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Research Article

Instrumental Learning Deficits in OCD: A Symptom Dimension Perspective

Ying WangPinetree Secondary School*

* Corresponding author: [email protected]

Abstract

Obsessive–compulsive disorder (OCD) presents heterogeneous symptom dimensions, which involve contamination/cleaning, harm/checking, and symmetry/ordering. Despite their apparent similarities, compulsions probably have different dimensions maintained by separate cognitive and motivational mechanisms. OCD repetitive behaviors are often explained through instrumental learning deficits, most notably diminished goal-directed regulation and habitual responses. Evidence for threat-related compulsions comes from multiple paradigms, such as outcome devaluation, slips-of-action, avoidance learning, and Pavlovian-to-Instrumental Transfer tasks. However, these paradigms fall short in capturing ordering compulsions, which are motivated more by internal sensory discomfort and "not just right" experiences than by external threats. This review emphasizes the necessity for tasks that operationalize interior discomfort and criticizes the propensity to generalize instrumental-learning models across all dimensions. Theoretical models of OCD are advanced by acknowledging this variability, which also implies that treatments should be customized to different motivational profiles. For example, addressing internal discomfort in symmetry/ordering and concentrating on avoidance processes in contamination and checking are two examples of how this might be done.

Keywords: Obsessive–Compulsive Disorder (OCD); Instrumental Learning; Goal-Directed Control; Habitual Behavior; Symmetry/Ordering Dimension.
Published: October 14, 2025
DOI: 10.54254/2753-7064/2025.HT28396
Volume: CHR Vol.88
pp. 38-44
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