Neural correlates of emotion reappraisal in individuals with externalizing psychopathology

Abstract

Externalizing psychopathology (EXT) is characterized by regulatory deficits of behavior, cognition, and negative emotion. Previous research on EXT suggests that cognitive and affective dysregulation are highly related, such that strong affective states constrain a reduced-capacity cognitive system. Reappraisal is an effective emotional control strategy involving complex interactions between cognitive and affective brain functions and may therefore offer novel insight into the specific neural mechanisms of affective dysregulation among individuals with EXT. To evaluate these possibilities, we tested individuals with low or high EXT in a reappraisal paradigm. Neuroimaging results indicated that EXT was associated with hypo-activation in the amygdala and superior parietal lobule during both maintenance and reappraisal as well as poor modulation of the lateral occipital cortex during negative emotion reappraisal. These results suggest a general disruption of perceptual-attentional resource allocation such that high EXT individuals are characterized by poor modulation of perceptual-attentional resources during reappraisal. Subsequently, emotion reappraisal may be a useful but not adequate tool to control negative affect in EXT.