Experimental fear conditioning and extinction as a model of anxiety disorders: Increasing research efficiency

Abstract

The widely applied fear conditioning and extinction paradigms are important models for understanding anxiety pathogenesis and therapy. However, a common problem involves participants not reaching successful fear or extinction learning leading to subject attrition. Our aim was to develop prediction models for successful fear conditioning and extinction in individual participants. As a result, subject pre-selection would be possible, optimizing research efficiency. We performed a stepwise binary logistic regression analysis on physiological fear response data of 136 subjects and various demographic, behavioral and psychological data. Results indicated being less reward-sensitive and less approach motivated as the most important predictors for fear conditioning, appearing in all fear conditioning prediction models. Additionally, heightened tenacity to attain desired goals was found to predict successful extinction learning. This study explored, for the first time associations between subject characteristics and fear and extinction learning in an attempt to reach research optimization. Moreover, suggestions for future work were provided regarding improvements in the application of the paradigms in order to achieve more suitable translations of these paradigms to anxiety disorders and exposure treatment