Conditioned Inhibition of Cocaine Seeking in Rats.

Despite its potential relevance to the treatment of drug abuse, conditioned inhibition of drug seeking has not been systematically investigated before. In this study, rats could self-administer cocaine by lever pressing whenever a click or tone was present. Responding was not reinforced when a light was present. The light was presented simultaneously with the click (i.e., in an excitatory context) in 1 group, but the light was always presented alone in another group. When it was later presented in compound with the tone, the light was a highly effective conditioned inhibitor, suppressing cocaine seeking by 92% in the former group and by 74% in the latter. These results suggest ways to improve cue-oriented behavioral treatments for drug abuse. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Pavlovian to instrumental transfer of control in a human learning task.

Pavlovian learning tasks have been widely used as tools to understand basic cognitive and emotional processes in humans. The present studies investigated one particular task, Pavlovian-to-instrumental transfer (PIT), with human participants in an effort to examine potential cognitive and emotional effects of Pavlovian cues upon instrumentally trained performance. In two experiments, subjects first learned two separate instrumental response-outcome relationships (i.e., R1-O1 and R2-O2) and then were exposed to various stimulus-outcome relationships (i.e., S1-O1, S2-O2, S3-O3, and S4-) before the effects of the Pavlovian stimuli on instrumental responding were assessed during a non-reinforced test. In Experiment 1, instrumental responding was established using a positive-reinforcement procedure, whereas in Experiment 2, a quasi-avoidance learning task was used. In both cases, the Pavlovian stimuli exerted selective control over instrumental responding, whereby S1 and S2 selectively elevated the instrumental response with which it shared an outcome. In addition, in Experiment 2, S3 exerted a nonselective transfer of control effect, whereby both responses were elevated over baseline levels. These data identify two ways, one specific and one general, in which Pavlovian processes can exert control over instrumental responding in human learning paradigms, suggesting that this method may serve as a useful tool in the study of basic cognitive and emotional processes in human learning. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Triazolam impairs inhibitory control of behavior in humans.

This study tested the effects of the sedative-hypnotic drug triazolam (Halcion) on the ability to inhibit behavior in humans. Thirty adults practiced a stop-signal task that measured their ability to inhibit and activate behavioral responses on a choice reaction time task. Equal numbers of participants (i.e., n?=?10) then received either 0.25 mg, 0.125 mg, or 0 mg (placebo) of triazolam under double-blind conditions and performed the task intermittently over a 3-hr period. In accord with the hypothesis, triazolam reduced response inhibitions and increased the time required to inhibit a response. The drug also slowed the activation of responses. The findings contribute to the understanding of the basic behavioral mechanisms by which sedative-hypnotic drugs can produce states of behavioral disinhibition in some individuals. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A theory and model of conflict detection in air traffic control: Incorporating environmental constraints.

A performance theory for conflict detection in air traffic control is presented that specifies how controllers adapt decisions to compensate for environmental constraints. This theory is then used as a framework for a model that can fit controller intervention decisions. The performance theory proposes that controllers apply safety margins to ensure separation between aircraft. These safety margins are formed through experience and reflect the biasing of decisions to favor safety over accuracy, as well as expectations regarding uncertainty in aircraft trajectory. In 2 experiments, controllers indicated whether they would intervene to ensure separation between pairs of aircraft. The model closely predicted the probability of controller intervention across the geometry of problems and as a function of controller experience. When controller safety margins were manipulated via task instructions, the parameters of the model changed in the predicted direction. The strength of the model over existing and alternative models is that it better captures the uncertainty and decision biases involved in the process of conflict detection. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Participants Receiving Dehydroepiandrosterone During Treatment for Cocaine Dependence Show High Rates of Cocaine Use in a Placebo-Controlled Pilot Study.

