@article{ref1,
title="Processing of task-irrelevant natural scenes in social anxiety",
journal="Acta psychologica",
year="2011",
author="Moriya, Jun and Tanno, Yoshihiko",
volume="138",
number="1",
pages="162-170",
abstract="In this study, by manipulating perceptual load, we investigated whether socially anxious people process task-irrelevant, non-emotional, natural scenes. When attention was directed to letters and perceptual load was low, task-irrelevant natural scenes were processed, as evidenced by repetition priming effects, in both high and low socially anxious people. In the high perceptual load condition, repetition-priming effects decreased in participants with low social anxiety, but not in those with high social anxiety. The results were the same when attention was directed to pictures of animals: even in the high perceptual load condition, high socially anxious participants processed task-irrelevant natural scenes, as evidenced by flanker effects. However, when attention was directed to pictures of people, task-irrelevant natural scenes were not processed by participants in either anxiety group, regardless of perceptual load. These results suggest that high socially anxious individuals could not inhibit task-irrelevant natural scenes under conditions of high perceptual load, except when attention was focused on people.<p /><p>Language: en</p>",
language="en",
issn="0001-6918",
doi="10.1016/j.actpsy.2011.05.019",
url="http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.actpsy.2011.05.019"
}