Attentional Engagement in Highand Low Sensitivity Participants During a Subliminal Lexical Decision Task – an ERP Study

visual attention sensory sensitivity HSPSThe goal of the current study was to explore the differences in brain activity correlates of engagement of visual attention to emotional adjectives in high-and low-sensitivity participants, as scored on the Highly Sensitive Person Scale (HSPS).Out of 28 participants, data from 22 were analyzed (n = 10 classified as high sensitivity; n = 12 as low sensitivity).To ensure sustained attentional focus, the participants were presented with 42 positive, 42 negative, 42 neutral, and 126 pseudoadjectives in a subliminally presented masked lexical decision task.We found a trend-level significance in the amplitudes of the P2 component, and significant differences in the amplitudes of the P3 component, with higher amplitudes evoked for all stimuli in low sensitivity compared to high sensitivity participants.The effects were also visible on the low sensory threshold subscale of the HSPS.The results are interpreted in terms of decreased attentional focus in participants with a high level of sensory processing sensitivity.The research also points to possible links between high sensitivity and ADHD, which should be explored further in future ERP studies.