Abstract
A group of patients with compulsive hoarding (n=30) was compared to a mixed clinical group (n=30) and a nonclinical community group (n=30) on laboratory tests of information-processing features hypothesized to be central to hoarding (memory, attention, and decision-making). Hoarding patients demonstrated slower and more variable reaction time, increased impulsivity, greater difficulty distinguishing targets and nontargets, and worse spatial attention relative to comparison groups. Multiple regression analyses demonstrated that slower reaction time and increased impulsivity were significantly related to hoarding symptoms over and above the effect of depression, schizotypy, and other obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) symptoms. There were no group differences on a test of emotion-based decision-making. Results are discussed in terms of previous findings and theoretical models of compulsive hoarding.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 1471-1483 |
Number of pages | 13 |
Journal | Behaviour Research and Therapy |
Volume | 45 |
Issue number | 7 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Jul 2007 |
Externally published | Yes |
Keywords
- Attention
- Compulsive hoarding
- Executive functioning
- Obsessive-compulsive disorder
- Saving
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Experimental and Cognitive Psychology
- Clinical Psychology
- Psychiatry and Mental health