De invloed van de dosering oogbewegingen op levendigheid en emotionaliteit van negatieve herinneringen

Abstract

An important element in the treatment with Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) is to make horizontal eye movements while retrieving unpleasant autobiographical memories. Laboratory studies have shown that horizontal eye movements during retrieval of a negative memory reduces its vividness and emotionality. However, it is unknown what the effect of the dosage of eye movements is to the reduction of vividness and emotionality. The aim of this study was to investigate if a larger dose of eye movements has more effect on the reduction of vividness and emotionality than a lower dose of eye movements. Participants were divided into two groups of four blocks (N= 21) or 8 blocks (N= 22) for 24 seconds in which one had to retrieve a negative memory. Each participant repeated the experiment, in a random sequence of intervention condition (eye movements) or control condition (no eye movements). Vividness and emotionality were measured before the start of the test, after the test and 24 hours later. Results showed no difference in the reduction of vividness and emotionality between the groups with the lowest (4 blocks) and the highest dose (8 blocks) of eye movements. Also, there was no standard effect of eye movements found on the decrease in vividness and emotionality. From this study, it cannot be concluded that a larger dose of eye movements has more effect on the reduction of vividness and emotionality than a lower dose of eye movements or no eye movements. The absence of the dosage effect can possibly be explained by the lack of the standard effect.