Twenty-three cocaine-dependent participants were randomly assigned to receive either dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA; n = 11; 100 mg/day) or placebo (n = 12) in the context of 12 weeks of thrice weekly cognitive-behavioral group counseling. Outcomes were retention, urine drug screening, cocaine craving, adverse experiences, and medication compliance. DHEA-treated participants averaged 45.8 (SD = 28.8) days in treatment, compared with 70.7 (SD = 20.6) days for placebo, r(21) = -2.4, p = .03, and provided 26.8% (SD = 29.3) of urine samples free of cocaine metabolite compared with 70.6% (SD = 39.9) for the placebo condition, r(21) = -3.0, p = .01. No differences were detected between conditions for cocaine craving or adverse experiences. High levels of medication compliance were documented. Results argue against using high doses of DHEA as a pharmacotherapy for cocaine dependence. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Dissociating consciousness from inhibitory control: Evidence for unconsciously triggered response inhibition in the stop-signal task.

Theories about the functional relevance of consciousness commonly posit that higher order cognitive control functions, such as response inhibition, require consciousness. To test this assertion, the authors designed a masked stop-signal paradigm to examine whether response inhibition could be triggered and initiated by masked stop signals, which inform participants to stop an action they have begun. In 2 experiments, masked stop signals were observed to occasionally result in full response inhibition as well as to yield a slow down in the speed of responses that were not inhibited. The magnitude of this subliminally triggered response time slowing effect correlated with the efficiency measure (stop signal reaction time) of response inhibition across participants. Thus, response inhibition can be triggered unconsciously—more so in individuals who are good inhibitors and under conditions that are associated with efficient response inhibition. These results indicate that in contradiction to common theorizing, inhibitory control processes can operate outside awareness. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Rat prefrontal dopamine and cognitive control: Impaired and enhanced conflict performance.

It has been proposed that the cognitive dysfunction observed in patients with schizophrenia reflects a failure in cognitive control, in particular an inability to use task-relevant information to guide behavior. Using a prefrontal-dependent task designed to reflect aspects of cue and response conflict seen in human cognitive paradigms, we examined the influence of prefrontal dopamine receptor manipulation on the contextual control of response conflict. Rats were trained on two biconditional discrimination tasks, one auditory and one visual, in two discriminably different contexts. At test, audiovisual compounds of these training stimuli were presented, in extinction, in each of the training contexts. These compounds were formed in such a way that the individual elements previously dictated different responses during training, termed incongruent trials. Studies have shown that rats use contextual information to disambiguate the conflicting information provided by incongruent compounds, responding in manner that is appropriate to the stimulus element that was trained in the test context. Direct infusion of the D1 receptor agonist SKF-38393 into the prelimbic cortex was found to modulate incongruent trial performance in a manner that was dependent upon baseline performance: animals in the low baseline group demonstrated improved incongruent performance following infusion of SKF-38393 into the prelimbic cortex. In contrast, high performers showed a reduction in accuracy during incongruent compounds. This paradigm provides a reliable framework for assessing the efficacy of preclinical agents in treating the cognitive impairments seen in frontal-related disorders such as schizophrenia. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Alcohol and cognitive control: Implications for regulation of behavior during response conflict.

Alcohol intoxication often leads to dysregulated behavior in contexts characterized by conflict between prepotent response tendencies and incompatible alternative responses. Recent research has identified 2 components of an anterior executive attention system that are essential for adaptive behavior when response conflict exists. Event-related potential (ERP) measures of evaluative and regulative cognitive control were collected to determine if impaired executive attention was responsible for observed behavior deficits when intoxicated. Intoxicated participants displayed task performance deficits on incongruent color-naming trials relative to sober controls. Alcohol did not affect P3 magnitude/latency, indicating that timing and integrity of stimulus evaluation remained intact. In contrast, alcohol did reduce frontal components of ERP that index evaluative and regulative cognitive control processes. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Marital conflict and preadolescent behavioral competence: Maternal knowledge as a longitudinal mediator.

The present study considered whether maternal knowledge mediated the relation between overt marital conflict and preadolescent behavioral competence. Four years of self-report data were collected from 133 mothers and their preadolescents, beginning when the preadolescents were in 4th grade. Marital conflict, maternal knowledge, and preadolescent behavioral competence were assessed at all 4 time points in order to apply a stringent methodology for assessing longitudinal mediating patterns. The results indicated that maternal knowledge mediated the relation between marital conflict and preadolescent behavioral competence. Thus, the present study identified one possible process through which marital conflict may affect preadolescent behavior. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Putting the brakes on prejudice: On the development and operation of cues for control.

