ArticleFrontiers in psychiatry2026
Neural mechanisms of uncertain decision-making in anxious adolescents: an EEG study based on the balloon analogue risk task.
Article in Frontiers in psychiatry, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.
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Abstract
Background: Adolescence is marked by heightened vulnerability to anxiety which can impair decision-making under uncertainty. The underlying neural oscillatory network-level mechanisms in anxious adolescents require further elucidation. Methods: We recruited 40 adolescents (20 adolescents with clinically diagnosed anxiety disorders, 20 matched controls). Participants performed a gain/loss version of the Balloon Analogue Risk Task (BART) during EEG recording. Behavioral data, time-frequency EEG power in beta (13-30 Hz) and theta (4-7 Hz) bands, and phase-based functional connectivity were analyzed. Results: Anxious adolescents exhibited significant behavioral avoidance, reflected in fewer pump attempts and lower BART scores compared to controls. EEG analysis revealed elevated beta-band power during gain decisions and enhanced beta-band occipito-temporal connectivity in the anxious group. In loss contexts, anxious adolescents showed increased theta-band parieto-temporal connectivity. Conclusions: Adolescent anxiety is associated with a generalized avoidance pattern during uncertain decision-making, characterized by distinct neural dynamics. Beta-band changes in gain contexts may reflect heightened vigilance, while theta-band connectivity in loss contexts may indicate amplified threat monitoring. These neural signatures may represent candidate neurophysiological signatures of anxiety-related alterations in decision-making under uncertainty, warranting further validation in longitudinal and predictive studies.
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