Attentional Bias to Emotional Facial Expressions in Undergraduates With Suicidal Ideation: An ERP Study

Abstract

Individuals who with suicide behaviors pay more attention to negative signals than positive ones. However, it is unclear that whether this bias exists when suicide ideators perceive interpersonal stimuli (such as faces with emotion) and the underlying neural mechanism of the attention process. The present study aimed to examine the attentional bias toward emotional facial expressions by employing event-related potentials in a population with suicide ideation. Twenty-five undergraduates with suicide ideation (SI group) and sixteen undergraduates without suicide ideation (NSI group) participated in a modified dot-probe task. Compared to the NSI group, the SI group exhibited: (1) a longer mean reaction time to fearful faces; (2) a larger N1 component to fearful faces; (3) a larger N1 component to the location of sad faces, as well as to the opposite location of fearful faces and happy faces; and (4) a larger N1 component to the contralateral location of happy faces, whereas the NSI group elicited a larger N1 component to the ipsilateral location of happy faces. These results indicated that the SI group was more sensitive to negative emotions (fearful and sad faces) than positive emotions (happy faces), and the negative interpersonal stimuli in suicide ideators was processed at an early attention stage.

Keywords:

• Attentional bias
• emotional facial expressions
• ERP
• suicidal ideation
• undergraduates

Additional information

Funding

The research was supported by the National Natural Science Found of China (NSFC): 31500895.

Notes on contributors

Lin Lin

Lin Lin, Yu Liu, Juanchan Mo, Key Research Base of Humanities and Social Sciences of the Ministry of Education, Academy of Psychology and Behavior, Tianjin Normal University, Tianjin, China; Center of Cooperative Innovation for Assessment and Promotion of National Mental Health under Ministry of Education, China; Faculty of Psychology, Tianjin Normal University, Tianjin, China. Chenxu Wang, Collaborative Innovation Center of Assessment Toward Basic Education Quality, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China. Ting Liu, School of Vocational and Education, Tianjin University of Technology and Education, Tianjin, China. Zhansheng Xu, Yunpeng Jiang, Xuejun Bai and Xia Wu*, Key Research Base of Humanities and Social Sciences of the Ministry of Education, Academy of Psychology and Behavior, Tianjin Normal University, Tianjin, China; Center of Cooperative Innovation for Assessment and Promotion of National Mental Health under Ministry of Education, China; Faculty of Psychology, Tianjin Normal University, Tianjin, China.

Yu Liu

Lin Lin, Yu Liu, Juanchan Mo, Key Research Base of Humanities and Social Sciences of the Ministry of Education, Academy of Psychology and Behavior, Tianjin Normal University, Tianjin, China; Center of Cooperative Innovation for Assessment and Promotion of National Mental Health under Ministry of Education, China; Faculty of Psychology, Tianjin Normal University, Tianjin, China. Chenxu Wang, Collaborative Innovation Center of Assessment Toward Basic Education Quality, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China. Ting Liu, School of Vocational and Education, Tianjin University of Technology and Education, Tianjin, China. Zhansheng Xu, Yunpeng Jiang, Xuejun Bai and Xia Wu*, Key Research Base of Humanities and Social Sciences of the Ministry of Education, Academy of Psychology and Behavior, Tianjin Normal University, Tianjin, China; Center of Cooperative Innovation for Assessment and Promotion of National Mental Health under Ministry of Education, China; Faculty of Psychology, Tianjin Normal University, Tianjin, China.

Juanchan Mo

Lin Lin, Yu Liu, Juanchan Mo, Key Research Base of Humanities and Social Sciences of the Ministry of Education, Academy of Psychology and Behavior, Tianjin Normal University, Tianjin, China; Center of Cooperative Innovation for Assessment and Promotion of National Mental Health under Ministry of Education, China; Faculty of Psychology, Tianjin Normal University, Tianjin, China. Chenxu Wang, Collaborative Innovation Center of Assessment Toward Basic Education Quality, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China. Ting Liu, School of Vocational and Education, Tianjin University of Technology and Education, Tianjin, China. Zhansheng Xu, Yunpeng Jiang, Xuejun Bai and Xia Wu*, Key Research Base of Humanities and Social Sciences of the Ministry of Education, Academy of Psychology and Behavior, Tianjin Normal University, Tianjin, China; Center of Cooperative Innovation for Assessment and Promotion of National Mental Health under Ministry of Education, China; Faculty of Psychology, Tianjin Normal University, Tianjin, China.

Chenxu Wang

Lin Lin, Yu Liu, Juanchan Mo, Key Research Base of Humanities and Social Sciences of the Ministry of Education, Academy of Psychology and Behavior, Tianjin Normal University, Tianjin, China; Center of Cooperative Innovation for Assessment and Promotion of National Mental Health under Ministry of Education, China; Faculty of Psychology, Tianjin Normal University, Tianjin, China. Chenxu Wang, Collaborative Innovation Center of Assessment Toward Basic Education Quality, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China. Ting Liu, School of Vocational and Education, Tianjin University of Technology and Education, Tianjin, China. Zhansheng Xu, Yunpeng Jiang, Xuejun Bai and Xia Wu*, Key Research Base of Humanities and Social Sciences of the Ministry of Education, Academy of Psychology and Behavior, Tianjin Normal University, Tianjin, China; Center of Cooperative Innovation for Assessment and Promotion of National Mental Health under Ministry of Education, China; Faculty of Psychology, Tianjin Normal University, Tianjin, China.

