Are failures to suppress obsessive-intrusive thoughts associated with working memory?

Area of Science:

• Cognitive Psychology
• Clinical Psychology
• Neuroscience

Background:

• Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) involves repeated attempts to suppress obsessive-intrusive thoughts (OITs).
• Thought suppression abilities vary significantly among individuals, both with and without OCD.
• Understanding factors influencing suppression is key to understanding OCD mechanisms.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the role of working memory capacity as a potential mechanism explaining variations in thought suppression abilities.
• To examine the relationship between working memory and the ability to suppress OITs in a nonclinical sample.

Main Methods:

• Eighty-three nonclinical participants completed a computerized thought dismissibility task.
• Participants also underwent a computerized working memory assessment.
• Measures of OCD symptoms and negative mood were administered.

Main Results:

• No significant correlations were found between working memory capacity and any of the thought suppression variables (OIT frequency, duration, latency).
• Obsessive-compulsive symptoms were correlated with total OIT duration, but this was not significant after controlling for negative mood.

Conclusions:

• An individual's working memory capacity is not associated with their ability to suppress OITs.
• This finding suggests that impaired working memory does not underlie persistent OITs in individuals with OCD.
• Further research is needed to explore other mechanisms influencing thought suppression in OCD.