Using Virtual Reality to Study Spatial Mapping and Threat Learning

Using spatial mapping processes to learn about threat and safety in an environment is crucial for survival. Research using conditioning paradigms has explored the effects of state (transient arousal) and trait anxiety (anxiety as an aspect of personality) on threat learning and acquisition. However, results are mixed, and little is known regarding why some individuals do not learn to discriminate between threat and safety during contextual conditioning. We used a virtual reality (VR) contextual threat conditioning paradigm to elucidate the effects of state and trait anxiety on contextual threat learning. 70 healthy participants (46 female) navigated and "picked" flowers in a VR environment. Flowers picked in the dangerous zone (half of the environment) were paired with an electric shock (or "bee sting") to the hand; flowers picked in the safe zone were never paired with a shock. Participants also collected and returned neutral objects as a measure of spatial memory. Galvanic skin response (GSR) was measured throughout the task and anxiety was assessed via the State Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI). Participants were categorized as learners if they correctly identified the two zones after the task. Non-learners, compared to learners, performed significantly worse during the spatial memory task and demonstrated significantly higher state anxiety scores and GSR levels throughout the task. Learners showed higher skin conductance response (SCR) in the dangerous zone compared to the safe zone while non-learners showed no SCR differences between zones. These results indicate that state anxiety may impair spatial mapping, disrupting contextual threat learning.