The UTC Graduate School is pleased to announce that Claudia Colpo will present Master's research titled, The Effects of Stressful Life Experiences and Maladaptive Daydreaming on Selective Attention among Young Adults on 06/04/2024 at 03:00 PM in 540 McCallie Ave., Room 357. Everyone is invited to attend. 

Psychology

Chair: Tomorrow Arnold 

Co-Chair: 

Abstract:

Adverse childhood (ACEs) and adult (AAEs) experiences have been connected to negative psychological, physical, and cognitive consequences. Although past studies showed that ACEs lead to impairments in selective attention and the potential use of dissociative coping mechanisms, less is known about how AAEs affect selective attention, and whether a type of dissociative mechanism, maladaptive daydreaming, is present in an adult sample who experienced stressful events. The purpose of this study was to analyze these gaps by conducting moderation and mediation analyses. We assessed ACEs and AAEs in a sample of 177 individuals between the ages of 18 and 30 recruited from the area of Chattanooga, TN. Participants completed questionnaires assessing general well-being, ACEs, AAEs, and maladaptive daydreaming. They then completed an online selective attention task (Emotional Stroop Task) to assess attentional bias towards emotionally charged words. We found that ACEs correlate with AAEs and that both types of adverse experiences predict maladaptive daydreaming. Although individuals with experiences of ACEs and AAEs took a significantly longer time to complete the task (higher total reaction times), the mediation analysis between ACEs, maladaptive daydreaming, and total reaction times was significant only at the indirect effect. The moderation analysis between AAEs, maladaptive daydreaming, and total reaction times was negative (lower reaction times) and significant only in individuals who scored high on the maladaptive daydreaming scale. These results suggest that a more complex mechanism is behind the relationship between life-adverse experiences, maladaptive daydreaming, and selective attention, and future research should focus on gaining a better understating of the underlying cognitive processes (both deficits and enhancements).