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Looking on the bright side and seeing it vividly: interpretation bias and involuntary mental imagery are related to risk for bipolar disorder

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  10 October 2019

Andrew D. Peckham Open the ORCID record for Andrew D. Peckham [Opens in a new window] ,
Kiana Modavi  and
Sheri L. Johnson
Andrew D. Peckham*
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry, McLean Hospital and Harvard Medical School, 115 Mill Street, Mail Stop 113, Belmont, MA 02478, USA
Kiana Modavi
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology, University of California, Berkeley, 2121 Berkeley Way, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
Sheri L. Johnson
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology, University of California, Berkeley, 2121 Berkeley Way, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
*
*Corresponding author. Email: adpeckham@mclean.harvard.edu
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Abstract

Background:

Involuntary mental imagery is elevated among people with bipolar disorder, and has been shown to shape biases in interpretation of ambiguous information. However, it is not clear whether biases in interpretation of ambiguous scenarios can be observed in those at risk for bipolar disorder, or whether involuntary imagery is related to such a bias.

Aims:

In the present study, we extended a prominent model of bipolar cognition to an at-risk sample. We specifically tested whether positive interpretation bias and involuntary mental imagery are linked to a greater risk of bipolar disorder.

Method:

Young adults (N = 169) completed measures of risk for bipolar disorder (the Hypomanic Personality Scale [HPS]), interpretation bias, and involuntary mental imagery.

Results:

Higher scores on the HPS were significantly correlated with more positive interpretations of ambiguous scenarios (β = 0.29, p <. 01) and more frequent involuntary mental imagery (β = 0.22, p < .01). There was no evidence of an interaction between interpretation bias and mental imagery in predicting HPS score, β = .04, p = .62.

Conclusions:

Further research is warranted to determine if intrusive imagery or interpretation bias influence the development of bipolar disorder over time in those at risk.

Keywords

hypomaniainterpretation biasesmental imagerynon-clinical
Type
Main
Information
Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapy , Volume 48 , Issue 2 , March 2020 , pp. 203 - 215
Copyright
© British Association for Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapies 2019 

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