Worry and the incubation of intrusive images following stress

Abstract

This study investigated the effects of post-event processing on intrusive images following exposure to stress. It was hypothesized that ruminative activity, especially verbal worry about a stressor leads to an incubation of intrusions. Five groups which differed in the use of post-event processing strategies were used to test for a hypothesized co-joint mechanism underlying the effect. Worrying about a stressor for a period of 4 min after exposure led to significantly more intrusions in the next 3 days than a settle-down control condition. The strategies of imaging about the stressor, distraction, and worrying about usual concerns, produced a significant incremental linear pattern of intrusions across these groups. The pattern of results was as predicted by a co-joint model in which incubation results from 'tagging' of memories and blocked emotional processing. The clinical implications of these findings are briefly discussed.