Intolerance of Uncertainty Predicts Increased Striatal Volume

Oversensitivity to uncertain future threat is usefully conceptualized as intolerance of uncertainty (IU). Neuroimaging studies of IU to date have largely focused on its relationship with brain function, but few studies have documented the association between IU and the quantitative properties of brain structure. Here, we examined potential gray and white-matter brain structural correlates of IU from 61 healthy participants. Voxel-based morphometric analysis highlighted a robust positive correlation between IU and striatal volume, particularly the putamen. Conversely, tract-based spatial statistical analysis showed no evidence for a relationship between IU and the structural integrity of white-matter fiber tracts. Current results converge upon findings from individuals with anxiety disorders such as obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) or generalized anxiety disorder (GAD), where abnormally increased IU and striatal volume are consistently reported. They also converge with neurobehavioral data implicating the putamen in predictive coding. Most notably, the relationship between IU and striatal volume is observed at a preclinical level, suggesting that the volumetric properties of the striatum reflect the processing of uncertainty per se as it relates to this dimensional personality characteristic. Such a relationship could then potentially contribute to the onset of OCD or GAD, rather than being unique to their pathophysiology.