BAS activation-relevant events (e.g., entering a contest) will trigger hypomania/mania and greater magnitude of BAS activation at all levels of analysis (e.g., behavioral, neurobiological) in individuals with bipolar spectrum disorders. BAS activation-relevant events involving goal obstruction or insult will trigger irritable hypomania/mania and greater magnitude of BAS activation at all levels of analysis (e.g., behavioral, neurobiological) in individuals with bipolar spectrum disorders. BAS deactivation-relevant events (e.g., failing an exam) will trigger depression and greater magnitude of BAS deactivation at all levels of analysis (e.g., behavioral, neurobiological) in individuals with bipolar spectrum disorders. Individuals with bipolar spectrum disorders will construe a greater number of ambiguous events as BAS activation- and BAS deactivation-relevant (i.e., dysregulated relevance appraisal resulting in greater frequency of BAS-relevant events), as well as exhibit greater strength of this relevance appraisal, compared to individuals with no psychopathology. In comparison to individuals with no psychopathology, individuals with bipolar spectrum disorders will exhibit greater efficacy expectancy (i.e., dysregulated efficacy appraisal) when presented with BAS activation-relevant events. When presented with BAS deactivation events, individuals with bipolar spectrum disorders will exhibit lower (or lack of) efficacy expectancy (i.e., dysregulated efficacy appraisal) than individuals with no psychopathology. Individuals with bipolar spectrum disorders will be more likely to exhibit an unrealistically high efficacy expectancy (along with hypomania/mania) in response to BAS activation-relevant events, take on unrealistic challenges, and thus be more likely to experience failure followed by depression—a possible process involved in switching from hypomania/mania to depression. Individuals with bipolar spectrum disorders will exhibit dysregulated chronometry of BAS response (e.g., faster rise to peak, longer recovery to baseline) at all levels of analysis (e.g., affective, cognitive, behavioral, neurobiological). The pre-event BAS state (i.e., activation/symptom level) will affect the magnitude of response to BAS-relevant events, mainly through the processes of relevance and efficacy appraisal; in other words, all of the predictions above should be qualified by the pre-event BAS state.
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