Comparison of Four fMRI Paradigms Probing Emotion Processing

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Cognitive Psychology

Background:

• Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) research uses various tasks to study emotion processing.
• Task characteristics significantly influence brain activity, but direct comparisons are limited.

Purpose of the Study:

• To compare four common emotion processing tasks using a standardized analysis pipeline.
• To identify tasks best suited for targeting specific brain regions in emotion research.

Main Methods:

• Compared an emotional n-back task (EMOBACK) with passive viewing tasks of emotional faces (FACES) and scenes (IAPS, OASIS).
• Analyzed brain activation patterns in the amygdala, anterior insula, dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (dlPFC), and pregenual anterior cingulate cortex (pgACC) across three healthy adult samples (N=45).

Main Results:

• EMOBACK task activated right dlPFC and bilateral anterior insula, with pgACC deactivation.
• FACES task recruited bilateral amygdala.
• IAPS and OASIS tasks similarly activated bilateral amygdala and anterior insula.

Conclusions:

• Different fMRI tasks effectively target distinct brain regions involved in emotion processing.
• This comparative data is valuable for planning future research and developing fMRI biomarkers for emotion-related studies.