01408nas a2200205   4500000000100000008004100001260007600042653002200118653001200140653001200152653002400164100002800188700003100216245006700247300000900314490000700323520084400330022001401174020001401188       2012                            d  c01/2012bSociedad Española para el Estudio de la Ansiedad y el Estrés10aambiguous stimuli10aAnxiety10aarticle10ainterpretative bias1 aAida Gutiérrez-García1 aAndrés Fernández-Martín00aAnxiety and interpretative bias of ambiguous stimuli: A review  a1-140 v183 aIn this article we review the studies investigating the effects of anxiety on interpretive bias, i.e., the proneness to generate, prioritize or select a threatening interpretation over a neutral interpretation of an ambiguous stimulus. The article is organized in three sections: Conceptualization, Research, and Application. First, we motivate theoretically the relationship between anxiety and interpretive bias, with particular emphasis on the functional role of such a bias in the alarm mechanism of the defensive system. Second, we examine the existing experimental evidence on the issue under investigation in several specific areas. And, third, we address the possibility that the experimental findings on anxiety and interpretive bias can be applied to therapeutical treatments aimed to control and reduce vulnerability to anxiety.  a1134-7937  a2174-0437