Evidence map›Paper›PMID 38833961›Full record

ArticleJournal of anxiety disorders2024

Anhedonia is associated with overgeneralization of conditioned fear during late adolescence and early adulthood.

Benjamin M Rosenberg, Katherine S Young, Robin Nusslock, Richard E Zinbarg, Michelle G Craske

Abstract read
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in Journal of anxiety disorders, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 5 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
5citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

5 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. The next generation of fear generalization.Trends in cognitive sciences · 2026
    Review
  2. Article
  3. Article
  4. Article
  5. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

5 authors.

Benjamin M RosenbergDepartment of Psychology, University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), Los Angeles, CA, USA. Electronic address: benrosenberg@g.ucla.edu.
Katherine S YoungSocial, Genetic and Developmental Psychiatry Centre, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King's College London, London, UK.
Robin NusslockDepartment of Psychology, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL, USA; Institute for Policy Research, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL, USA.
Richard E ZinbargDepartment of Psychology, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL, USA; The Family Institute at Northwestern University, Evanston, IL, USA.
Michelle G CraskeDepartment of Psychology, University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), Los Angeles, CA, USA; Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), Los Angeles, CA, USA.

Funding

PREVENTION RESEARCH TRAINING:URBAN CHILDREN'S MENT HLTHT32MH015750 · NIMH · UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LOS ANGELES · PI CHRISTINE DUNKEL SCHETTER · 1985 to 2026
$6.2M
Symptom Dimension of Threat- and Reward-Related NeurocircuitryR01MH100117 · NIMH · UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LOS ANGELES · PI BOOKHEIMER, SUSAN Y, CRASKE, MICHELLE G · 2014 to 2018
$3.8M
NIMH NIH HHS R01 MH100117NIMH NIH HHS T32 MH015750
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundPavlovian fear paradigms involve learning to associate cues with threat or safety. Aberrances in Pavlovian fear learning correlate with psychopathology, especially anxiety disorders. This study evaluated symptom dimensions of anxiety and depression in relation to Pavlovian fear acquisition and generalization.

methods256 participants (70.31 % female) completed a Pavlovian fear acquisition and generalization paradigm at ages 18-19 and 21-22 years. Analyses focused on indices of learning (self-reported US expectancy, skin conductance). Multilevel models tested associations with orthogonal symptom dimensions (Anhedonia-Apprehension, Fears, General Distress) at each timepoint.

resultsAll dimensions were associated with weaker acquisition of US expectancies at each timepoint. Fears was associated with overgeneralization only at age 21-22. General Distress was associated with overgeneralization only at age 18-19. Anhedonia-Apprehension was associated with overgeneralization at ages 18-19 and 21-22.

conclusionsAnhedonia-Apprehension disrupts Pavlovian fear acquisition and increases overgeneralization of fear. These effects may emerge during adolescence and remain into young adulthood. General Distress and Fears also contribute to overgeneralization of fear, but these effects may vary as prefrontal mechanisms of fear inhibition continue to develop during late adolescence. Targeting specific symptom dimensions, particularly Anhedonia-Apprehension, may decrease fear generalization and augment interventions built on Pavlovian principles, such as exposure therapy.

Indexed as

AnhedoniaConditioning, ClassicalFearGalvanic Skin ResponseGeneralization, PsychologicalAdolescentAdultAnxietyDepressionFemaleHumansMaleYoung AdultAnxietyDepressionFear generalization

Identifiers

PMID38833961
PMCPMC13682795

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.