The present study examined electrocortical evidence for a negativity bias, focusing on the impact of specific picture content on a range of event-related potentials (ERPs). To this end, ERPs were recorded while 67 participants viewed a variety of pictures from the International Affective Picture System. Examination of broad categories (i.e., pleasant, neutral, unpleasant) found no evidence for a negativity bias in two early components, the N1 and the Early Posterior Negativity (EPN), but revealed that unpleasant images did elicit a larger late positive potential (LPP) than pleasant pictures. However, images of erotica and mutilation elicited comparable LPP responses, as did affiliative and threatening images. Exciting (i.e., sports) images and disgusting images elicited smaller LPPs than other emotional images, similar to neutral images containing people-which were associated with the largest LPPs among neutral pictures. When these three anomalous categories (exciting, disgusting, and scenes with people) were excluded, unpleasant images no longer elicited a larger LPP than pleasant images. Thus, including exciting images in pleasant ERP averages disproportionately reduces the LPP. The present findings are discussed in light of the motivational significance of specific picture subtypes.

Event-related potential studies of reward processing have consistently identified the feedback negativity (FN), an early neural response that differentiates feedback indicating unfavorable versus favorable outcomes. Several important questions remain, however, about the nature of this response. In this study, the FN was recorded in response to monetary gains and losses during a laboratory gambling task, and temporospatial principal components analysis was used to separate the FN from overlapping responses. The FN was identified as a positive deflection at frontocentral recording sites that was enhanced for rewards compared with nonrewards. Furthermore, source localization techniques identified the striatum as a likely neural generator. These data indicate that this apparent FN reflects increased striatal activation in response to favorable outcomes that is reduced or absent for unfavorable outcomes, thereby providing unique information about the timing and nature of basal ganglia activity related to reward processing.

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The construct of emotion dysregulation increasingly has been used to explain diverse psychopathologies across the lifespan. The Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale (DERS; K. L. Gratz & L. Roemer, 2004) represents the most comprehensive measure of the construct to date and exhibits good reliability and validity in adults; however, the measure has yet to be tested in adolescents. The present study examined the psychometric properties of the DERS in a community sample of 428 adolescents (ages 13-17 years). Exploratory factor analysis supported a 6-factor structure consistent with the 6 DERS subscales. Internal consistencies for the subscales were good to excellent (alphas ranged from .76 to .89). In support of the measure's construct validity, the DERS exhibited robust correlations with psychological problems reflecting emotion dysregulation, specifically depression, anxiety, suicidal ideation, eating disorders, alcohol use, and drug use. Intercorrelations among the DERS subscales ranged from negligible to high (range: r = .04 to r = .68), and potential problems with discriminant validity were noted. In general, results support the reliability and validity of the DERS as a measure of emotion dysregulation in adolescents.

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The current study investigated the association between neural engagement with task-irrelevant images and subsequent interference with target processing using the Emotional Interrupt paradigm [Mitchell, D., Richell, R., Leonard, A., & Blair, R. Emotion at the expense of cognition: Psychopathic individuals outperform controls on an operant response task. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 115, 559, 2006]. Consistent with previous studies, PCA-derived factors corresponding to the early posterior negativity, P300, and late positive potential (LPP) were enhanced for emotional (i.e., both unpleasant and pleasant) compared with neutral distracters, and the P300 elicited by targets was smaller following emotional compared with neutral pictures. In addition, RTs were increased to targets that followed emotional pictures. Within-subject analyses demonstrated that slow trials were characterized by a smaller P300 and were preceded by pictures with a larger LPP. Additionally, between-subject analyses indicate that individuals with a larger LPP also demonstrated slower RTs to targets and reduced target-elicited P300s. All results were specific to the LPP and were not observed for either the early posterior negativity or the P300 elicited by task-irrelevant pictures. By relating the LPP to subsequent behavioral and ERP interference in both within- and between-subject analyses, the current study provides direct support for the notion that LPP indexes attentional engagement with visual stimuli that is uniquely associated with subsequent interference in terms of both RT slowing and P300 reduction to targets.

Objective The feedback negativity (FN) is an event-related potential that differentiates unfavorable versus favorable outcomes. Although thought to reflect error-related activity within the anterior cingulate cortex, recent work indicates the FN may also reflect reward-related activity that has been linked to the basal ganglia. To date, it remains unclear how to reconcile these conflicting perspectives. Methods We decomposed the FN by applying time-frequency analysis to isolate activity unique to monetary losses and gains. The FN was recorded from 84 individuals during a laboratory gambling task. Results Two signals contributed to the FN elicited by unpredictable outcomes: theta activity (4-7 Hz) was increased following monetary loss, and delta activity (< 3 Hz) was increased following monetary gain. Predictable outcomes elicited delta but not theta activity. Source analysis revealed distinct generators, with loss-related theta localized to the anterior cingulate cortex and gain-related delta to a possible source in the striatum. Symptoms of depression, anxiety, and stress reactivity were specifically associated with blunted gain-related delta. Conclusions The FN may be a composite of loss- and gain-related neural activity, reflecting distinct facets of reward processing. Significance Gain-related delta activity may provide unique information about reward dysfunction in major depression and other internalizing psychopathology.