A model concerning the establishment and operation of cues for control was developed and tested to understand how control can be exerted over (automatic) prejudiced responses. Cues for control are stimuli that are associated with prejudiced responses and the aversive consequences of those responses (e.g., guilt). In Exp 1 and 2, 3 events critical to the establishment of cues occurred: behavioral inhibition, the experience of guilt, and retrospective reflection. In Exp 3, the presentation of already-established cues for control did, as expected, produce behavioral inhibition. In Exp 4, participants were provided with an experience in which cues could be established. Later presentation of those cues in a different task resulted in behavioral inhibition and less racially biased responses. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A contingency model of conflict and team effectiveness.

The authors develop and test theoretical extensions of the relationships of task conflict, relationship conflict, and 2 dimensions of team effectiveness (performance and team-member satisfaction) among 2 samples of work teams in Taiwan and Indonesia. Findings show that relationship conflict moderates the task conflict–team performance relationship. Specifically, the relationship is curvilinear in the shape of an inverted U when relationship conflict is low, but the relationship is linear and negative when relationship conflict is high. The results for team-member satisfaction are more equivocal, but the findings provide some evidence that relationship conflict exacerbates the negative relationship between task conflict and team-member satisfaction. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

The relations of motivational traits with workplace deviance.

The authors developed and tested new theoretical relations between approach and avoidance motivational traits and deviant work behaviors. Approach motivation was divided into 3 traits: personal mastery (i.e., desire to achieve), competitive excellence (i.e., desire to perform better than others), and behavioral activation system (BAS) sensitivity (i.e., responsiveness to rewards). Avoidance motivation, which reflects one's sensitivity to negative stimuli and the desire to escape such stimuli, was conceptualized as a unitary construct. Using structural equation modeling, the authors examined the relations of these 4 motivational traits with interpersonal and organizational deviance in a sample of primarily part-time employees. For the approach motivation traits, results showed that personal mastery was negatively related to interpersonal and organizational deviance, BAS sensitivity was positively related to interpersonal and organizational deviance, and competitive excellence was unrelated to both types of workplace deviance. Finally, avoidance motivation was positively related to organizational deviance and interacted with organizational constraints to predict interpersonal deviance. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Galantamine improves sustained attention in chronic cocaine users.

Chronic cocaine users are known to have cognitive deficits that are predictive of poor treatment response. Whether these deficits improve with medications targeting specific cognitive functions has not been examined in previous studies. The goal of this study was to evaluate galantamine's efficacy on selected cognitive outcomes, including measures of sustained attention, response inhibition, and attentional bias in recently abstinent cocaine users. Galantamine, a reversible and competitive inhibitor of acetylcholinesterase, is used clinically in the treatment of Alzheimer's dementia. In a randomized, double-blind, parallel-group study, 34 participants were randomized to galantamine (8 mg/day) or placebo treatment for 10 days. Cognitive and self-report mood measures were obtained at baseline and on Days 5 and 10 after the initiation of treatment. Galantamine treatment, compared to placebo, improved the reaction time, F(2, 50) = 8.6, p .05). These results demonstrate that medications can enhance cognitive function (e.g., sustained attention) in abstinent cocaine users. The potential efficacy of galantamine as a treatment for cocaine abuse needs to be further evaluated in clinical trials. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Separating emotion and motivational direction in fear and anger: Effects on frontal asymmetry.

State effects on frontal alpha electroencephalograph asymmetry (ASY) are thought to reflect approach and withdrawal motivational tendencies. Although this motivational direction model has inspired a large body of research, efforts to disentangle influences of emotion (EMO) and motivational direction (MOT) on ASY are rare. The authors independently manipulated EMO (fear and anger) and MOT (approach and withdrawal) in a between-subjects design. Irrespective of MOT, anger led to greater changes toward relative left frontal activation (LFA) than did fear. Conversely, higher ratings of negative valence were associated with greater changes toward LFA in withdrawal but with greater changes toward relative right frontal activation in approach. Results are discussed within a model based on behavioral inhibition system-behavioral activation system theory. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Components measurable in manifestations of mental conflict.

