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Using executive control training to suppress amygdala reactivity to aversive information
N Cohen1, D S Margulies2, S Ashkenazi3
1Department of Psychology, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, 84105 Beer Sheva, Israel.
Neuroimage
|November 2, 2015
Summary
Training executive control (EC) can improve emotion regulation by altering brain connectivity. High-frequency EC task training reduced amygdala reactivity and enhanced amygdala-prefrontal connections, suggesting a novel non-emotional training approach for emotional control.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Cognitive Psychology
- Emotion Regulation
Background:
- Emotion regulation is crucial for adaptive behavior.
- Prefrontal cortex-amygdala connectivity is implicated in emotion regulation.
- The potential for non-emotional training to enhance emotion regulation remains largely unexplored.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate if executive control (EC) training, a non-emotional cognitive procedure, can enhance emotion regulation.
- To examine the effects of high-frequency versus low-frequency EC training on amygdala reactivity and prefrontal connectivity.
Main Methods:
- Participants underwent high-frequency (80% incongruent trials) or low-frequency (20% incongruent trials) EC task training over multiple sessions.
- Amygdala reactivity to aversive stimuli was measured behaviorally and neurally.
- Resting-state functional connectivity between the amygdala and the right inferior frontal gyrus (IFG) was analyzed.
Main Results:
- High-frequency EC training significantly reduced amygdala reactivity and behavioral interference from aversive pictures after multiple sessions.
- Low-frequency EC training did not yield significant changes.
- A significant increase in amygdala-IFG connectivity was observed post-training in the high-frequency EC group.
Conclusions:
- Non-emotional executive control (EC) training can effectively enhance emotion regulation abilities.
- Intensive EC training can modulate amygdala reactivity and strengthen amygdala-prefrontal connectivity.
- These findings offer a novel pathway for improving emotional control through cognitive training.
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