Perceptual Biases Underpinning the Interoception of Breathlessness in People Living with Asthma.

Asthma affects nearly 400 million people globally, lowering peoples' quality of life and causing premature deaths. Most people with asthma experience breathlessness which is an unpleasant and distressing experience. However, the amount of distress and anxiety people feel is not related to the 'objective' disease - showing that psychological factors are important. In this project, I aim to understand how people perceive their own asthma, and how biased perception might be improved - and how this might help people feel less distressed by their asthma. I will work with experts in the University of Southampton and University of Wisconsin USA, as well as leading medical experts in University Hospital Southampton. The project will be three studies that will use psychological experiments in the lab, in which levels of breathlessness will be controlled by researchers. In study one, we will use tasks to measure different perceptive processes such as attention, memory and 'interoception' (also known as body awareness) in 45 people with asthma and explore how these factors affect how breathless participants feel. In study two, I will work with experts in the University of Wisconsin, and University Hospital Southampton, to use neuroimaging scanning methods to understand how the brain functions during these processes in 40 patients. In study three, I will study how these processes change in asthma patients who are completing a psychological therapy (mindfulness). These studies will explore psychological processes in patients with asthma - and how psychological therapies can benefit patients to improve their quality of life.