Executive cognitive functioning, temperament, and antisocial behavior in conduct-disordered adolescent females.

The authors assessed whether low executive cognitive functioning (ECF) and a difficult temperament are related to aggressive and nonaggressive forms of antisocial behavior (ASB) in 249, 14–18-year-old, conduct-disordered females and controls. ECF was measured using neuropsychological tests; temperament was measured using the Dimensions of Temperament Survey—Revised; and ASB was assessed using psychiatric symptom counts for conduct disorder. The conduct-disordered females exhibited lower ECF capacity and a greater difficult temperament compared with the controls. The combined influence of low ECF and difficult temperament was significantly related to both forms of ASB. In comparison with low ECF, difficult temperament was more strongly related to nonaggressive ASB, whereas in comparison with difficult temperament, low ECF was more strongly related to aggressive ASB. Last, ECF mediated the relation between difficult temperament and aggressive ASB. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Cognitive distortions, aggressive behavior, and drug use in adolescent boys with and without a family history of a substance use disorder.

The purpose of this study was to determine whether the relations between (a) cognitive distortions and aggressive behavior, (b) cognitive distortions and drug use, and (c) aggressive behavior and drug use are moderated by a family history of a substance use disorder (SUD) in adolescent boys. Participants were 165 boys aged 15–17 years with (FH+; n?=?75) and without (FH–; n?=?90) a family history of SUD. Results indicated that a family history of SUD moderated the relation between cognitive distortions and aggressive behavior and the relation between aggressive behavior and drug use. Family history of SUD did not moderate the relation between cognitive distortions and drug use; however, cognitive distortions were positively related to drug use within both groups. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Modeling the pathways linking childhood hyperactivity and substance use disorder in young adulthood.

This study modeled direct and mediated pathways linking childhood hyperactivity and substance use disorder (SUD). Boys (n = 112) were administered the revised Drug Use Screening Inventory at age 12-14 years and the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV at age 22 years. Six newly derived scales having established heritability were conceptually organized into internalizing and externalizing pathways to SUD emanating from childhood hyperactivity. Hyperactivity directly predicts SUD. Neuroticism, conduct problems, and their respective manifestations of social withdrawal and school problems mediated the association between hyperactivity and SUD. Hyperactivity also predicted neuroticism that, in turn, predicted low self-esteem leading to social withdrawal and SUD. These results indicate that hyperactivity is a diathesis for both internalizing and externalizing disturbances that, in turn, portend differential expression of psychosocial maladjustment presaging SUD. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Temperament and antisocial behavior in preadolescent boys with or without a family history of a substance use disorder.

The goals of this study were to determine the relations between different dimensions of temperament, and their interactions, with antisocial behavior (ASB) in 351 preadolescent boys with (n?=?175) or without (n?=?176) a family history of a substance use disorder (SUD) and to determine whether these relations are moderated by a family history of SUD. Participants were administered the Revised Dimensions of Temperament Survey (DOTS-R) and multiple measures of ASB. Factor analysis reduced the DOTS-R subscales into three factors: Rhythmicity, Behavioral Regulation, and Positive Affectivity. Results indicated that above and beyond the effects of age and socioeconomic status, low rhythmicity, low behavioral regulation, and low positive affectivity, as well as some of their higher order interactive effects, are important indicators of different types of ASB and, in some cases, only in boys with a family history of SUD. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Social dominance mediates the association of testosterone and neurobehavioral disinhibition with risk for substance use disorder.

This investigation determined the influence of testosterone and neurobehavioral disinhibition (ND) on risk for substance use disorder (SUD). Testosterone level during puberty was hypothesized to promote social dominance associated with norm-violating behavior that, in turn, predisposes individuals to use of illicit drugs and, subsequently, SUD. Using a prospective paradigm, the authors recruited 179 boys (mean age=11.62 years, SD=0.88) and followed up when participants were ages 12-14, 16, 19, and 22. Results indicated that social dominance/norm-violating behavior (SD/NVB) at age 16 mediated the association between testosterone level (ages 12-14) and SUD (age 22). In addition, SD/NVB mediated the association between ND and SUD. These findings suggest that development of SUD is influenced by androgen-dependent and neurobehavioral processes via a social motivational style characterized by SD/NVB. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Changes in neuropsychological functioning over 10 years following adolescent substance abuse treatment.

