The Link Between Mental Imagery and the Reduction of Fear in Imaginal Extinction

Imaginal exposure is a widely used psychological treatment technique. Imaginal extinction is an experimental analogue of imaginal exposure, that allows the study of this treatment technique under controlled circumstances (Agren, Björkstrand, & Fredrikson, 2017). During imaginal extinction, experimentally induced fear is diminished through repeated exposure to mental imagery of the feared (conditioned) stimulus. However, it is not known to what extent fear reduction depends on the mental imagery produced during this procedure. A better understanding of the mechanisms driving the effects of imaginal exposure and the factors moderating fear reduction could have significant clinical utility, by suggesting mechanistically informed ways to improve this treatment.

Study Overview

• Status: Completed
• Conditions: Healthy Subjects
• Intervention / Treatment: Behavioral: Fear acquisition; Behavioral: Imaginal extinction; Behavioral: Reinstatement

Detailed Description

The study takes part over three consecutive days, with fear conditioning to visual stimuli on day 1, imaginal extinction on day 2, and a fear reinstatement procedure, again to visual stimuli, on day 3. Skin conductance is used to measure fear responses.

Participants' are randomized to receive conditioning, extinction and reinstatement with either complex or simple stimuli. During imaginal extinction, imagery of each experimental stimulus is prompted through different verbal instructions.

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Actual): 60
• Phase: Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• Sweden
  • Uppsala, Sweden
    • Uppsala University, Departement of Psychology

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: 18 years and older (Adult, Older Adult)
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: Yes
• Genders Eligible for Study: All

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

Age 18 or over

Fluent in Swedish

Willing and able to provide informed consent and complete study procedures

Exclusion Criteria:

Current psychiatric disorder

Use of psychotropic medication within 6 months prior to study start

Receiving psychological treatment within 6 months prior to study start

Current neurological condition

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: Basic Science
• Allocation: Randomized
• Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
• Masking: Single

Number of Arms

2

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Simple stimuli; Two perceptually simple stimuli are used during all experimental phases (geometrical figures).	Behavioral: Fear acquisition; Day 1. Participants are exposed to two different visual stimuli. One of these stimuli is paired with a mild electric shock (i.e. conditioned stimuli).; Behavioral: Imaginal extinction; Day 2 (24 hours after Day 1). Participants are exposed to mental imagery of the stimuli used during fear conditioning. Imagery is prompted through different verbal instructions presented in a pseudo-randomized order. No shocks are delivered. Prior to imaginal extinction, participants receive task specific training.; Behavioral: Reinstatement; Day 3 (48 h after day1). Participants are exposed to the same stimuli used during fear conditioning (day 1) and imaginal extinction (day 2). Two unsignaled shocks are delivered at the beginning of the experiment, prior to the presentation of the first visual stimulus. No further shocks are delivered. This procedure allows the study of long term effects of imaginal extinction.
Experimental: Complex stimuli; Two complex stimuli are used in all experimental phases. Stimuli consist of photographs of real objects of the same size and shape as the simple stimuli, but include perceptually more complex patterns, details and colors.	Behavioral: Fear acquisition; Day 1. Participants are exposed to two different visual stimuli. One of these stimuli is paired with a mild electric shock (i.e. conditioned stimuli).; Behavioral: Imaginal extinction; Day 2 (24 hours after Day 1). Participants are exposed to mental imagery of the stimuli used during fear conditioning. Imagery is prompted through different verbal instructions presented in a pseudo-randomized order. No shocks are delivered. Prior to imaginal extinction, participants receive task specific training.; Behavioral: Reinstatement; Day 3 (48 h after day1). Participants are exposed to the same stimuli used during fear conditioning (day 1) and imaginal extinction (day 2). Two unsignaled shocks are delivered at the beginning of the experiment, prior to the presentation of the first visual stimulus. No further shocks are delivered. This procedure allows the study of long term effects of imaginal extinction.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Skin conductance response (SCR)	SCR is used as a measure of physiological fear responses. Differences in fear responses are used to assess fear learning during fear acquisition and to explore main effects and interactions between fear learning, stimulus complexity and capacity for mental imagery.	Day 1
Skin conductance response (SCR)	SCR is used as a measure of physiological fear responses.Differences in fear responses are used to assess fear reduction during imaginal extinction, and to explore main effects and interactions between fear reduction, stimulus complexity and capacity for mental imagery.	Day 2 (24 h after day1)
Skin conductance response (SCR)	SCR is used as a measure of physiological fear responses.Differences in fear response are used to assess return of fear during reinstatement, and to explore main effects and interactions between return of fear, stimulus complexity and capacity for mental imagery.	Day 3 (48 h after day 1)

