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Effect of distress-driven impulsivity on problematic drinking at different levels of trait compulsivity in Sample 1 (A) and Sample 2 (B).
Source publication
Objective
Problematic drinking is highly prevalent among the general population, oftentimes leading to significant negative consequences, including physical injury, psychological problems and financial hardship. In order to design targeted early interventions for problematic drinking, it is important to understand the mechanisms that render individ...
Citations
... f part by continuation of responding despite the cost of dealing with negative consequences (3,27). Other aspects of compulsion, including considerations and caveats, are discussed in several recent reviews (59)(60)(61)(62)(63), and we predominantly agree with the points they detail in our publications (64)(65)(66)(67)(68)(69)(70). These include (1) considerations of overfocus on compulsion, to the detriment of overlooking other factors that can contribute to addiction (59-61, 65, 71) (above), (2) the importance of considering compulsion for alcohol when adapting the NIMH RDoC framework for addiction (3,72,73), and (3) the importance of agency and knowledge of choosing during recovery from compulsion-like drinking pattern (19,20,74,75). ...
Alcohol Use Disorder (AUD) ranks among the most prevalent mental disorders, extracting ~$250 billion/year in the US alone and producing myriad medical and social harms. Also, the number of deaths related to problem drinking has been increasing dramatically. Compulsive alcohol drinking, characterized by intake that persists despite negative consequences, can be particularly important and a major obstacle to treatment. With the number of people suffering from AUD increasing during the past years, there is a critical need to understand the neurobiology related to compulsive drives for alcohol, as well as the development of novel AUD pharmacological therapies. Here we discuss rodent compulsion-like alcohol drinking (CLAD) models, focusing on the two most widely used adverse stimuli to model rodent compulsion-like responding, quinine adulteration of alcohol and footshook-resistant alcohol intake. For both cases, the goal is to uncover behavior patterns and brain circuits that underlie drive for alcohol even in the face of negative consequences. We discuss caveats, benefits, and potential brain mechanisms, of models for consequence-resistant responding for alcohol more generally, and especially highlight some advantages of quinine-resistance over footshook-resistance. Further, since this review contributes to a Special issue focused on Molecular Aspects of Compulsive Drug Use, we discuss our new findings showing how the noradrenergic system is related to CLAD responding. In particular, we comment on the importance of α1 and β adrenergic receptors (ARs) as potential targets for treating AUD.
Impaired goal-directed behavior is associated with a range of mental disorders, implicating underlying transdiagnostic factors. While compulsivity has been linked to reduced model-based (MB) control, impulsivity has rarely been studied in the context of reinforcement learning despite its links to reward processing and cognitive control. This study investigated the neural mechanisms underlying MB control and the influence of impulsivity and compulsivity. We analyzed EEG data from 238 individuals during a two-step decision making task. Single-trial analyses revealed that while feedback-related negativity (FRN) amplitudes were higher after common transitions and negative/neutral reward prediction error (RPE), the P3a and P3b were enhanced after rare transitions and both positive and negative RPE. In a second step, we regressed the mean b values of the effect of RPE on the EEG signals onto self-reported impulsivity and compulsivity and weighting parameter w (representing behavioral MB control). The effect of RPE on FRN-related activity was mainly associated with higher w scores. The interaction of impulsivity and w influenced both FRN- and P3a-related activity. The modulation of P3a by RPE was also negatively associated with compulsivity, pointing to a deficient mental model in highly compulsive individuals. Further research is needed to understand these alterations in decision-making processes.
Background:
Existing research has demonstrated that problematic smartphone use (PSU) may reflect a composition of heterogeneous symptoms, with individual PSU symptoms uniquely related to predisposing variables. The Big Five personality traits represent one of the most frequently examined predisposing variables in relation to PSU. However, no studies to date have examined the trait-to-symptom association between the Big Five personality traits and PSU. Using a network analysis approach, we aimed to understand: 1) specific pathways linking each of the Big Five personality traits to PSU symptoms and 2) the bridging effects of each Big Five personality trait on the PSU symptom cluster.
Methods:
A regularised graphical Gaussian model was estimated among 1,849 Chinese university students. PSU symptoms were assessed with items from the Problematic Smartphone Use Scale. Facets of the Big Five personality traits were assessed with the subscales of the Chinese Big Five Personality Inventory-15. An empirical index (i.e., bridge expected influence) was used to quantify bridge nodes.
Results:
Results revealed specific and distinct pathways between the Big Five personality traits and PSU symptoms (e.g., Neuroticism-Escapism/Avoidance, Conscientiousness-Preoccupation and Extraversion-Escapism/Avoidance). Further, Neuroticism showed the highest positive bridge centrality among the Big Five personality traits, while Conscientiousness had the highest negative bridge centrality.
Discussion and conclusions:
The current study provided direct empirical evidence concerning specific pathways between the Big Five personality traits and PSU symptoms and highlighted the influential role of Neuroticism and Conscientiousness as potential targets for early detection and treatment of PSU.
