Attention and memory biases in the offspring of parents with bipolar disorder: indications from a pilot study

Abstract

Thus, children without a mood disorder who are at high risk for developing a mood disorder were found to exhibit biases in attention and memory that are similar to those found for bipolar and unipolar depressed adults, suggesting that children at increased risk for affective disorder are characterized by potentially pathogenic cognitive structures that can be activated by sad mood. These findings offer insights into mechanisms of cognitive vulnerability for bipolar disorders.