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The study aims to explore the relationship between cognitive load and attentional bias in individuals with obsessive-compulsive disorder.

June 28, 2026BMC PsychiatryOpen Access

Attentional bias abnormalities and their association with cognitive load in obsessive-compulsive disorder

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Randomized trial investigates attentional bias influenced by cognitive load in OCD patients, suggesting implications for treatment.

The study aims to explore the relationship between cognitive load and attentional bias in individuals with obsessive-compulsive disorder.
Enrolled 58 OCD patients and 59 healthy controls.
Integrated a visuospatial working memory task with a free-viewing paradigm using eye-tracking.
Employed repeated measures ANOVA and temporal-course analysis to assess attentional bias.
OCD patients showed significant attentional bias towards Contamination pictures, with initial fixation differences (F(1, 115) = 21.792, p < 0.001).
There was a significant group × load interaction effect (F(1.831, 210.57) = 7.614, p = 0.001) indicating varying difficulties in attention disengagement.
Under cognitive load, OCD patients exhibited earlier difficulty in disengaging attention from threats, starting at 635 ms.

Yan et al. (2026) studied this question.

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