A-192: Misophonia Severity and Cognitive Performance in Young Adults: Evidence for Context-Dependent and Domain-Specific Effects

Abstract

Objective: Misophonia is characterized by strong negative emotional and physiological reactions to specific auditory stimuli, often accompanied by heightened attentional capture. Emerging research suggests it may interfere with cognitive processes, particularly attention and executive functioning, though findings remain limited. Most prior work has focused on responses to trigger stimuli, leaving its relationship with baseline cognitive functioning under neutral conditions unclear. This study examined whether misophonia severity is associated with performance across cognitive domains during standard neuropsychological testing. Method/Data Selection: Undergraduate participants (N = 25; mean age = 19.6 years, SD = 2.1), comprising a predominantly female (96%) nonclinical sample, completed the Duke-Vanderbilt Misophonia Questionnaire (DVMQ) and the Repeatable Battery for the Assessment of Neuropsychological Status (RBANS). Pearson correlations assessed associations between misophonia severity and RBANS index scores (attention, immediate memory, delayed memory, visuospatial functioning, language). Results/Data Synthesis: All participants were prescreened for elevated misophonia symptoms. Misophonia severity was not significantly associated with attention (r = .03, p = .889), immediate memory (r = −.04, p = .866), delayed memory (r = .22, p = .292), visuospatial functioning (r = −.25, p = .227), or language (r = .24, p = .238). Effect sizes suggested a differentiated pattern, with positive associations for delayed memory and language and a negative association for visuospatial functioning. Conclusions: Misophonia does not appear to be associated with global cognitive deficits under neutral conditions but may involve context-dependent, domain-specific effects. These findings align with models emphasizing attentional capture and emotional interference. Future research incorporating trigger exposure and cognitive load will clarify when misophonia-related cognitive differences emerge.