Looking on the bright side and seeing it vividly: interpretation bias and involuntary mental imagery are related to risk for bipolar disorder

BackgroundInvoluntary mental imagery is elevated among people with bipolar disorder, and has been shown to shape biases in interpretation of ambiguous information. However, it is not clear whether biases in interpretation of ambiguous scenarios can be observed in those at risk for bipolar disorder, or whether involuntary imagery is related to such a bias.AimsIn the present study, we extended a prominent model of bipolar cognition to an at-risk sample. We specifically tested whether positive interpretation bias and involuntary mental imagery are linked to a greater risk of bipolar disorder.MethodYoung adults (N = 169) completed measures of risk for bipolar disorder (the Hypomanic Personality Scale [HPS]), interpretation bias, and involuntary mental imagery.ResultsHigher scores on the HPS were significantly correlated with more positive interpretations of ambiguous scenarios (β = 0.29, p