Abstract
Acne vulgaris is a common inflammatory disease that manifests on the face and affects appearance. In general, facial acne has a wide-ranging negative impact on the psychosocial functioning of acne sufferers and leaves physical and emotional scars. In the present study, we investigated whether patients with acne vulgaris demonstrate enhanced psychological bias when assessing the attractiveness of faces with acne symptoms and whether they devote greater selective attention to acne lesions than to acne-free (control) individuals. Participants viewed images of faces under two different skin (acne vs. acne-free) and emotional facial expression (happy and neutral) conditions. They rated the attractiveness of the faces, and the time spent fixating on the acne lesions was recorded with an eye tracker. We found that the gap in perceived attractiveness between acne and acne-free faces was greater for acne sufferers. Furthermore, patients with acne fixated longer on facial regions exhibiting acne lesions than did control participants irrespective of the facial expression depicted. In summary, patients with acne have a stronger attentional bias for acne lesions and focus more on the skin lesions than do those without acne. Clinicians treating the skin problems of patients with acne should consider these psychological and emotional scars.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 680-686 |
| Number of pages | 7 |
| Journal | Psychology, Health and Medicine |
| Volume | 19 |
| Issue number | 6 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - 2014 Jan 1 |
Fingerprint
Cite this
Psychological distress and attentional bias toward acne lesions in patients with acne. / Lee, In Seon; Lee, Ah Rhem; Lee, Hyejung; Park, Hi Joon; Chung, Sun Yong; Wallraven, Christian; Bülthoff, Isabelle; Chae, Younbyoung.
In: Psychology, Health and Medicine, Vol. 19, No. 6, 01.01.2014, p. 680-686.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article
}
TY - JOUR
T1 - Psychological distress and attentional bias toward acne lesions in patients with acne
AU - Lee, In Seon
AU - Lee, Ah Rhem
AU - Lee, Hyejung
AU - Park, Hi Joon
AU - Chung, Sun Yong
AU - Wallraven, Christian
AU - Bülthoff, Isabelle
AU - Chae, Younbyoung
PY - 2014/1/1
Y1 - 2014/1/1
N2 - Acne vulgaris is a common inflammatory disease that manifests on the face and affects appearance. In general, facial acne has a wide-ranging negative impact on the psychosocial functioning of acne sufferers and leaves physical and emotional scars. In the present study, we investigated whether patients with acne vulgaris demonstrate enhanced psychological bias when assessing the attractiveness of faces with acne symptoms and whether they devote greater selective attention to acne lesions than to acne-free (control) individuals. Participants viewed images of faces under two different skin (acne vs. acne-free) and emotional facial expression (happy and neutral) conditions. They rated the attractiveness of the faces, and the time spent fixating on the acne lesions was recorded with an eye tracker. We found that the gap in perceived attractiveness between acne and acne-free faces was greater for acne sufferers. Furthermore, patients with acne fixated longer on facial regions exhibiting acne lesions than did control participants irrespective of the facial expression depicted. In summary, patients with acne have a stronger attentional bias for acne lesions and focus more on the skin lesions than do those without acne. Clinicians treating the skin problems of patients with acne should consider these psychological and emotional scars.
AB - Acne vulgaris is a common inflammatory disease that manifests on the face and affects appearance. In general, facial acne has a wide-ranging negative impact on the psychosocial functioning of acne sufferers and leaves physical and emotional scars. In the present study, we investigated whether patients with acne vulgaris demonstrate enhanced psychological bias when assessing the attractiveness of faces with acne symptoms and whether they devote greater selective attention to acne lesions than to acne-free (control) individuals. Participants viewed images of faces under two different skin (acne vs. acne-free) and emotional facial expression (happy and neutral) conditions. They rated the attractiveness of the faces, and the time spent fixating on the acne lesions was recorded with an eye tracker. We found that the gap in perceived attractiveness between acne and acne-free faces was greater for acne sufferers. Furthermore, patients with acne fixated longer on facial regions exhibiting acne lesions than did control participants irrespective of the facial expression depicted. In summary, patients with acne have a stronger attentional bias for acne lesions and focus more on the skin lesions than do those without acne. Clinicians treating the skin problems of patients with acne should consider these psychological and emotional scars.
KW - Acne vulgaris
KW - Attractiveness
KW - Eye movement
KW - Selective attention
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84907576845&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=84907576845&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1080/13548506.2014.880493
DO - 10.1080/13548506.2014.880493
M3 - Article
VL - 19
SP - 680
EP - 686
JO - Psychology, Health and Medicine
JF - Psychology, Health and Medicine
SN - 1354-8506
IS - 6
ER -