Association between hyperactivity and executive cognitive functioning in childhood and substance use in early adolescence

OBJECTIVE: To determine whether deficient executive cognitive functioning (ECF) in association with high behavioral activity level comprise components of the liability to substance abuse. METHOD: A high-risk (HR) group having fathers with a lifetime DSM-III-R diagnosis of a psychoactive substance use disorder was compared with a low-average-risk (LAR) group whose fathers had neither psychoactive substance use disorder nor another adult Axis I psychiatric disorder. ECF and behavioral activity were measured using neuropsychological tests, activity monitor, diagnostic interview, and informant ratings when the subjects were 10 to 12 years of age. Alcohol, tobacco, and cannabis use were measured at 2-year follow-up. RESULTS: At baseline, the HR group had a significantly higher behavioral activity level and exhibited poorer performance on ECF tests than the LAR group. By early adolescence, HR subjects had a higher lifetime rate of tobacco and cannabis use and earlier age at onset of cannabis use. ECF capacity, but not behavioral activity level, predicted tobacco and cannabis use, total number of drugs ever tried, and severity of drug involvement. ECF accounted for additional variance beyond the effects of conduct problems on these outcomes. CONCLUSION: Whereas behavioral activity and ECF capacity in late childhood distinguishes HR from LAR youth, childhood ECF capacity is the more salient predictor of drug use in early adolescence.     

Differences in alcohol expectancy between aggressive and nonaggressive social drinkers

Previous reports have shown that drinkers with aggressive personalities not only hold the strongest beliefs that alcohol facilitates aggressive behavior, but they also display the greatest increases in laboratory aggression after receiving alcohol. Given that several studies have demonstrated that a portion of the behavioral and subjective effects of alcohol are due to psychological expectancy, this study explored whether aggressive drinkers have elevated intoxication expectancies from laboratory beverages with unknown alcohol content. The rates of aggressive responses emitted in a money subtraction aggression model under baseline conditions were used to select an aggressive group and a nonaggressive group, each with five male and five female participants. Subjects then ingested and rated each of three placebo (1 ml alcohol) beverages administered hourly during a subsequent laboratory visit, and rated a series of three 0.35 g/kg of alcohol beverages the following day. Whereas nonaggressive subjects clearly discriminated the relative alcohol content of alcohol and placebo drinks, aggressive subjects gave progressively elevated shot equivalent ratings to placebo drinks, similar to their ratings of alcohol doses. However, despite similar self-reported drinking histories, aggressive subjects reported anticipating only half the intoxication from the alcohol doses (and in fact achieved a lower peak breath alcohol concentration) than was expected by nonaggressive subjects.     

Relationships between cognitive and social functioning in preschool children.

Examined short-term longitudinal relationships between test measures of cognitive processes and ratings of classroom behaviors observed during free play. Ss were 64 35–57 mo old middle-class preschoolers, 34 boys and 30 girls. Magnification of the same covariation pattern over time was used as an index of reciprocal influences between cognitive and social functioning. Analyses differentiated between the static (individually stable) and linear-change components of social attributes. Verbal-conceptual processes covaried positively with the static measures of socially outgoing and task-oriented behaviors and with positive vs negative affective expressions in girls, but not in boys. A nonverbal cognitive measure did not so relate to the social measures. The linear-change components of certain social attributes exhibited consistent though limited relationships with the cognitive measures. The study yielded little evidence for reciprocity between the cognitive and social domains. Certain cognitive processes facilitated social adaptation, but social adaptation did not influence cognitive growth. (39 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Interactions between self-reported alcohol outcome expectancies and cognitive functioning in the prediction of alcohol use and associated problems: A further examination.

