Response inhibition deficits in obsessive-compulsive disorder.

Full Abstract

Difficulty inhibiting irrelevant information may play a central role in the aetiology of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). The aim of the present study was to determine whether OCD subjects (n=20) exhibit deficits in behavioural and cognitive inhibition compared with a clinical control group diagnosed with panic disorder (n=20). All subjects were administered a Go/Nogo task (a measure of behavioural inhibition) and a Stroop test (a measure of cognitive inhibition). OCD subjects made more commission errors on the Go/Nogo task, and they made more errors and displayed longer reaction times on the interference trial of the Stroop task. Trends towards correlations were observed between OCD severity scores and Stroop reaction time, where the more severe the OCD symptoms the faster was the response. No correlations between clinical symptomatology or subject demographics and the Go/Nogo task were observed. It was demonstrated that OCD subjects exhibit deficits in behavioural and cognitive inhibition, which together may underlie the repetitive symptomatic behaviours of the disorder, such as compulsions and obsessions.

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Author information

Author/s: Bannon, Shelley (S); Gonsalvez, Craig J (CJ); Croft, Rodney J (RJ); Boyce, Philip M (PM);

Affiliation: Department of Psychology, University of Wollongong, Australia. shelley@app-practice.com

Journal and publication information

Publication Type: Journal Article; Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

Journal: Psychiatry research (Psychiatry Res), published in Ireland. (Language: eng)

Reference: 2002-Jun; vol 110 (issue 2) : pp 165-74

Dates: Created 2002/06/11; Completed 2002/08/20; Revised 2008/04/17;

PMID: 12057828, status: MEDLINE (last retrieval date: 11/6/2008)

Sourced from the National Library of Medicine. Abstract text and other information may be subject to copyright.

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MeSH headings (categories)

This article was linked to the MESH Headings shown below.

Inhibition (Psychology)
Male
Middle Aged
Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder - diagnosis
Reaction Time
Severity of Illness Index

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