Oxazepam and cognitive reappraisal: A randomised experiment

Area of Science:

• Psychopharmacology
• Cognitive Neuroscience
• Emotional Regulation

Background:

• Cognitive reappraisal is a crucial emotional regulation strategy, particularly relevant for anxiety disorders.
• The impact of benzodiazepines, commonly used anxiolytics, on cognitive reappraisal remains largely unexplored.
• Understanding this interaction is vital for managing anxiety and related conditions.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the effect of a 25 mg dose of oxazepam on the cognitive reappraisal process.
• To determine if oxazepam influences the ability to upregulate or downregulate emotional responses using cognitive reappraisal.

Main Methods:

• A randomized, placebo-controlled study involving 33 healthy male volunteers.
• Participants underwent a cognitive reappraisal task involving emotionally valenced images (negative and neutral) under oxazepam or placebo.
• Physiological measures (skin conductance, heart rate, muscle activity) and subjective ratings (unpleasantness) were recorded, alongside psychological questionnaires.

Main Results:

• Emotional upregulation to negative images intensified unpleasantness ratings, corrugator activity, and heart rate compared to downregulation.
• Oxazepam administration led to reduced unpleasantness ratings for negative stimuli but did not modulate the reappraisal task's outcomes.
• Individual differences in empathy and psychopathic traits correlated with emotional response intensity.

Conclusions:

• A 25 mg dose of oxazepam effectively reduced subjective unpleasantness towards negative stimuli.
• However, oxazepam did not demonstrate a significant effect on the cognitive reappraisal strategy itself.
• These findings suggest that while benzodiazepines may alter emotional experience, they do not appear to impair cognitive reappraisal ability.