A recent debate regarding the theoretical distinction between explicit and implicit cognitive processes relevant to alcohol-related behaviors was strongly shaped by empirical findings from dual-process models (Moss & Albery, 2009; Wiers & Stacy, 2010; Moss & Albery, 2010). Specifically, as part of a broader discussion, Wiers & Stacy (2010) contended that alcohol-related behaviors are better predicted by self-reported alcohol expectancies for individuals with good executive control and verbal abilities relative to those without such abilities. The purpose of the current paper is to further test whether self-reported alcohol outcome expectancies are moderated by measures of cognitive functioning. Using multiple indices of alcohol use, alcohol-related consequences, self-reported alcohol outcome expectancies, and cognitive functioning, both cross-sectional and longitudinal analyses were conducted in a prospective sample of 489 individuals at varying risk for alcohol use disorders. Results from a series of regression analyses testing interactions between self-reported alcohol expectancies and cognitive functioning showed minimal support for the hypothesized pattern discussed by Wiers and Stacy, 2010 regarding self-reported alcohol outcome expectancies. The overall rates of significance were consistent with Type I error rates and a substantial proportion of the significant interactions were inconsistent with previous findings. Thus, the conclusion that cognitive measures consistently moderate the relation between self-reported alcohol expectancies and alcohol use and outcomes should be tempered. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Addressing executive functioning and cognitive rehabilitation in the treatment of schizophrenia.

ABSTRACT. Schizophrenia spectrum disorders are currently viewed as having a neuropsychological basis included in the etiology. Cognitive deficits that occur in schizophrenia are primarily observed in the areas of attention–concentration, memory, and planning. These abilities are commonly viewed under the broader spectrum of executive functioning. Research has shown that these executive functioning skills can be improved through the use of cognitive rehabilitation interventions. This article includes a case study documenting the use of cognitive rehabilitation strategies with a patient diagnosed with schizophrenia who possessed documented deficits in executive functioning. The discussion illustrates the possible progress that may be made in the treatment of schizophrenia when this additional tier of intervention is used. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effects of alcohol on aggression in male social drinkers.

Assigned 96 male undergraduates to 1 of 8 groups in a 2 * 2 * 2 factorial design. To control fully for expectation effects, 48 Ss were led to believe that they would be drinking alcohol (vodka and tonic), and 48 believed they would be drinking only tonic water. Within each of these 2 groups, 24 Ss actually received alcohol, but 24 were given only tonic. Following the beverage administration, 48 Ss were provoked to aggress by exposing them to an insulting confederate, whereas control Ss experienced a neutral interaction. Aggression was assessed by the intensity and duration of shocks administered to the confederate on a modified version of A. H. Buss's aggression apparatus. The only significant determinant of aggression was the expectation factor: Ss who believed they had consumed alcohol were more aggressive than Ss who believed they had consumed a nonalcoholic beverage, regardless of the actual alcohol content of the drinks. Ss receiving alcohol, however, showed a significant increase in a reaction time measure, regardless of the expectation condition. Provocation to aggress was also a significant determinant of aggression, but it did not interact with the beverage conditions. (31 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Does preinjury alcohol use or blood alcohol level influence cognitive functioning after traumatic brain injury?

Objective: To examine the relations among preinjury alcohol use patterns and admission blood alcohol level (BAL) and postinjury cognitive functioning among individuals with recent TBI. Design: Cohort survey with chart review and follow-up cognitive assessment. Setting: Acute inpatient rehabilitation program in a Level I trauma center. Participants: 124 consecutive initial admissions meeting inclusion criteria. Measures: Admission BAL, preinjury alcohol consumption, consequences, and symptoms of dependence, as well as initial injury severity and subsequent cognitive functioning. Results: Higher BAL at hospital admission was related to greater initial injury severity (lower Glasgow Coma Scale score). Preinjury alcohol consumption and admission BAL were not consistently related to any postinjury assessment of cognition. Conclusion: Alcohol use at the time of injury may exacerbate the initial severity of TBI. Cognitive functioning soon after injury does not appear to be related to any preinjury drinking behavior. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Acute alcohol tolerance in social drinkers: changes in subjective effects dependent on the alcohol dose and prior alcohol experience

There has been no systematic, large-scale statistical investigation of the link between gambling and suicide, despite the suggestion of such a link from small-scale case studies. This article examines whether gamblers or those associated with them are prone to suicide and whether gaming communities experience atypically high suicide rates. Las Vegas, the premier U.S. gambling setting, displays the highest levels of suicide in the nation, both for residents of Las Vegas and for visitors to that setting. In general, visitors to and residents of major gaming communities experience significantly elevated suicide levels. In Atlantic City, abnormally high suicide levels for visitors and residents appeared only after gambling casinos were opened. The findings do not seem to result merely because gaming settings attract suicidal individuals.     

