The influence of sensitivity to reward on reactivity to alcohol-related cues

• Published in: Addiction (Abingdon, England) Vol. 96; no. 8; pp. 1175 - 1185
• Main Authors: Kambouropoulos, Nicolas, Staiger, Petra K.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Oxford, UK Carfax Publishing, part of the Taylor & Francis Group 01-08-2001; Blackwell; Blackwell Publishing Ltd
• Subjects: Addiction; Addictive behaviors; Adolescent; Adult; Adult and adolescent clinical studies; Alcohol; Alcohol Drinking - psychology; Alcohol use; Alcoholism; Analysis of Variance; Behavior; Behavior therapy. Cognitive therapy; Biological and medical sciences; Case studies; Cue exposure; Cues; Drinkers; Female; Health; Humans; Male; Medical sciences; Medical treatment; Psychological Tests; Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry; Psychopathology. Psychiatry; Reactivity; Reward; Rewards; Sensitivity; Social behaviour; Social drinking; Social problems; Social psychology; Treatments; Consumption; Human; Alcoholic beverage; Social drinker; Sensitivity; Abuse; Motivation; Interindividual comparison; Personality; Behavior therapy; Reward; Classical conditioning
• ISSN: 0965-2140; 1360-0443
• DOI: 10.1046/j.1360-0443.2001.968117510.x

Aims. To investigate the role of sensitivity to reward in mediating social drinkers' reactivity to alcohol cues.

Design. A standard cue‐reactivity paradigm was employed. Two groups of social drinkers (heavy and light) were assessed after exposure to the sight, smell and taste of a neutral cue (water) and then an alcohol cue (glass of beer).

Setting. Sessions were conducted in a laboratory based environment.

Participants. Twenty heavy (12 males, eight females) and 18 light social drinkers (seven males, 11 females) were recruited; mean age was 23.6 years.

Measurements. The Card Arranging Reward Responsivity Objective Test (CARROT), assessing behavioural reponsiveness to a monetary incentive; urge to drink; positive affect; and the BAS scales, assessing sensitivity to reward.

Findings. Heavy drinkers displayed a significant increase in responsivity to rewards (i.e. CARROT) and self‐reported urge to drink, but not positive affect, after exposure to alcohol. For the heavy drinkers, heightened sensitivity to reward (i.e. BAS scales) was significantly related to cue‐elicited urge to drink and positive affect.

Conclusion. The results are consistent with a conditioned appetitive motivational model of alcohol use and suggest that Gray's theory of personality may be of some benefit in explaining variation in reactivity responses.