Summary
Slow brain potentials, evoked potentials and autonomic responses were investigated in anhedonic subjects and controls. The distribution of physical anhedonia (PA) scores from different samples (students, soldiers, schizophrenics, depressives) is compared. Within a S1–S2 reaction time paradigm, an additional, S2-similar stimulus was introduced during the anticipation interval in 50% of trials (pseudorandom). Subjects had to press the button only to the S2. The additional stimulus (AS) elicits a distinct positive deflection. Anhedonics show larger pre-AS negativity and less reduction in negativity after the S2 (PINV) than controls. The slow wave to S1 as well as the pre-AS negativity vary with the conditional probability of the AS, but to a lesser extent in anhedonics. Anhedonics provide more preparatory negativity prior to and following ambiguous or difficult discrimination tasks, but at the frontal site. Results may suggest impaired contingency evaluation in anhedonic subjects.
Zusammenfassung
Ereigniskorrelierte Potentiale (langsame Potentiale, evozierte Potentiale) und autonome Reaktionen wurden in einem S1–S2-Reaktionszeitparadigma bei Personen erhoben, die auf einer Anhedonieskala hohe oder niedrige (Kontrollgruppe) Werte aufwiesen. Die Verteilung der Anhedoniewerte wurde für verschiedene Gruppen (Studenten, Soldaten, Schizophrene, Depressive) verglichen. Während des sechssekündigen Antizipationsintervalles wurde in 50% der Durchgänge (zufällig) ein dem imperativen Reiz ähnlicher Reiz dargeboten; die Probanden sollten aber nur auf den S2 hin mit Knopfdruck reagieren. Bei Probanden mit hohen Anhedoniewerten zeigt sich gegenüber Kontrollpersonen eine stärkere negative langsame Potentialverschiebung vor dem Zeitpunkt des zusätzlichen Reizes (AS) sowie ein geringerer Rückgang der Negativierung nach dem S2 (PINV). Die Negativierung vor dem AS sowie die ‚'slow wave” auf den S1 variieren mit der bedingten Wahrscheinlichkeit des AS, jedoch weniger deutlich bei Anhedonikern. Der AS selbst löst bei allen Probanden eine positive Verschiebung aus. Die Ergebnisse lassen eine beeinträchtigte Fähigkeit zur Kontingenzermittlung bei Anhedonikern vermuten.
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Research was supported by the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft
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Lutzenberger, W., Birbaumer, N., Rockstroh, B. et al. Evaluation of contingencies and conditional probabilities. Arch Psychiatr Nervenkr 233, 471–488 (1983). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00342787
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00342787