edoc

Vigilance and Avoidance of Threat in the Eye Movements of Children with Separation Anxiety Disorder

In-Albon, Tina and Kossowsky, Joe and Schneider, Silvia. (2010) Vigilance and Avoidance of Threat in the Eye Movements of Children with Separation Anxiety Disorder. Journal of abnormal child psychology, 38 (2). pp. 225-235.

[img]
Preview
PDF - Published Version
236Kb

Official URL: http://edoc.unibas.ch/dok/A5265700

Downloads: Statistics Overview

Abstract

The vigilance-avoidance attention pattern is found in anxious adults, who initially gaze more at threatening pictures than nonanxious adults (vigilance), but subsequently gaze less at them than nonanxious adults (avoidance). The present research, using eye tracking methodology, tested whether anxious children show the same pattern. Children with separation anxiety disorder or no mental disorder viewed pairs of pictures, while the direction of their gaze was tracked. Each picture pair showed one picture of a woman separating from a child, the other picture of a woman reuniting with a child. The results supported the vigilance-avoidance model in children. Although the two groups' gaze direction did not differ during the first second of viewing, anxious children gazed significantly more at separating (threatening) pictures than nonanxious children after a period of 1 s. But after 3 s the pattern reversed: anxious children gazed significantly less at the separating pictures than nonanxious children.
Faculties and Departments:07 Faculty of Psychology > Departement Psychologie > Ehemalige Einheiten Psychologie > Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology (Schneider)
UniBasel Contributors:In-Albon Wampfler, Tina and Kossowsky, Joe and Schneider, Silvia
Item Type:Article, refereed
Article Subtype:Research Article
Publisher:Springer
ISSN:0091-0627
Note:Publication type according to Uni Basel Research Database: Journal article
Language:English
Identification Number:
edoc DOI:
Last Modified:03 Jul 2018 14:55
Deposited On:22 Mar 2012 13:42

Repository Staff Only: item control page