Attentional Bias and Prediction of Attempted Suicide in Clinical and Non-clinical Population

Baghani, Elham; Fata, Ladan; Salehi, Mahdiyeh; Hasani, Fariba

doi:10.32598/jpcp.8.3.724.1

Volume 8, Issue 3 (Summer 2020) PCP 2020, 8(3): 243-256 | Back to browse issues page

‎ 10.32598/jpcp.8.3.724.1

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Baghani E, Fata L, Salehi M, Hasani F. Attentional Bias and Prediction of Attempted Suicide in Clinical and Non-clinical Population. PCP 2020; 8 (3) :243-256
URL: http://jpcp.uswr.ac.ir/article-1-718-en.html

Attentional Bias and Prediction of Attempted Suicide in Clinical and Non-clinical Population

Elham Baghani¹

, Ladan Fata ^*

², Mahdiyeh Salehi¹

, Fariba Hasani¹

1- Department of General Psychology, Central Tehran Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran.
2- Department of General Psychology, Central Tehran Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran. , lfata@yahoo.com

Abstract: (2818 Views)

Objective: the aim of the present research was to analyze the predictability of suicide attempts, based on attentional bias in a clinical and non-clinical population.
Methods: 120 participants (77 females and 43 males) were intentionally selected in three diagnostic groups: clinical suicides, clinical non-suicides, and non-clinical ones (40 individuals in each group). They participated in the Suicide Stroop Task as well as the Beck Scale of Suicide Ideation (BSS). The attentional bias parameters, including reaction time and interference time, were computed and the data were analyzed using Multivariate Analysis of Variance and Discriminant Analysis.
Results: the results obtained from the multivariate analysis revealed that the variables of interference time did not have a significant indication for the three groups of individuals in suicide stroop (P<0.568; F=0.569), positive stroop (P<0.201; F=1.626), and negative stroop (P<0.863; F=0.147). However, in the case of reaction time, there was a significant difference in the values obtained for all the three groups in terms of suicide stroop (P<0.000; F=12.759), positive stroop (P<0.000; F=18.520), negative stroop (P<0.000; F=10.995), and neutral stroop (P<0.000; F=8.288). In addition, the results obtained from the discriminant analysis show that the variables of suicide ideation (0.822), reaction time in positive stroop (0.571), suicide stroop (0.470), negative stroop (0.438), and neutral stroop (0.376) were correspondingly crucial in predicting the behavior of the clinical suicide attempt, clinical non-suicide attempt, and non-clinical groups.
Conclusion: We found that for suicide stroop, the clinical and non-clinical cases did not show a significant difference in terms of the interference effect; however, they differed in terms of reaction time. Therefore, it seems that using emotional stroop, attentional bias towards suicide-related topics is not dependent on the clinical situations, and other parameters, such as scoring methods should be considered. However, there is still a need to conduct more extensive studies.

Keywords: Stroop test, Attentional bias, Attempted suicide

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● Attentional bias, which includes selective allocation of attention resources to some specific aspects of the stimulus, is a cognitive process that helps more to explain and predict suicidal behaviors. Suicide Stroop Test is a modified version of the emotional Stroop test that measures the degree of the interference created by strict processing to support pioneer responses to a stimulus with a given emotion (Cisler, Bacon, & Williams, 2009).
● According to the results obtained from the analyses, the interactive effect of the group, and the Stroop type on the attentional bias is not significant based on none of the scoring methods for the two categories. However, based on the reaction time scoring method, the group’s effect is substantial on attentional bias in both dual and triple categories.
● The results indicated that attentional bias analysis, based on the interference effect, does not provide a significant difference between the three groups. Thus it cannot play any significant role in predicting the groups. However, when reaction time is used as the criterion, all three groups of emotional words (suicide, positive and negative) produce a significant difference between the groups.
● It seems that the assessment of attentional bias, using emotional Stroop with respect to suicide-related topics, is not a function of the clinical situation, and other factors, such as the scoring method, are involved. So further extensive investigations should be conducted in this area.
Plain Language Summary
The present research, as the first study in Iran, uses suicide Stroop to predict suicidal behaviors. It aims to analyze the predictability of suicide attempts based on attentional bias in a clinical population (suicidal and non-suicidal) and nonclinical one. The main objective of the present research was to assess and compare the predictive role of attentional bias in suicidal clinical, suicidal non-clinical, and non-clinical patients. Attentional bias, which includes selective allocation of attention resources to some specific aspects of the stimulus, is a cognitive process that helps more to explain and predict suicidal behaviors. In a suicidal person, a semi-conscious and semi-attention bias used to record such stimuli according to the schemas’ content might make the stimuli conquer the person’s attention. Thus, the information related to the stimuli might be processed and selectively encoded in the memory, and this is when the reliable data will be ignored. The results indicated that attentional bias analysis, based on the interference effect, does not provide a significant difference between the three groups. Thus it cannot play any significant role in predicting the groups. However, when reaction time is used as the criterion, all three groups of emotional words (suicide, positive and negative) produce a significant difference between the groups. In the present research, clinical and non-clinical populations studied in suicide Stroop with respect to interference did have a considerable difference. However, they were different in terms of reaction time. Hence, it seems that the assessment of attentional bias, using emotional Stroop with respect to suicide-related topics, is not a function of the clinical situation, and other factors, such as the scoring method, are involved. So, further extensive investigations should be conducted in this area.

Type of Study: Applicable | Subject: Psychometric
Received: 2019/09/16 | Accepted: 2020/06/24 | Published: 2020/07/1

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