Cognitive bias in involuntary cognitions toward negative-valenced stimuli in highly anxious/depressive groups

Although they may not necessarily be in line with the goal at hand, some thoughts can\ud occupy the mind completely without one???s intentions. For example, thoughts about what\ud happened during the day may begin to race endlessly when one is trying to fall asleep at\ud night, preventing one from falling asleep. Interestingly, recent research involving the\ud Reflexive Imagery Task (RIT) suggests that although conscious thoughts may appear to\ud be led from one to another and arise under one???s control, some thoughts arise in an\ud unexpected, whimsical way. These involuntary cognitions can become problematic when\ud they are maladaptive, such as in the cases of obsession and rumination. Using the RIT,\ud the current project examined if individuals with elevated anxiety and depression\ud experience more difficulty in thought suppression and exhibit cognitive bias toward\ud negative stimuli when both positive and negative stimuli are presented concurrently. The\ud results of the study did not provide evidence that individuals with elevated anxiety and\ud depression differ from healthy controls in the ability to suppress involuntary cognitions\ud and exhibit a negativity bias. However, all participants exhibited a positivity bias. This\ud study may be informative for future research in cognitive control and psychopathology