Selective attention to threat: A test of two cognitive models of anxiety

Two experiments evaluated differential predictions from two cognitive formu lations of anxiety. According to one view, attentional biases for threat re flect vulnerability to anxiety; and as threat inputs increase, high trait a nxious individuals should become more vigilant, and low trait individuals m ore avoidant, of threat (Williams, Watts, MacLeod, & Mathews, 1988, 1997). However, according to a "cognitive-motivational" view, trait anxiety influe nces the appraisal of stimulus threat value, rather than the direction of a ttentional bias, and both high and low trait anxious individuals should exh ibit greater vigilance for high rather than mild threat stimuli (Mogg & Bra dley, 1998). To test these predictions, two experiments examined the effect of manipulating stimulus threat value on the direction of attentional bias . The stimuli included high threat and mild threat pictorial scenes present ed in a probe detection task. Results from both studies indicated a signifi cant main effect of stimulus threat value on attentional bias, as there was increased vigilance or reduced avoidance of threat, as threat value increa sed. This effect was found even within low trait anxious individuals, consi stent with the "cognitive-motivational" view. Theoretical and clinical impl ications are discussed.