Expectancies, alcohol, and sexual arousal in male social drinkers.

Randomly assigned 40 undergraduate males, all social drinkers, to 1 of 2 expectation conditions in which they were led to believe that the beverage they were administered contained either vodka and tonic or tonic only. For half of the Ss in each expectation condition, the beverage contained vodka; the others drank only tonic. After their drinks, measures of penile tumescence were taken from Ss using a penile strain gauge during 2 erotic films, 1 depicting a heterosexual interaction, the other a male homosexual interaction. Although analyses of variance failed to reveal any effect of alcohol per se, there were significant effects of expectation on penile tumescence during both the heterosexual and homosexual films. Ss who believed that they had consumed an alcoholic beverage manifested significantly greater sexual arousal than those believing they had consumed a nonalcoholic beverage, regardless of the contents of their drinks. Although no consistent effects were observed on additional measures of sexual arousal, including the TAT, the Word Association Test, and forehead skin temperature, there was a significant positive correlation between self-report measures of sexual arousal and penile tumescence. (19 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Pluralistic ignorance and alcohol use on campus: Some consequences of misperceiving the social norm.

Four studies examined the relation between college students' own attitudes toward alcohol use and their estimates of the attitudes of their peers. All studies found widespread evidence of pluralistic ignorance: Students believed that they were more uncomfortable with campus alcohol practices than was the average student. Study 2 demonstrated this perceived self–other difference also with respect to one's friends. Study 3 tracked attitudes toward drinking over the course of a semester and found gender differences in response to perceived deviance: Male students shifted their attitudes over time in the direction of what they mistakenly believed to be the norm, whereas female students showed no such attitude changes. Study 4 found that students' perceived deviance correlated with various measures of campus alienation, even though that deviance was illusory. The implications of these results for general issues of norm estimation and responses to perceived deviance are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Contribution of specific cognitive processes to executive functioning in an aging population.

The current study investigated executive function measures emphasizing Alpha Span (ASp) to understand relationships among executive and nonexecutive tasks. Nondemented older participants (N = 417) received a comprehensive cognitive battery. Age and vocabulary adjusted correlations revealed associations among ASp, Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale--Revised (D. Wechsler, 1981) Digit Span subtests, and fluency tasks. Principal-components analysis with varimax rotation revealed a 4 component solution (86.4% of the variance) with executive variables contributing to all loadings. Calculated component indices were submitted to a regression analysis predicting ASp performance. After accounting for age (6.3% of the variance), Component 3 reflecting brief attention-mental manipulation accounted for 13.4% of ASp variance; Component 1, verbal language ability, 11.5%; Component 2, sustained attention-mental tracking, 1.9%; and Component 4, visuoperceptual spatial organization-planning, 0.9%. Results stress the importance of considering executive and nonexecutive aspects of cognition when conceptualizing executive functioning. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Family functioning and adolescent alcohol use disorders.

Adolescents with alcohol dependence or abuse (n?=?126) were compared with 124 adolescents with other (nondrug) mental disorders and with a control group of 94 adolescents with no mental disorders on dimensions of family functioning. General family functioning, mother–adolescent relationships, and parental monitoring and discipline practices were assessed by using both adolescent and mother reports. Although overall the groups differed significantly on all family variables, the relationships among groups differed for adolescent and mother reports. By mother reports, families of adolescents with alcohol use disorders functioned less well than did families of adolescents with other mental disorders, whereas by adolescent reports these groups were not significantly different. Examination of both adolescent and mother perspectives may be important in understanding the relationship between family functioning and adolescent alcohol use disorders. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The impact of familial alcoholism on alcohol reactivity in female social drinkers.

