Impaired response inhibition to negative emotional stimuli in depressed adolescents with non-suicidal self-injury: a neurophysiological perspective

BackgroundNon-suicidal self-injury (NSSI) is an increasingly recognized clinical and public health issue among adolescents. This behavior exhibits certain addictive characteristics, leading it to be classified as a behavioral addiction. Response inhibition is believed to play a role in the occurrenc...

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Main Authors: Lin Zhao, Su Hong, Xinyu Peng, Xiaoqing He, Jinhui Hu, Lingli Ma, Xinyi Liu, Wanqing Tao, Ran Chen, Zhenghao Jiang, Chenyu Zhang, Jing Liao, Jiaojiao Xiang, Qi Zeng, Linqi Dai, Qi Zhang, Wo Wang, Li Kuang
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Frontiers Media S.A. 2025-04-01
Series:Frontiers in Psychiatry
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Online Access:https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyt.2025.1559068/full
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author Lin Zhao
Su Hong
Xinyu Peng
Xiaoqing He
Jinhui Hu
Lingli Ma
Xinyi Liu
Wanqing Tao
Ran Chen
Zhenghao Jiang
Chenyu Zhang
Jing Liao
Jiaojiao Xiang
Qi Zeng
Linqi Dai
Qi Zhang
Wo Wang
Li Kuang
author_facet Lin Zhao
Su Hong
Xinyu Peng
Xiaoqing He
Jinhui Hu
Lingli Ma
Xinyi Liu
Wanqing Tao
Ran Chen
Zhenghao Jiang
Chenyu Zhang
Jing Liao
Jiaojiao Xiang
Qi Zeng
Linqi Dai
Qi Zhang
Wo Wang
Li Kuang
author_sort Lin Zhao
collection DOAJ
description BackgroundNon-suicidal self-injury (NSSI) is an increasingly recognized clinical and public health issue among adolescents. This behavior exhibits certain addictive characteristics, leading it to be classified as a behavioral addiction. Response inhibition is believed to play a role in the occurrence of addictive behaviors and is often impaired in the context of negative emotional states. In this study, we compared the behavioral performance, ERP time-domain and time-frequency characteristics among depressed adolescents with NSSI, depressed adolescents, and healthy controls when exposed to negative emotional stimuli. The aim was to investigate the impact of negative emotional stimuli on the response inhibition in depressed adolescents with NSSI, clarify the role of response inhibition in NSSI behaviors, and provide neurophysiological evidence for its underlying mechanisms.MethodsSeventy-one depressed adolescents with NSSI (MDD+NSSI group: 12 males, 59 females; mean age: 14.37 years), 55 depressed adolescents (MDD group: 24 males, 31 females; mean age: 15.29 years) and 25 healthy subjects (HC group, 13 males, 12 females, mean age: 15.72 years) were recruited to perform a two-choice oddball task related to negative emotional cues. All participants completed a self-administered questionnaire to gather demographic information. A trained psychiatrist administered the Hamilton Depression Scale (HAMD-17) to assess depression severity and used the Ottawa Self-Injury Inventory (OSI) to assess self-injury. Multichannel EEG was recorded continuously from 64 scalp electrodes using the Curry 8 system. EEG signal preprocessing and analysis was performed offline using the EEGLAB toolbox in MATLAB. The ERP time-domain features related to response inhibition were extracted from the difference waves, converted to the time-frequency features using the short-time Fourier transform (STFT), and the time-frequency values of the region of interest (ROI) were extracted and statistically analyzed.ResultsUnder exposure to negative emotional stimuli, depressed adolescents with NSSI exhibited significantly larger P300 amplitudes compared to both depressed adolescents and healthy controls. Moreover, depressed adolescents with NSSI showed significant event-related synchronization (ERS) in the Delta and Theta bands of FCz electrode from 0 to 0.6 seconds, and event-related desynchronization (ERD) in the Theta and Alpha bands of Pz electrode from 0.2 to 1.2 seconds, collectively reflecting functional processes associated with response inhibition.ConclusionsDepressed adolescents with NSSI showed increased P3d amplitudes, enhanced Delta/Theta ERS, and heightened Theta/Alpha ERD when receiving negative emotional stimuli, suggesting that depressed adolescents with NSSI have impaired response inhibition, which may contribute to the development of NSSI.
