Excessive checking for non-anxiogenic stimuli in obsessive-compulsive disorder

Abstract Background Repetitive checking in obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) would serve to relieve obsession-related anxiety and/or to compensate memory deficit, but experimental literature on this subject is inconsistent. The main objective is to test the influence of obsession-related anxiety and memory on repetitive checking in OCD. Methods Twenty-three OCD checkers, 17 OCD non-checkers and 41 controls performed a delayed-matching-to-sample task with an unrestricted checking option. Some stimuli were obsession-related in order to measure the influence of anxiety on checking. A version of the task without checking possibility was used to assess memory abilities. Results OCD checkers had similar memory performances but checked more than the other groups when presented with non-anxiogenic stimuli. Level of anxiety associated to the stimulus did not influence the number of checks. Conclusions Increased checking in OCD checkers, being independent of memory abilities and primary obsession-related anxiety, would, therefore, be closer to an automated behaviour than a coping strategy.