related potentials are well-suited for examining the time-course of neural activity during emotional processing; early components (e.g., the P1) appear to index relatively automatic attention to emotional stimuli, whereas later positivities (e.g., the late positive potential or LPP) index dynamic allocation of attention to emotional stimuli. Twenty-one individuals with GAD and 25 healthy controls (HC) passively viewed emotional and neutral images while ERPs were recorded. An enhanced P1 for unpleasant compared to neutral images was larger in GAD. In addition, the increased LPP to unpleasant compared to neutral images was diminished in the GAD group. These data provide evidence for early hypervigilance for emotional stimuli, followed by failure to engage in elaborative processing, in GAD.
Related Concept Videos
Generalized Anxiety Disorder
Anxiety: Overview
Individuals with anxiety often experience a range of physical and emotional symptoms, including sweating, trembling, tachycardia, and disturbances in sleep patterns. These symptoms vary in intensity and frequency but are generally disruptive and distressing.
Social Anxiety Disorder
Panic Disorder
Anxiolytic Drugs: Benzodiazepines and Buspirone
Anxiolytic Drugs: Overview
Primary Types of Anxiolytic Drugs
1. Benzodiazepines:
Benzodiazepines bind to the GABA-A receptor in the brain, enhancing GABA's interaction. This action reduces neurotransmission, effectively blocking anxiety-associated limbic circuitry.

