An exploratory study of emotional forecasting and experience disparities in PTSD: insights from a virtual reality paradigm

<b>Background:</b> Emotional disturbances are central to post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and shape how individuals anticipate and experience events. <b>Objective:</b> This study investigates affective forecasting and emotional experience among PTSD patients, trauma-exposed controls (TEC), and healthy controls (HC) using a novel virtual reality paradigm. <b>Method:</b> Eighty-six participants (30 PTSD, 28 TEC, 28 HC) rated their predicted and actual emotional responses (valence and arousal) to unpleasant, neutral, and pleasant virtual scenarios. Physiological measures included heart rate and skin conductance responses (SCR). <b>Results:</b> PTSD participants showed alterations in their affective forecasting and emotional experience, assigning significantly lower valence scores to pleasant and neutral scenarios and exhibiting amplified SCR to emotionally charged stimuli. Their arousal ratings for neutral stimuli were also more elevated compared to HC. In their forecasting, PTSD participants anticipated more positive  – or less negative  – emotions compared to what they experienced next. <b>Conclusions:</b> These findings reveal critical emotional processing differences in PTSD, both during affective forecasting and emotional experience, supporting cognitive models that emphasize biased processing of emotional information in this psychiatric condition. Study used a VR-based paradigm to assess emotional forecasting and experience in PTSD.PTSD participants assigned lower valence to pleasant and neutral scenarios.They also anticipated more positive – or less negative – emotions than experienced.They showed amplified electrodermal responses to emotionally charged stimuli. Study used a VR-based paradigm to assess emotional forecasting and experience in PTSD. PTSD participants assigned lower valence to pleasant and neutral scenarios. They also anticipated more positive – or less negative – emotions than experienced. They showed amplified electrodermal responses to emotionally charged stimuli.

<b>背景：</b>情绪紊乱是创伤后应激障碍（Post-traumatic stress disorder, PTSD）的核心特征，会影响个体对事件的预期与实际体验。<b>目的：</b>本研究采用全新的虚拟现实范式，探究创伤后应激障碍患者、创伤暴露对照组（Trauma-exposed controls, TEC）以及健康对照组（Healthy controls, HC）的情感预测与情绪体验情况。<b>方法：</b>本研究共纳入86名受试者，其中包括30名创伤后应激障碍患者、28名创伤暴露对照组受试者及28名健康对照组受试者；所有受试者需对不愉快、中性及愉快三类虚拟场景的预期情绪反应与实际情绪反应（效价与唤醒度）进行评分。生理测量指标涵盖心率与皮肤电反应（Skin conductance responses, SCR）。<b>结果：</b>创伤后应激障碍患者的情感预测与情绪体验存在异常：他们对愉快与中性场景的效价评分显著低于其他两组，且对情绪唤醒刺激的皮肤电反应增强；与健康对照组相比，该组受试者对中性刺激的唤醒度评分也更高。在情感预测环节，创伤后应激障碍患者预期的情绪较实际体验到的情绪更为积极（或更少消极）。<b>结论：</b>本研究结果揭示了创伤后应激障碍患者在情感预测与情绪体验过程中存在显著的情绪加工差异，为强调该精神疾病存在情绪信息加工偏差的认知模型提供了支持。本研究采用基于虚拟现实的范式评估创伤后应激障碍患者的情感预测与情绪体验：患者对愉快与中性场景的效价评分更低，预期的情绪较实际体验到的情绪更为积极（或更少消极），且对情绪唤醒刺激的皮肤电反应增强。