Matthew Forman, “Investigating the Relationship Between Stress and Anxiety and the Error Related Negativity (ERN) During Cognitive Inhibition”
Mentor: Han Joo Lee, Psychology, Letters & Science (College of)
Poster #32
With a substantial rise in mental health related diagnoses across recent years, it is increasingly important to identify potential neurological biomarkers for these conditions. The Error Related Negativity (ERN) is a well-established EEG marker that is associated with various psychopathologies. The ERN is a negative deflection that typically occurs within 50 milliseconds following an incorrect response during a behavioral task. The specific behavioral task used in this study was a response inhibition task called the modified flanker task. In this task, one of three preparatory cues were presented prior to flashing a flanked target arrow on the screen, and participants had to choose whether the target arrow was pointing up or down regardless of which direction the flanking arrows were pointing. In the present study, 49 participants between the ages of 15 and 25 completed demographic questionnaires and a flanker task while EEG data were acquired. Increased stress and anxiety severity (i.e., DASS-21) were positively correlated with an increased ERN in the midline central brain region (i.e., electrode Cz). This was found on the ERNs of reactive trials of the modified flanker task which means no cue was given prior to the presentation of the stimulus. This suggests that individuals with higher levels of anxiety and stress may over-evaluate mistakes indexed by a greater ERN. These results contribute to our understanding of the neurocognitive underpinnings for anxiety and stress which is critical for improving existing treatments. Future research should continue to explore the neurocognitive profile of anxiety and stress in other domains of inhibition.