Longitudinal examination of behavioral markers of positive valence systems and anhedonia

The National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) has provided a framework for studying psychopathology known as the Research Domain Criteria (RDoC), which conceptualizes depression and other mental disorders on a continuum of levels of analysis, ranging from molecular dysfunction to impairment in cognitive systems indexed by behavioral paradigms. Within the RDoC, these units of analysis and their corresponding normal-to-abnormal functioning can be placed within six domains: (1) negative valence systems; (2) positive valence systems; (3) cognitive systems; (4) social processes; (5) arousal and regulatory systems; and (6) sensorimotor systems. Given the recent emphasis on identifying further mechanisms associated with positive valence systems dysfunction, the present study aimed to assess the relationship between various behavioral paradigms (indexing perception, attention, affective working memory updating, and effort expenditure) and various conceptualizations of anhedonia, a heterogeneous, transdiagnostic symptom implicated as a core component within this domain. Participants (N = 101) with a range of depressive symptoms were recruited for a longitudinal study and completed six weekly in-person sessions, as well as a follow-up session that occurred approximately six weeks after the last session. Findings suggest there were no robust associations between these behavioral paradigms and various self-report measures of anhedonia, contrasting with previous empirical findings. As such, future studies are warranted to continue assessing these possible mechanisms of positive valence systems disturbance