Psychology
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Item Examining Associations between Neural Sensitivity to Social Feedback with Trait and State Loneliness in Adolescents(2024) Alleluia Shenge, Victoire; Redcay, Elizabeth; Psychology; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)Loneliness can be defined as the negative emotional response to an experience of discrepancy between the desired and actual quality or quantity of one’s relationships. Loneliness is associated with many negative outcomes, including depression and self-harm. This phenomenon tends to increase in adolescence and adolescents with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) are at even greater risk for developing loneliness during this time than their neurotypical peers. The present study examined how neural sensitivity to both positive and negative feedback from peers is related to loneliness and social experiences among adolescents with and without autism. In a sample of 94 adolescents (22 autistic and 72 non-autistic) ages 11-14, we used an innovative ecologically valid paradigm for fMRI task along with real-world experience sampling to assess self-reported interaction quality and state loneliness, as well as surveys to examine reports of “trait” (or stable levels of) loneliness.The results indicated group differences in both state and trait loneliness, with the autistic group showing high levels of loneliness. In addition, the autistic group had lower interaction quality compared to their non-autistic peers. However, we did not find support for associations between neural sensitivity to feedback and interaction quality or loneliness across our full group. This work provides an important first step in understanding the relation between loneliness, neural sensitivity to social feedback and social experiences and can further inform intervention for adolescents at risk for negative mental health outcomes depending on which mechanism shows an association effect on social experiences and lonelinessItem SELF-PROTECTIVE EPISODIC SIMULATIONS MOTIVATE NEGATIVE SOCIAL BEHAVIORS IN LONELY PEOPLE(2024) Davis, Alexander; Lemay, Edward P.; Psychology; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)Loneliness can be an enduring condition, with the stability of loneliness comparable to that of a personality trait. The Evolutionary Theory of Loneliness (ETL) posits that loneliness is a self-perpetuating condition; lonely people prioritize self-protection over connecting with others. To self-protect, lonely people engage in increased hostility and avoidance and decreased prosocial behaviors. Engaging in these behaviors perpetuates their loneliness by eroding their social networks. I hypothesize that self-protective episodic simulations of rejection may be an underlying mechanism that drives negative social behaviors. To assess the effects of episodic simulations on the stability of loneliness, I conducted a longitudinal assessment of participants' unmanipulated episodic simulations of social interactions and ratings of loneliness. Participants were 207 undergraduate students at the University of Maryland who completed up to four sequential weekly assessments. Multilevel modeling was used to assess within subjects change in social behaviors, social perceptions, and episodic simulations. I found evidence to support episodic simulations of rejection predicted next week's prosocial behaviors, social avoidance, and hostility. Prosocial behaviors and hostility, in turn, predicted loneliness. I did not find evidence to support the hypothesis that loneliness predicts the following week's hostility. The results highlight the potential influence episodic simulations of rejection have on social behaviors and loneliness. Contrary to ETL, I did not find any support for the hypothesis that loneliness predicts future hostility.