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Updated: Aug 6, 2026

Disruption of Frontal Lobe Neural Synchrony During Cognitive Control by Alcohol Intoxication
Published on: February 6, 2019
Intoxicated behavioral disinhibition and the heart rate response to alcohol
Jean-Marc Assaad1, Robert O Pihl, Jean R Séguin
1Research Unit of Children's Psycho-Social Maladjustment, University of Montreal, Montreal, PQ, Canada. jmarc.assaad@mail.mcgill.ca
Abstract:
This study examined the association between the heart rate (HR) response to alcohol intoxication, which is thought to reflect sensitivity to alcohol-induced reward and alcohol-induced behavioral disinhibition. High- and low-HR responders to alcohol participated in a go/no-go task, under sober and intoxicated conditions. Errors of commission on this task have previously been related to behavioral disinhibition. High-HR responders made more intoxicated commission errors as compared with low-HR responders. High-HR responders also reported increased alcohol consumption, and controlling for the latter did not alter the significant association between high-HR responders and increased intoxicated errors of commission. These results are consistent with previous findings of an increased risk for addictive and disinhibited behavioral propensities in individuals with a high-HR response to alcohol intoxication.
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