3 operational approaches to conflict measurement, emanating from the dynamic calculus theory, are described. Conflict measurement, as investigated here, intercorrelates 24 varied behavioral manifestations commonly considered signs of conflict. To check on generalizability, this is done for 3 distinct foci of conflict. The intercorrelations among the conflict manifestations are subjected to simple structure factor resolution, and it is shown that there is a high degree of similarity of loading pattern among the 8 factors which proved to be present in each of the 3 experiments. The interpretations offered for these factors fit some definitions of ego defenses as given by psychoanalysts, but, additionally, there are systematic modes of response to conflict transcending psychoanalytic concepts. Relations to social-psychological criteria will follow. (32 ref.) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Personality conflict, originality of response, and recall.

The general hypothesis states that variability in response to the same repeated stimulus is a function of intraindividual conflict. Applying this formulation to personality conflict, it is expected that the conflicted individual will show greater variability as a function of competing responses which appear alternately in subsequent similar situations. A measure of approach-avoidance personality conflict is described. High and low scorers on this conflict scale were exposed to a word-association task and were then required to recall their own responses. On the basis of the competing-tendency hypothesis, it was predicted that the conflicted subjects would show a higher frequency of original responses and reduced efficiency of recall. Both predictions were confirmed. Four instructional conditions preceding the word-association task failed to affect the conflict groups differentially, but personality and achievement instructions resulted in higher recall for both conflict groups. Some suggestions are offered for an improved measure of personality conflict. The results are discussed in terms of the conflict-variability hypothesis, and some implications are drawn for research on creativity. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Displacement as a function of conflict.

"Miller's theory of displacement was extended by integration with his conflict theory into a three-dimensional model… . To test deductions from this model rats were first trained to get food at one end of an alley and then shocked while eating until they no longer approached the food cup. They then left this alley and entered other alleys differing slightly from the original alley. Here they went closer to the food end than in the original alley. Tracings of their movements followed a pattern predicted from the model… . After making goal responses in the generalized alleys, the rats returned to eat in the original alley, showing a 'therapeutic' effect." (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Adjustments of conflict monitoring in Parkinson's disease.

Objective: In Stroop-like tasks, the detection of conflict triggers adjustments of cognitive control to reduce conflict in subsequent trials. The present study tested the hypothesis of an impaired modulation of conflict monitoring in Parkinson's disease (PD). Method: 18 PD patients and 18 healthy control (HC) participants performed a Stroop-like task in 2 conditions differing in terms of incongruent/congruent stimuli ratio. Results: HC participants demonstrated a sustained modulation of interference effect, the interference effect being decreased when the proportion of incongruent stimuli was high. A trial-by-trial analysis also showed that in the HC group, processing an incongruent stimulus reduced interference in the subsequent trial. Unlike controls, PD patients did not demonstrate any transient or sustained reduction of the interference effect. Conclusion: Within the framework of recent models, these results can be interpreted as an impairment of a proactive mode of cognitive control in patients with PD. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Practice Makes Progress? Homework Assignments and Outcome in Treatment of Cocaine Dependence.

The relationship between treatment outcome and the extent to which participants completed homework assignments was evaluated among 60 cocaine-dependent individuals assigned to cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT). Homework was assigned in 72% of all sessions and initiated by participants in 48% of the sessions in which it was assigned. Completion of homework was unrelated to participants' baseline characteristics and several indicators of treatment compliance. Participants who completed more homework assignments demonstrated significantly greater increases in the quantity and quality of their coping skills and used significantly less cocaine during treatment and through a 1-year follow-up. These data suggest that the extent to which participants are willing to complete extrasession assignments may be an important mediator of response to CBT. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

d-amphetamine-induced enhancement of inhibitory mechanisms involved in visual search.

The authors examined the effects of d-amphetamine on the ability to perform a cued target-detection task that measured inhibition of return (IOR). IOR is a reflexive inhibitory mechanism that delays attention from returning to a previously attended location and has been shown to increase the efficiency of a visual search. Adults (N=14) with a history of cocaine use performed the task under 4 doses of d-amphetamine (0, 10, 20, and 30 mg). The results showed active d-amphetamine doses increased the duration of IOR. By increasing the delay in returning attention to a previously attended location, d-amphetamine might reduce time spent searching previously attended locations, increasing the efficiency of visual searches. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)