Previously, Anderson, Ramo, Cummins, and Brown (2010) described six distinct patterns of alcohol and other drug (AOD) use during the decade following adolescents' treatment for alcohol and other substance use disorders (A/SUD). This time period represents a phase of significant neurodevelopment, and the influence of substance use on the brain is a concern. In the present study, we examined patterns of neuropsychological function over these 10 years in relation to the AOD trajectories identified for youth as they transition into their twenties. Participants were part of a longitudinal research project following adolescents with and without A/SUD who received neuropsychological examinations at baseline and up to 7 times thereafter spanning 10 years (N = 213; 46% female at baseline). Neuropsychological trajectories were significantly related to substance involvement patterns over time on measures of verbal learning and memory (ps = .011 to p = .0002), and verbal attention/working memory (p = .020), with heavier use patterns generally followed by poorer cognition. Heavy use of alcohol alone was independently associated with poorer verbal memory over time. Furthermore, substance withdrawal symptoms during each follow-up time point were related to poorer verbal learning and memory scores (ps     

Executive functioning, irritability, and alcohol-related aggression.

The purpose of this investigation was to examine (a) whether irritability mediates the relation between executive functioning (EF) and alcohol-related aggression and (b) whether the alcohol-aggression relation is better explained by the interactive effects of EF and irritability above and beyond the effects of either variable alone. EF was measured using seven well-established neuropsychological tests. Irritability was assessed with the Caprara Irritability Scale. Participants were 313 male and female social drinkers between 21 and 35 years of age. Following the consumption of an alcohol or a placebo beverage, participants were tested on a laboratory aggression task in which electric shocks were given to and received from a fictitious opponent under the guise of a competitive reaction-time task. Aggression was operationalized as the shock intensities administered to the fictitious opponent. Results indicated that irritability successfully mediated the relation between EF and intoxicated aggression for men only. Despite the fact that irritability and EF both independently moderated the alcohol-aggression relation in previous studies, no significant interaction for their combined effect was detected here. The findings are discussed, in part, within a cognitive neoassociationistic framework for aggressive behavior. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Trajectories of change in adolescent substance use and symptomatology: Impact of paternal and maternal substance use disorders.

The effects of paternal and maternal substance use disorders (SUDs) on trajectories of change in adolescent offspring nicotine, alcohol, and drug use and symptomatology were investigated in a population-based sample of adolescent twins (N = 1,514). Adolescent and parental substance phenotypes were assessed when most adolescents were 11 years old, with 2 assessments of adolescents approximately every 3 years thereafter. Growth curves were fit using hierarchical linear modeling. Results indicated acceleration of substance involvement during adolescence, particularly for boys. Paternal and maternal SUD were each associated with more extreme trajectories. There was evidence for an additive, rather than interactive, combined parental effect. Findings help clarify the impact of paternal and maternal SUD on the development of substance involvement during adolescence. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Personality disorder symptoms, drinking motives, and alcohol use and consequences: Cross-sectional and prospective mediation.

Research shows high comorbidity between Cluster B personality disorders (PDs) and alcohol use disorders (AUDs). Studies on personality traits and alcohol use have identified coping and enhancement drinking motives as mediators in the relations among impulsivity, affective instability, and alcohol use. To the extent that PDs reflect extreme expression of these traits, drinking motives should mediate the relation between PD symptoms and alcohol involvement. This was tested using path models estimating the extent to which coping and enhancement drinking motives mediated the relation between Cluster B symptom counts and alcohol use and problems both concurrently and at a 5-year follow-up. Three hundred fifty-two adults participated in a multiwave study of risk for alcoholism (average age = 29 years at Wave 1). Enhancement motives mediated (a) the cross-sectional relation between Cluster B symptoms and drinking quantity/frequency, heavy drinking, total drinking consequences, dependence features, and AUD diagnosis and (b) the prospective relation to AUDs. Although coping motives mediated the relation between Cluster B symptoms and drinking consequences and dependence features cross-sectionally, prospective effects were limited to indirect effects through Time 1. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Item response theory modeling of substance use: An index based on 10 drug categories.

This study examined the psychometric characteristics of an index of substance use involvement using item response theory. The sample consisted of 292 men and 140 women who qualified for a Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (3rd ed., rev.; American Psychiatric Association, 1987) substance use disorder (SUD) diagnosis and 293 men and 445 women who did not qualify for a SUD diagnosis. The results indicated that men ha4 a higher probability of endorsing substance use compared with women. The index significantly predicted health, psychiatric, and psychosocial disturbances as well as level of substance use behavior and severity of SUD after a 2-year follow-up. Finally, this index is a reliable and useful prognostic indicator of the risk for SUD and the medical and psychosocial sequelae of drug consumption. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Relation between executive cognitive functioning and the adverse consequences of alcohol use in social drinkers