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Fear ratings	Ratings of subjective fear during the experimental procedure. Scale: 0 -100 (no fear at all - extreme fear)	Day 1
State-Trait Anxiety Inventory	This is a self-rated questionnaire measuring trait anxiety. Higher scores indicate higher level of trait-anxiety (range 20-80)	Day 1
Difficulties in emotion regulation scale	This is a self-rated questionnaire measuring difficulties in emotion regulation. Higher scores indicate higher level of difficulties in emotion regulation (range 36-180)	Day 1
Fear ratings	Ratings of subjective fear during the experimental procedure. Scale: 0 -100 (no fear at all - extreme fear)	Day 2 (24 h after day 1)
Vividness of mental imagery during imaginal extinction	Scale: 1-5; no image at all - image as clear and vivid as real life	Day 2 (24 h after day 1)
The Plymouth Sensory Imagery Questionnaire	This is a self-rated questionnaire measuring vividness of mental imagery across different sensory modalities. Higher scores indicate higher level of vividness. (range 0-70)	Day 2 (24 h after day 1)
The Vividness of Visual Imagery Questionnaire	This is a self-rated questionnaire measuring vividness of visual mental imagery. Only eyes open section is administered. Higher scores indicate higher level of vividness (range 0-80)	Day 2 (24 h after day 1)
Spontaneous use of imagery scale	This is a self-rated questionnaire measuring spontaneous use of imagery. Higher scores higher levels use of spontaneous use of imagery (range 12- 60)	Day 2 (24 h after day 1)
Expectancy ratings	After the imaginal extinction procedure, participants are asked to rate to what extent they believed that electric shocks would be delivered during the procedure on a scale ranging from 0 - 100 %	Day 2 (24 h after day 1)
Fear ratings	Ratings of subjective fear during the experimental procedure. Scale: 0 -100 (no fear at all - extreme fear)	Day 3 (48 h after day 1)
Expectancy ratings	After the reinstatement procedure, participants are asked to rate to what extent they believed that electric shocks would be delivered during the procedure on a scale ranging from 0 - 100 %	Day 3 (48 h after day 1)

Other Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Task compliance	Questions asking participants to rate to what extent they followed the instructions during the experimental procedure on a scale ranging from 0 - 100 %.	Day 1
Task compliance	Questions asking participants to rate to what extent they followed the instructions during the experimental procedure on a scale ranging from 0 - 100 %.	Day 2 (24 h after day 1)
Task compliance	Questions asking participants to rate to what extent they followed the instructions during the experimental procedure on a scale ranging from 0 - 100 %.	Day 3 (48 h after day 1)

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: Uppsala University

Publications and helpful links

General Publications

• Agren T, Bjorkstrand J, Fredrikson M. Disruption of human fear reconsolidation using imaginal and in vivo extinction. Behav Brain Res. 2017 Feb 15;319:9-15. doi: 10.1016/j.bbr.2016.11.014. Epub 2016 Nov 10.

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): February 25, 2019
• Primary Completion (Actual): October 30, 2019
• Study Completion (Actual): October 30, 2019

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: June 13, 2019
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: June 13, 2019
• First Posted (Actual): June 18, 2019

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): November 4, 2019
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: October 31, 2019
• Last Verified: October 1, 2019

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: Imaginal extinction, imaginal exposure, mental imagery
• Other Study ID Numbers: 2019-00524

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

• Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?: YES
• IPD Sharing Time Frame: Data will be available upon publication.
• IPD Sharing Supporting Information Type: STUDY_PROTOCOL; ICF

Drug and device information, study documents

• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product: No
• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product: No