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A Prediction Error-driven Retrieval Procedure for Destabilizing and Rewriting Maladaptive Reward Memories in Hazardous Drinkers
Published on: January 5, 2018
Preference conditioning in healthy individuals: correlates with hazardous drinking
Iris M Balodis1, Kathleen P Lockwood, Sylvia A Magrys
1Department of Psychology, Queen's University, Kingston, ON, Canada.
Alcoholism, Clinical and Experimental Research
|April 9, 2010
Summary
Hazardous drinking is linked to stronger conditioned reward responses in humans, suggesting prior drug use may sensitize brain pathways. This effect on reward conditioning was observed independently of working memory capacity.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Psychology
- Addiction Research
Background:
- Conditioned reward is a key indicator of drug-induced brain changes in addiction models.
- The Conditioned Pattern Preference (CPP) task assesses human reward conditioning with low awareness.
- Previous research indicated prior drug use, not acute intoxication, might influence CPP scores.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the relationship between self-reported alcohol use and preference conditioning.
- To determine if hazardous drinking impacts conditioned reward in the CPP task.
- To examine the role of working memory in this relationship.
Main Methods:
- The study involved 92 undergraduate students (69 female, 23 male).
- Participants completed the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT) and Rutgers Alcohol Problem Index (RAPI).
- Working memory was assessed by cue counting during the CPP task.
Main Results:
- Higher scores on hazardous drinking measures correlated with increased preference for reward-paired cues.
- Hazardous drinking did not significantly affect working memory performance on the CPP task.
- A significant link was found between hazardous drinking and conditioned reward preference.
Conclusions:
- Findings support that repeated drug use sensitizes reward pathways, linking substance misuse to reward-related stimuli.
- The association between hazardous drinking and conditioned reward is independent of working memory.
- This suggests a neurocognitive disposition in substance misuse and reward processing.
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