The purpose of this study was to assess the relation between Executive Cognitive Functioning (ECF) and the adverse consequences of alcohol consumption. ECF encompasses "higher order" cognitive abilities involved in goal-directed behavior, such as attentional control, mental flexibility, planning, and self-monitoring. Impaired ECF has been shown to result in a variety of negative consequences, including excessive drug and alcohol use. Subjects were 79 nonalcoholic male social drinkers between 17 to 30 years of age. ECF was measured using three neuropsychological tests: the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test (WCST), the Conditional Associative Learning Test (CAT), and the Sequential Matching Memory Test (SMMT). Adverse drinking consequences were measured using the Drinker Inventory of Consequences (DrInC). The DrInC assesses drinking consequences in five domains: Physical, Intrapersonal, Interpersonal, Social Responsibility, and Impulse Control. Scores from the neuropsychological tests were reduced into two latent variables: one representing the WCST and the other representing the CAT and SMMT. The results indicated that errors on the CAT/SMMT variable were positively related to adverse consequences in each domain, except for physical consequences. A similar association was found between the WCST variable and impulse control consequences. These findings indicate that performance on tests measuring ECF is related to the severity of drinking consequences. Therefore, prevention and treatment outcomes may be improved by incorporating cognitive habilitation into current interventions.     

Psychosocial functioning of adults who experienced substance use disorders as adolescents.

The authors examined whether substance use disorder (SUD) before age 19 was associated with functioning at age 30. Participants (N = 773) were assessed twice during adolescence and at ages 24 and 30. Eight of 14 adult measures were associated with adolescent SUD: education, unemployment, income, risky sexual behavior, suicide attempt, coping, stressful life events, and global adjustment. After adolescent comorbidity and functioning and adult SUD were controlled for, education and unemployment remained associated, and three variables emerged as significant: being a parent (significant only for participants without adult SUD), being currently married, and having decreased life satisfaction (significant only for participants with adult SUD). Adolescent SUD is associated with numerous functioning difficulties at age 30, some of which appear to be related to recurrent SUD, comorbid adolescent disorders, or functioning problems already evident in adolescence. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Time perspective and early-onset substance use: A model based on stress–coping theory.

This research tested the relation of time perspective to early-onset substance use (tobacco, alcohol, and marijuana) with a sample of 454 elementary school students with a mean age of 11.8 years. An adaptation of the Zimbardo Time Perspective Inventory (P. G. Zimbardo & J. N. Boyd, 1999) was administered with measures derived from stress-coping theory. Independent effects showed future orientation inversely related to substance use and present orientation positively related to substance use. Structural modeling analysis indicated that the relation of time perspective measures to substance use was indirect, mediated through behavioral coping and anger coping. Proximal factors for substance use were negative affect, peer substance use, and resistance efficacy. Results are discussed with respect to epigenetic models and the role of executive functions in self-control ability. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Developmental trajectories in toddlers' self-restraint predict individual differences in executive functions 14 years later: A behavioral genetic analysis.

We examined whether self-restraint in early childhood predicted individual differences in 3 executive functions (EFs; inhibiting prepotent responses, updating working memory, and shifting task sets) in late adolescence in a sample of approximately 950 twins. At ages 14, 20, 24, and 36 months, the children were shown an attractive toy and told not to touch it for 30 s. Latency to touch the toy increased with age, and latent class growth modeling distinguished 2 groups of children that differed in their latencies to touch the toy at all 4 time points. Using confirmatory factor analysis, we decomposed the 3 EFs (measured with latent variables at age 17 years) into a Common EF factor (isomorphic to response inhibition ability) and 2 factors specific to updating and shifting. Less-restrained children had significantly lower scores on the Common EF factor, equivalent scores on the Updating-Specific factor, and higher scores on the Shifting-Specific factor than did the more-restrained children. The less-restrained group also had lower IQ scores, but this effect was entirely mediated by the EF components. Twin models indicated that the associations were primarily genetic in origin for the Common EF variable but split between genetics and nonshared environment for the Shifting-Specific variable. These results suggest a biological relation between individual differences in self-restraint and EFs, one that begins early in life and persists into late adolescence. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Predictors of initiation and engagement in VA substance use disorder (SUD) treatment.

We examined if patient or setting characteristics predict subsequent addiction treatment involvement in a sample of 270,877 Veteran Administration (VA) patients identified with substance use disorders (SUD). Patient characteristics (e.g., gender, age, marital status) and treatment specialty of the unit where the SUD was identified (SUD, Psychiatric, or Other) were used to predict two aspects of treatment involvement, specifically the HEDIS Initiation and Engagement quality indicators (National Committee for Quality Assurance, 2006). Overall, patients who were female, not married, younger, and had their SUDs identified in SUD or Psychiatric treatment units initiated and engaged in treatment at significantly higher rates. For example, a younger, single patient who was identified with an SUD in an SUD specialty unit had a predicted probability of meeting the Initiation criteria of 0.54 compared to 0.14 for an older married patient identified in a general medical setting. This research facilitates the identification of patients with lower likelihoods of initiation and engagement in treatment and may inform intervention efforts to improve rates of initiation and engagement in targeted groups and settings. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Executive Functioning and Alcohol-Related Aggression.

