Fear conditioning and anxiety in humans: How could the cognitive-behavioral systems be affected.

ME PEDREIRA; PICCO SOLEDAD; RODRIGO FERNANDEZ

Congreso; II FALAN CONGRESS; 2016

Soc Arg de Inv en Neurociencias

Background: Classical conditioning is the process by which the representation of two stimulus become associated and then, one of them (CS) is capable of predictingthe occurrence of the other (US).Neurobiological basis of anxiety disorders were studied in laboratory settings using pavlovian fear conditioning (FC). Although, little is known about how the formation of a fear memory affects other cognitive and behavioral systems associated with these type of mental disorders. Anxiety manifest as a persistent and generalized defensive system, activated when predicted aversive events are perceived as a threat and uncertain. Moreover, this response involves a disrupted value calculation (threat overestimation) and attentional hypervigilance for potential threats. Objectives: Here we aim to study how an aversive implicit memory (FC) in humans could affect other cognitive-behavioral systems such as those mentioned. To reach such goal, we will use different anxiety inventories (BAI and STAI) to discard potential symptoms, electrodermal activity (SCR) as our implicit memory measure, an attentional time detection task (dot probe), a semantic fluency task and a probability and cost scale.Results: In Experiment 1 we will use trained and untrained groups with FC followed by the dot probe and the other cognitive tasks in the same day. In Experiment 2, we will use the same design evaluated 24hs later. We expect that the formation of a fear memory will only affects some cognitive and behavioral systems.