SS62 - Traumatic Exposure and Posttraumatic Stress and Neuroimaging
SCURS Disciplines
Psychology
Document Type
General Poster
Invited Presentation Choice
Not Applicable
Abstract
Traumatic events are highly prevalent in adulthood, prompting research into physiological markers that may predict stress responses following trauma. One promising neural indicator is the error-related negativity (ERN), an event-related potential occurring 50–150 ms after an individual makes an incorrect response during a cognitive task. This study investigates whether different trauma types—specifically interpersonal versus non-interpersonal trauma—are associated with distinct patterns of neural error processing as measured by the ERN. Participants were recruited from the University of South Carolina Upstate student population and fitted with a 64-channel EEG system. They completed a flanker task designed to elicit error responses and measure ERN amplitude across 10 blocks of 30 trials. After task completion, participants completed self-report measures assessing trauma exposure and posttraumatic symptoms. These data will be used to classify participants by trauma type and examine differences in ERN amplitude and behavioral performance. Data from approximately 75% of the expected sample have been collected. Preliminary analyses indicate that the majority of participants experienced at least one potentially traumatic event, and over half of these events were interpersonal in nature. Based on prior findings, it is expected that individuals with a history of interpersonal trauma will show enhanced neural reactivity to errors — specifically, a larger ERN amplitude — compared to both non-interpersonal trauma survivors and non-trauma exposed control participants. These expected patterns suggest that interpersonal trauma may uniquely disrupt conflict monitoring processes and diminish sensitivity to threat signals. It is important to note, however, that the literature shows mixed results. For example, in a recent study (Jones et al., 2023), researchers concluded that individuals with a history of non-interpersonal trauma showed enhanced neural reactivity to errors, thus demonstrating results opposite to hypothesized findings. The current research will contribute to our understanding of how trauma heterogeneity influences neurocognitive functioning and may help clarify why individuals with different trauma histories show distinct patterns of stress-related risk.
Jones, E. E., Kreutzer, K. A., Manzler, C. A., Evans, E. G., & Gorka, S. M. (2023). Type of trauma exposure impacts neural reactivity to errors. Journal of Psychophysiology, 37(3), 168-176.
Keywords
Trauma, Posttraumatic stress, EEG
Start Date
10-4-2026 9:30 AM
Location
University Readiness Center Greatroom
End Date
10-4-2026 11:30 AM
SS62 - Traumatic Exposure and Posttraumatic Stress and Neuroimaging
University Readiness Center Greatroom
Traumatic events are highly prevalent in adulthood, prompting research into physiological markers that may predict stress responses following trauma. One promising neural indicator is the error-related negativity (ERN), an event-related potential occurring 50–150 ms after an individual makes an incorrect response during a cognitive task. This study investigates whether different trauma types—specifically interpersonal versus non-interpersonal trauma—are associated with distinct patterns of neural error processing as measured by the ERN. Participants were recruited from the University of South Carolina Upstate student population and fitted with a 64-channel EEG system. They completed a flanker task designed to elicit error responses and measure ERN amplitude across 10 blocks of 30 trials. After task completion, participants completed self-report measures assessing trauma exposure and posttraumatic symptoms. These data will be used to classify participants by trauma type and examine differences in ERN amplitude and behavioral performance. Data from approximately 75% of the expected sample have been collected. Preliminary analyses indicate that the majority of participants experienced at least one potentially traumatic event, and over half of these events were interpersonal in nature. Based on prior findings, it is expected that individuals with a history of interpersonal trauma will show enhanced neural reactivity to errors — specifically, a larger ERN amplitude — compared to both non-interpersonal trauma survivors and non-trauma exposed control participants. These expected patterns suggest that interpersonal trauma may uniquely disrupt conflict monitoring processes and diminish sensitivity to threat signals. It is important to note, however, that the literature shows mixed results. For example, in a recent study (Jones et al., 2023), researchers concluded that individuals with a history of non-interpersonal trauma showed enhanced neural reactivity to errors, thus demonstrating results opposite to hypothesized findings. The current research will contribute to our understanding of how trauma heterogeneity influences neurocognitive functioning and may help clarify why individuals with different trauma histories show distinct patterns of stress-related risk.
Jones, E. E., Kreutzer, K. A., Manzler, C. A., Evans, E. G., & Gorka, S. M. (2023). Type of trauma exposure impacts neural reactivity to errors. Journal of Psychophysiology, 37(3), 168-176.