The impact of top-down factors on threat perception biases in health and anxiety

Abstract

The perception of threat is important for survival and is therefore perceptually prioritized. This prioritization has largely been studied as a stimulus-driven (i.e., bottom-up) process. However, we suggest that the process of perception starts before a stimulus is encountered. This chapter explores the impact of prestimulus biases on the perceptual prioritization of threatening stimuli, in normal function and in anxiety. First, we review how the bottom-up aspects of threat perception have been examined empirically before examining how threat-related endogenous (i.e., top-down) factors can guide perception. We highlight major theories related to top-down guided threat perception and discuss some conceptual and methodological pitfalls that can occur when neglecting emotional top-down factors in threat perception. Next, we review neurobiological and peripheral factors related to threat perception guided by top-down processes. Differences between top-down threat perception in anxiety and healthy function are explored. Finally, we discuss limitations and future directions for the field.