Some individuals may have an inherent reactivity to alcohol that facilitates early development of characteristics associated with alcoholism. Although response to alcohol cues has been used to assess this reactivity, few studies have included women or investigated familial alcoholism as a variable. In this study, 23 female college students were divided into groups according to family history of alcoholism (positive or negative). Alcohol reactivity was measured by salivation, skin temperature, heart rate, mood state, and craving for alcohol following presentation of alcohol-related and neutral cues. Results indicate no correlation between salivary reactivity and alcohol craving, which suggests that these variables tap into different domains of cue reactivity. Findings demonstrate that alcohol cue reactivity can be assessed in female social drinkers and that familial alcoholism may influence salivary reactivity to alcohol-related cues. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Risk-taking and alcohol use disorders symptomatology in a sample of problem drinkers.

The relationship between risk-taking behavior and alcohol use disorder (AUD) symptoms is poorly understood. This study employed a modified version of a behavioral measure of risk-taking, the Balloon Analogue Risk Task (BART), to examine its relationship to alcohol use and related symptoms in a community sample of individuals with or at risk for AUD. A total of 158 (71.9% male) participants completed a testing battery that included the BART, a structured diagnostic interview for AUD, and measures of alcohol use and related problems. Estimates of IQ and working memory were assessed as covariates. Results indicated that the relationship between risk-taking propensity, as assessed by the BART, and alcohol problems was significant and negative. Individuals with higher symptom count made fewer pumps per trial on the BART, indicating less risk-taking. It is important to note that this relationship was attenuated when controlling for estimated IQ and working memory span. Further examination demonstrated that IQ and age mediated the relationship between risk-taking propensity and symptom count. The main negative relationship observed between risk-taking on the BART and alcohol use and AUD symptomatology in this sample stands in contrast to the positive relationships observed in adolescent and nonclinical samples. Together, these findings highlight the need to consider development and the course of addiction to fully elucidate the effects of risky-decision making on AUD liability. Furthermore, our results demonstrate the importance of inclusion of neurocognitive covariates (IQ), as well as demographic variables (age) when using this task. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Measuring the discrepancy between current and ideal spiritual and religious functioning in problem drinkers.

The idea that spiritual and religious functioning (SRF) is associated with alcohol misuse is generally supported, but problems with typical research methods limit the utility of findings. Problems in SRF were conceptualized as discrepancies between current and ideal SRF. Two separate studies were conducted to develop and evaluate a scale to measure the subjective importance and adequacy of aspects of SRF that seem to be associated with alcohol problems. The 1st study suggested that a questionnaire developed to evaluate self-reported ratings of current and ideal SRF is both internally consistent and temporally stable. In the 2nd study, the questionnaire was administered to persons seeking treatment for alcohol problems and persons who indicated that they had never sought treatment for an alcohol problem. Results indicate that those with a drinking problem were more likely to report substantial discrepancies between current and ideal SRF, supporting the validity of the measure as an indicator of problems in SRF. The usefulness of this method for treatment and research is discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effects of anxiety arousal on the consumption of alcohol by alcoholics and social drinkers.

Tested the hypothesis that the arousal of anxiety would lead to an increase in the alcoholic's consumption of alcohol. 20 male nonabstinent alcoholics and 20 male social drinkers were engaged in an alcohol taste rating task. High and low levels of state anxiety were induced by threatening Ss with either a painful or a nonpainful electric shock. Levels of trait anxiety were also assessed using the Neuroticism scale of the Eysenck Personality Inventory. Alcoholics consumed significantly more alcohol than social drinkers in the tasting task, but the amounts consumed by both groups were unrelated either to the anxiety manipulation factor or trait anxiety scores. Results are discussed in terms of their implications for anxiety-reduction models of alcoholism. (22 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Electrophysiological evidence of alcohol-related attentional bias in social drinkers low in alcohol sensitivity.

