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Attention Bias and Recognition of Sexual Images in Depression

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  • Ondřej Novák

    (Faculty of Humanities, Charles University, 182 00 Prague, Czech Republic
    Laboratory of Evolutionary Sexology and Psychopathology, National Institute of Mental Health, 250 67 Klecany, Czech Republic)

  • Klára Bártová

    (Faculty of Humanities, Charles University, 182 00 Prague, Czech Republic)

  • Kateřina Klapilová

    (Faculty of Humanities, Charles University, 182 00 Prague, Czech Republic
    Laboratory of Evolutionary Sexology and Psychopathology, National Institute of Mental Health, 250 67 Klecany, Czech Republic)

Abstract

Depression greatly affects sexuality. Theoretical and empirical evidence account for the existence of attention bias to sex-related stimuli. This attention bias might be impaired in depression, resulting in sexual problems. A sample of 13 patients with depression and 13 matched healthy controls were tested using the dot-probe and picture recognition task to measure attention to erotic images. No difference in attention to sex-related stimuli ( ω 2 = 0, p = 0.22) and in memory bias ( ω 2 = 0, p = 0.72) was found between the two groups. Explorative analyses were conducted to identify the sexual content-induced delay effect in the data, assess variability differences, and compare trial-level bias score-based indexes between groups. Across all analyses, there was little evidence for depression affecting sexual-related cognitive processing, and even this might be explained by other means. Our results suggest that restrained attention is probably not the main factor behind sexual problems in depression.

Suggested Citation

  • Ondřej Novák & Klára Bártová & Kateřina Klapilová, 2021. "Attention Bias and Recognition of Sexual Images in Depression," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(16), pages 1-15, August.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:18:y:2021:i:16:p:8880-:d:619960
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