Enhanced instructed fear learning in delusion-proneness

Abstract

Psychosis is characterized by distorted perceptions and deficient low-level learning, including reward learning and fear conditioning. This has been interpreted as reflecting imprecise priors in a predictive coding system. However, this idea is not compatible with formation of overly strong beliefs and delusions in psychosis-associated states. A reconciliation of these paradoxical observations is that these individuals actively develop and use higher-order beliefs in order to interpret a chaotic environment. In the present behavioural and fMRI study, we compared delusion-prone individuals (n=20), a trait related to psychotic disorders, with controls (n=23; n=20 in fMRI-part) to study the effect of beliefs on fear learning. We show that instructed fear learning, involving explicit change of beliefs and an associated activation of lateral orbitofrontal cortex, is expressed to a higher degree in delusion-prone subjects. Our results suggest that strong high-level top-down learning co-exists with previously reported weak low-level bottom-up learning in psychosis-associated states.