Ting Liu

Lin Lin, Yu Liu, Juanchan Mo, Key Research Base of Humanities and Social Sciences of the Ministry of Education, Academy of Psychology and Behavior, Tianjin Normal University, Tianjin, China; Center of Cooperative Innovation for Assessment and Promotion of National Mental Health under Ministry of Education, China; Faculty of Psychology, Tianjin Normal University, Tianjin, China. Chenxu Wang, Collaborative Innovation Center of Assessment Toward Basic Education Quality, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China. Ting Liu, School of Vocational and Education, Tianjin University of Technology and Education, Tianjin, China. Zhansheng Xu, Yunpeng Jiang, Xuejun Bai and Xia Wu*, Key Research Base of Humanities and Social Sciences of the Ministry of Education, Academy of Psychology and Behavior, Tianjin Normal University, Tianjin, China; Center of Cooperative Innovation for Assessment and Promotion of National Mental Health under Ministry of Education, China; Faculty of Psychology, Tianjin Normal University, Tianjin, China.

Zhansheng Xu

Lin Lin, Yu Liu, Juanchan Mo, Key Research Base of Humanities and Social Sciences of the Ministry of Education, Academy of Psychology and Behavior, Tianjin Normal University, Tianjin, China; Center of Cooperative Innovation for Assessment and Promotion of National Mental Health under Ministry of Education, China; Faculty of Psychology, Tianjin Normal University, Tianjin, China. Chenxu Wang, Collaborative Innovation Center of Assessment Toward Basic Education Quality, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China. Ting Liu, School of Vocational and Education, Tianjin University of Technology and Education, Tianjin, China. Zhansheng Xu, Yunpeng Jiang, Xuejun Bai and Xia Wu*, Key Research Base of Humanities and Social Sciences of the Ministry of Education, Academy of Psychology and Behavior, Tianjin Normal University, Tianjin, China; Center of Cooperative Innovation for Assessment and Promotion of National Mental Health under Ministry of Education, China; Faculty of Psychology, Tianjin Normal University, Tianjin, China.

Yunpeng Jiang

Lin Lin, Yu Liu, Juanchan Mo, Key Research Base of Humanities and Social Sciences of the Ministry of Education, Academy of Psychology and Behavior, Tianjin Normal University, Tianjin, China; Center of Cooperative Innovation for Assessment and Promotion of National Mental Health under Ministry of Education, China; Faculty of Psychology, Tianjin Normal University, Tianjin, China. Chenxu Wang, Collaborative Innovation Center of Assessment Toward Basic Education Quality, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China. Ting Liu, School of Vocational and Education, Tianjin University of Technology and Education, Tianjin, China. Zhansheng Xu, Yunpeng Jiang, Xuejun Bai and Xia Wu*, Key Research Base of Humanities and Social Sciences of the Ministry of Education, Academy of Psychology and Behavior, Tianjin Normal University, Tianjin, China; Center of Cooperative Innovation for Assessment and Promotion of National Mental Health under Ministry of Education, China; Faculty of Psychology, Tianjin Normal University, Tianjin, China.

Xuejun Bai

Lin Lin, Yu Liu, Juanchan Mo, Key Research Base of Humanities and Social Sciences of the Ministry of Education, Academy of Psychology and Behavior, Tianjin Normal University, Tianjin, China; Center of Cooperative Innovation for Assessment and Promotion of National Mental Health under Ministry of Education, China; Faculty of Psychology, Tianjin Normal University, Tianjin, China. Chenxu Wang, Collaborative Innovation Center of Assessment Toward Basic Education Quality, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China. Ting Liu, School of Vocational and Education, Tianjin University of Technology and Education, Tianjin, China. Zhansheng Xu, Yunpeng Jiang, Xuejun Bai and Xia Wu*, Key Research Base of Humanities and Social Sciences of the Ministry of Education, Academy of Psychology and Behavior, Tianjin Normal University, Tianjin, China; Center of Cooperative Innovation for Assessment and Promotion of National Mental Health under Ministry of Education, China; Faculty of Psychology, Tianjin Normal University, Tianjin, China.

Xia Wu

Lin Lin, Yu Liu, Juanchan Mo, Key Research Base of Humanities and Social Sciences of the Ministry of Education, Academy of Psychology and Behavior, Tianjin Normal University, Tianjin, China; Center of Cooperative Innovation for Assessment and Promotion of National Mental Health under Ministry of Education, China; Faculty of Psychology, Tianjin Normal University, Tianjin, China. Chenxu Wang, Collaborative Innovation Center of Assessment Toward Basic Education Quality, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China. Ting Liu, School of Vocational and Education, Tianjin University of Technology and Education, Tianjin, China. Zhansheng Xu, Yunpeng Jiang, Xuejun Bai and Xia Wu*, Key Research Base of Humanities and Social Sciences of the Ministry of Education, Academy of Psychology and Behavior, Tianjin Normal University, Tianjin, China; Center of Cooperative Innovation for Assessment and Promotion of National Mental Health under Ministry of Education, China; Faculty of Psychology, Tianjin Normal University, Tianjin, China.