Low sensitivity to the acute effects of alcohol is a known risk factor for alcoholism. However, little is known concerning potential information-processing routes by which this risk factor might contribute to increased drinking. We tested the hypothesis that low-sensitivity (LS) participants would show biased attention to alcohol cues, compared with their high-sensitivity (HS) counterparts. Participants performed a task in which alcoholic and nonalcoholic beverage cues were presented bilaterally followed by a target that required categorization by color. Response times were faster for targets appearing in alcohol-cued than non–alcohol-cued locations for LS but not for HS participants. Event-related potential markers of early attention orienting (P1 amplitude) and subsequent attention reorienting (ipsilateral invalid negativity amplitude) indicated preferential selective attention to alcohol-cued locations among LS individuals. Controlling for recent drinking and family history of alcoholism did not affect these patterns, except that among HS participants, relatively heavy recent drinking was associated with difficulty reorienting attention away from alcohol-cued locations. These findings suggest a potential information-processing bias through which low sensitivity could lead to heavy alcohol involvement. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Hyperbolic temporal discounting in social drinkers and problem drinkers.

Two studies compared participants, distinguished by their typical alcohol consumption, on the degree to which they discounted the value of delayed, hypothetical amounts of money. Heavy social drinkers in Study 1 and problem drinkers in Study 2 both showed greater temporal discounting than light social drinkers; this difference was stronger in Study 2. Both studies found that a hyperbolic function described temporal discounting more accurately than an exponential function. These results are consistent with extending behavioral theories of intertemporal choice to characterize the determinants of alcohol consumption. The discounting differences also are consistent with more general behavioral economic and economic theories of addiction, although the hyperbolic functional form is inconsistent with the exponential discounting function in economic theory. The drinker groups also differed on impulsiveness and time orientation questionnaires, with light drinkers being less impulsive and more future oriented; however, these measures were not strongly correlated with the measure of temporal discounting. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Young-adult malt liquor drinkers: Prediction of alcohol problems and marijuana use.

Malt liquor (ML) is a cheap, high alcohol content beverage that is marketed to appeal to young adults. Findings from the few published studies of ML use suggest that it may be associated with excessive drinking, alcohol problems, and the use of illicit drugs. The authors conducted separate hierarchical multiple regressions to examine the role of ML use and psychosocial variables (e.g., personality, ML motives) in alcohol-related problems and marijuana use. Demographic characteristics served as controls. The sample consisted of 639 (456 men, 183 women) young adults (M = 22.9 years, SD = 4.2) who regularly (≥40 oz/week) consumed ML. ML use significantly and positively predicted alcohol problems, ML-specific problems, and marijuana use, above and beyond their associations with typical alcohol use. Marijuana was the illicit drug of choice, and 46% reported concurrent use of marijuana and ML. Those who concurrently used ML and marijuana began drinking at a younger age and reported more substance use (particularly marijuana) and more alcohol-related problems than did nonconcurrent users. These results suggest that ML use may represent a risk for alcohol problems and marijuana use. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Provocation to anger and opportunity for retaliation as determinants of alcohol consumption in social drinkers.

Assigned 30 male and 30 female college students identified as heavy social drinkers to 1 of 6 groups in a 3 * 2 factorial design. In addition to the S sex factor, the 3 main treatment groups were provocation to anger with no opportunity to retaliate, provocation with opportunity for retaliation, and a no-provocation, no-retaliation control group. Provoked Ss were angered by an insulting confederate, whereas controls experienced a neutral interaction with the confederate. In the retaliation condition, Ss were given the opportunity to deliver a fixed number of shocks to the confederate who had provoked them. Drinking rates in all Ss were then determined by their participation in a standardized taste-rating task, which permitted an unobtrusive measure of alcohol consumption. Results show that group members who were provoked and expressed their anger by retaliating against the confederate consumed significantly less alcohol than provoked Ss in the no-retaliation condition. Controls drank an intermediate amount of alcohol but did not differ significantly from the other 2 groups. Sex was not a significant determinant of alcohol consumption. (16 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)