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spelling doaj-art-b088197567c34bad84357c3fa0eff58d2025-08-20T02:53:37ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Psychiatry1664-06402025-04-011610.3389/fpsyt.2025.15590681559068Impaired response inhibition to negative emotional stimuli in depressed adolescents with non-suicidal self-injury: a neurophysiological perspectiveLin Zhao0Su Hong1Xinyu Peng2Xiaoqing He3Jinhui Hu4Lingli Ma5Xinyi Liu6Wanqing Tao7Ran Chen8Zhenghao Jiang9Chenyu Zhang10Jing Liao11Jiaojiao Xiang12Qi Zeng13Linqi Dai14Qi Zhang15Wo Wang16Li Kuang17Department of Psychiatry, The First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, ChinaDepartment of Psychiatry, The First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, ChinaDepartment of Psychiatry, The First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, ChinaMental Health Center, University-Town Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, ChinaMental Health Center, University-Town Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, ChinaDepartment of Psychiatry, The First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, ChinaMental Health Center, University-Town Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, ChinaMental Health Center, University-Town Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, ChinaMental Health Center, University-Town Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, ChinaMental Health Center, University-Town Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, ChinaDepartment of Psychiatry, The First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, ChinaMental Health Center, University-Town Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, ChinaDepartment of Psychiatry, The First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, ChinaMental Health Center, University-Town Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, ChinaDepartment of Psychiatry, The First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, ChinaDepartment of Psychiatry, The First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, ChinaMental Health Center, University-Town Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, ChinaPsychiatric Center, The First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, ChinaBackgroundNon-suicidal self-injury (NSSI) is an increasingly recognized clinical and public health issue among adolescents. This behavior exhibits certain addictive characteristics, leading it to be classified as a behavioral addiction. Response inhibition is believed to play a role in the occurrence of addictive behaviors and is often impaired in the context of negative emotional states. In this study, we compared the behavioral performance, ERP time-domain and time-frequency characteristics among depressed adolescents with NSSI, depressed adolescents, and healthy controls when exposed to negative emotional stimuli. The aim was to investigate the impact of negative emotional stimuli on the response inhibition in depressed adolescents with NSSI, clarify the role of response inhibition in NSSI behaviors, and provide neurophysiological evidence for its underlying mechanisms.MethodsSeventy-one depressed adolescents with NSSI (MDD+NSSI group: 12 males, 59 females; mean age: 14.37 years), 55 depressed adolescents (MDD group: 24 males, 31 females; mean age: 15.29 years) and 25 healthy subjects (HC group, 13 males, 12 females, mean age: 15.72 years) were recruited to perform a two-choice oddball task related to negative emotional cues. All participants completed a self-administered questionnaire to gather demographic information. A trained psychiatrist administered the Hamilton Depression Scale (HAMD-17) to assess depression severity and used the Ottawa Self-Injury Inventory (OSI) to assess self-injury. Multichannel EEG was recorded continuously from 64 scalp electrodes using the Curry 8 system. EEG signal preprocessing and analysis was performed offline using the EEGLAB toolbox in MATLAB. The ERP time-domain features related to response inhibition were extracted from the difference waves, converted to the time-frequency features using the short-time Fourier transform (STFT), and the time-frequency values of the region of interest (ROI) were extracted and statistically analyzed.ResultsUnder exposure to negative emotional stimuli, depressed adolescents with NSSI exhibited significantly larger P300 amplitudes compared to both depressed adolescents and healthy controls. Moreover, depressed adolescents with NSSI showed significant event-related synchronization (ERS) in the Delta and Theta bands of FCz electrode from 0 to 0.6 seconds, and event-related desynchronization (ERD) in the Theta and Alpha bands of Pz electrode from 0.2 to 1.2 seconds, collectively reflecting functional processes associated with response inhibition.ConclusionsDepressed adolescents with NSSI showed increased P3d amplitudes, enhanced Delta/Theta ERS, and heightened Theta/Alpha ERD when receiving negative emotional stimuli, suggesting that depressed adolescents with NSSI have impaired response inhibition, which may contribute to the development of NSSI.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyt.2025.1559068/fullnonsuicidal self-injuryadolescentsresponse inhibitionnegative emotional stimulationtime-frequency analysis
spellingShingle Lin Zhao
Su Hong
Xinyu Peng
Xiaoqing He
Jinhui Hu
Lingli Ma
Xinyi Liu
Wanqing Tao
Ran Chen
Zhenghao Jiang
Chenyu Zhang
Jing Liao
Jiaojiao Xiang
Qi Zeng
Linqi Dai
Qi Zhang
Wo Wang
Li Kuang
Impaired response inhibition to negative emotional stimuli in depressed adolescents with non-suicidal self-injury: a neurophysiological perspective
Frontiers in Psychiatry
nonsuicidal self-injury
adolescents
response inhibition
negative emotional stimulation
time-frequency analysis
title Impaired response inhibition to negative emotional stimuli in depressed adolescents with non-suicidal self-injury: a neurophysiological perspective
title_full Impaired response inhibition to negative emotional stimuli in depressed adolescents with non-suicidal self-injury: a neurophysiological perspective
title_fullStr Impaired response inhibition to negative emotional stimuli in depressed adolescents with non-suicidal self-injury: a neurophysiological perspective
title_full_unstemmed Impaired response inhibition to negative emotional stimuli in depressed adolescents with non-suicidal self-injury: a neurophysiological perspective
title_short Impaired response inhibition to negative emotional stimuli in depressed adolescents with non-suicidal self-injury: a neurophysiological perspective
title_sort impaired response inhibition to negative emotional stimuli in depressed adolescents with non suicidal self injury a neurophysiological perspective
topic nonsuicidal self-injury
adolescents
response inhibition
negative emotional stimulation
time-frequency analysis
url https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyt.2025.1559068/full
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