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Murine Drinking Models in the Development of Pharmacotherapies for Alcoholism: Drinking in the Dark and Two-bottle Choice
Published on: January 7, 2019
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Model-based and model-free decisions in alcohol dependence.
Miriam Sebold1, Lorenz Deserno, Stephan Nebe
1Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Campus Charité Mitte, Charité Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Berlin, Germany.
Neuropsychobiology
|November 1, 2014
Summary
Alcohol dependence impairs goal-directed decision-making, particularly after losses. This suggests chronic alcohol use affects cognitive functions, not just habit formation.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Addiction Research
- Cognitive Psychology
Background:
- Addiction is linked to a shift from goal-directed to habitual decision-making.
- Evidence in human alcohol dependence remains inconclusive.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate decision-making processes in alcohol dependence.
- To differentiate between goal-directed and habitual behaviors.
Main Methods:
- Utilized a 2-step behavioral task.
- Compared 26 alcohol-dependent patients with 26 healthy controls.
Main Results:
- Alcohol-dependent patients exhibited reduced goal-directed choices, especially after losses.
- No significant difference in habitual response strength was observed.
- Group differences were not sustained after controlling for general cognitive function (Digit Symbol Substitution Test).
Conclusions:
- Chronic alcohol use selectively impairs goal-directed functions.
- Impairment is pronounced following nonrewards and may involve prefrontal cortex-mediated cognitive functions.
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