The primary goal of this investigation was to determine whether executive functioning (EF) would moderate the alcohol-aggression relation. Participants were 310 (152 men and 158 women) healthy social drinkers between 21 and 35 years of age. EF as well as non-EF skills were measured with 13 validated neuropsychological tests. Following the consumption of either an alcoholic or a placebo beverage, participants were tested on a modified version of the Taylor Aggression Paradigm (S. Taylor, 1967), in which mild electric shocks were received from, and administered to, a fictitious opponent. Aggressive behavior was operationalized as the shock intensities administered to the fictitious opponent. EF was negatively related to aggressive behavior for men, regardless of beverage group, even when controlling for non-EF skills. Furthermore, alcohol increased aggression only for men with lower EF scores. Finally, the mere belief that alcohol was consumed suppressed aggression for women but not for men. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Negative affectivity and drug use in adolescent boys: Moderating and mediating mechanisms.

This investigation examined variables that might qualify or detail the widely accepted relation between negative affectivity and drug use in adolescent boys. In Study 1, 311 boys (15-17 years old) completed inventories of negative affectivity, positive affectivity, constraint, delinquency, peer delinquency, and drug use. Negative affectivity was positively related to drug use, but only for individuals exhibiting high peer delinquency or low constraint. Study 2 examined mechanisms for this relation by following up 143 of the participants at ages 17-20 years. Delinquency and peer delinquency mediated the relation between negative affectivity and later drug use. These findings suggest that the relation between negative affectivity and drug use is best understood within the context of other drug use risk factors. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Substance-dependent, conduct-disordered adolescent males: severity of diagnosis predicts 2-year outcome

Most delinquent youths have conduct disorder (CD), often with comorbid substance use disorder (SUD), attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and depression. Some youths' conduct problems later abate, while those of others persist into adult antisocial personality disorder. Earlier CD onset and ADHD reportedly predict persisting antisocial problems, but predictors of persisting SUD are poorly understood. Males aged 13-19 years (n = 89), most referred by criminal justice and social service agencies, received residential treatment for comorbid CD and SUD. They had diagnostic assessments for SUD at intake and for CD, ADHD, and depression (as well as drug-use assessments) at intake and 6, 12 and 24 months later. At intake nearly all had DSM-III-R substance dependence (usually on alcohol and marijuana) and CD with considerable violence and criminality. The 2-year follow-ups revealed improvements in criminality, CD, depression and ADHD, but substance use remained largely unchanged. Various aspects of conduct, crime and substance outcomes at 2 years were predicted by intake measures of intensity of substance involvement, and by CD severity and onset age, but not by severity of either ADHD or depression, nor by treatment duration. Earlier CD onset, more severe CD and more drug dependence predicted worse outcomes, supporting the validity of these diagnoses in adolescents.     

Assessment of risk for substance use disorder consequent to consumption of illegal drugs: Psychometric validation of the neurobehavior disinhibition trait.

Previous research has shown that the trait neurobehavior disinhibition (ND), which consists of affect, behavior, and cognitive indicators of self-regulation, is a significant predictor of substance use disorder (SUD) between childhood and young adulthood. The authors evaluated the psychometric properties of the ND trait in 278 boys evaluated at ages 10-12 and 16 years. ND score significantly predicted SUD and outcomes that commonly manifest in tandem with SUD by age 19, such as violence, arrests, committing crime while intoxicated, and concussion injury. In addition to predictive validity, the ND trait was found to have good construct, discriminative, and concurrent validity, as well as good test-retest and internal reliability. The ND trait may be useful for detecting youths at high risk for developing SUD and related outcomes. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Detection of youth at high risk for substance use disorders: A longitudinal study.

This study extends prior research (D. Clark, J. Cornelius, L. Kirisci, & R. Tarter, 2005) by determining whether variation in the developmental trajectories of liability to substance use disorder (SUD) is contributed by neurobehavioral disinhibition, parental substance use involvement, and demographic variables. The sample, participants in a long-term prospective investigation, consisted of 351 boys, evaluated at ages 10-12, 12-14, 16, 19, and 22, whose parents either had SUD or no adult psychiatric disorder. Neurobehavioral disinhibition in childhood, in conjunction with parental lifetime substance use/SUD, place the child at very high risk for SUD by age 22 if psychosocial maladjustment progresses in severity in early adolescence. These results indicate that monitoring social adjustment during the transition from childhood to mid-adolescence is important for identifying youth at very high risk for succumbing to SUD by young adulthood. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)