Neural correlates of psychopathology: Implications for the processing of persuasive health messages

This chapter provides an overview of the neural systems implicated in processing of health messaging that may be leveraged when tailoring messages for individuals with psychopathology. The first section includes a brief primer on human cognitive and affective neuroscience, with an emphasis on the salience, default mode, and executive control networks. These networks are then considered in the context of communication neuroscience to demonstrate how their recruitment may underpin information-processing biases when viewing persuasive messages. We then describe the structure of psychopathology by considering symptoms using a hierarchical and dimensional framework. Aligned with this transdiagnostic approach, the neural correlates of general psychopathology are reviewed, critically implicating disruption of the salience network as a mechanism driving alterations in executive functioning in this population. Finally, we integrate findings across clinical and communication neurosciences to show how salience network functioning in those with psychopathology may contribute to processing differences while viewing persuasive health messaging and provide opportunities for tailoring messages to better serve this population. Open questions and ethical implications are discussed.