High-dose transdermal nicotine and naltrexone: Effects on nicotine withdrawal, urges, smoking, and effects of smoking.

Although treatment with transdermal nicotine replacement (TNR) has improved smoking abstinence rates, higher doses of TNR could improve effects on urge to smoke, nicotine withdrawal, and reinforcement from smoking, and naltrexone might further reduce reinforcement and urges. A laboratory investigation with 134 smokers using a 3 × 2 parallel-group design evaluated the effects of TNR (42-mg, 21-mg, or 0-mg patch) as crossed with a single dose of naltrexone (50 mg) versus placebo on urge to smoke, withdrawal, and responses to an opportunity to smoke (intake, subjective effects) after 10 hr of deprivation. Urge and withdrawal were assessed both prior to and after cigarette cue exposure. Only 42 mg TNR, not 21 mg, prevented urge to smoke, heart rate change, and cue-elicited increase in withdrawal. Both 21 and 42 mg TNR blocked cue-elicited drop in heart rate and arterial pressure. Naltrexone reduced cue-elicited withdrawal symptoms but not urges to smoke or deprivation-induced withdrawal prior to cue exposure. Neither medication significantly affected carbon monoxide intake or subjective effects of smoking except that 42 mg TNR resulted in lower subjective physiological activation. No interaction effects were found, and no results differed by gender. Results suggest that starting smokers with 42 mg TNR may increase comfort during initial abstinence, but limited support is seen for naltrexone during smoking abstinence. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Loss of emotional experience after traumatic brain injury: Findings with the startle probe procedure.

The authors used affective modulation of the eyeblink startle response to examine the impact of traumatic brain injury (TBI) on emotional reactions to pictures. Participants were 13 individuals with severe TBI and 24 controls. Participants were presented with pictures that differed in affective valence (e.g., mutilated bodies, erotic couples, and household objects) while the eyeblink startle response to an acoustic probe was measured. Startle amplitude was used to assess valence of emotional response, and startle latency was used to index interest in the pictures. Subjective ratings of the affect and arousal elicited by the various pictures were also obtained. TBI impaired startle potentiation to unpleasant pictures but not startle attenuation to pleasant pictures. Further, subjective ratings indicated that TBI participants found unpleasant pictures less arousing than did controls. The results are consistent with recent evidence of differential impairment in negative versus positive emotions after TBI and are discussed in relation to 2 competing explanations of startle modulation. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Emotional learning, hedonic change, and the startle probe.

A multiple-response analysis of aversive learning was conducted in human Ss. For each S, 2 pictorial stimuli were presented, 1 paired with electric shock. After training, the magnitude of the acoustic startle eyeblink reflex elicited in the context of the shocked picture increased dramatically and was significantly larger than for reflexes elicited during the nonshocked stimulus. Five different picture contents were tested in separate groups: Reflex potentiation was larger for pictures rated as pleasant than pictures rated as unpleasant. CRs were also evident for skin conductance, heart rate, and affective judgments. Different systems reflected different aspects of the acquired fear response: Conductance change covaried with arousal, and startle probe magnitude varied with affective valence (pleasure). The neurophysiological implications of the data are elucidated, and parallels drawn between animal and human S findings. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Hostility, cigarette smoking, and responses to a lab-based social stressor.

High-trait hostility is associated with persistent cigarette smoking. To better understand mechanisms that may account for this association, we examined the effects of acute smoking abstinence and delayed versus immediate smoking reinstatement on responses to a social stressor among 48 low hostile (LH) and 48 high hostile (HH) smokers. Participants completed two laboratory sessions, one before which they had smoked ad lib and one before which they had abstained for the prior 12 hr. During each session, participants completed a stressful speaking task and then smoked immediately after the stressor or after a 15-min delay. The effect of immediate versus delayed smoking reinstatement on recovery in negative mood was significantly moderated by hostility. When reinstatement was delayed, HH participants showed significant increases in negative mood over time, whereas LH participants showed little change. When reinstatement was immediate, HH and LH smokers showed similar significant decreases in negative mood. Smoking abstinence did not moderate hostility effects. Cigarette smoking may prevent continuing increases in negative mood after social stress in HH smokers, which may partially explain their low rates of quitting. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Affect, expectancies, urges, and smoking: Do they conform to models of drug motivation and relapse?

Social-learning models of drug motivation and relapse often include the constructs of affect and drug expectancies. Most research has taken a molar approach to examining relations between these constructs and level of drug use. An experiment examined the roles of affect and expectancies in multiple measures of situation-specific motivation to smoke tobacco. Undergraduate smokers (n?=?101) received either a positive or negative mood manipulation (false feedback on an intelligence test). Self-reported urge was influenced by both negative affect and expectancies for positive reinforcement from smoking. Actual consumption was related only to smoking expectancies and only among abstaining smokers. affect by expectancy interactions were also found. Findings support a limited role of affect and expectancies in smoking motivation. Poor coherence among the motivational indexes challenges the assumptions of existing models of drug motivation. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Peripheral and central components of alerting: Habituation of acoustic startle, orienting responses, and elicited waveforms.

Behavioral orienting (OR), the acoustic startle reflex (ASR), pontogeniculooccipital (PGO) waves in the lateral geniculate body, and midlatency auditory evoked responses (MLR) represent components of alerting. The habituation rate for each was examined to test the hypothesis that OR, ASR, and PGO waves have related underlying neural mechanisms and determine the similarity in responsiveness between elicited PGO waves (PGOE) and elicited waves in the thalamic central lateral nucleus (CLE), a site that yields MLR. PGOE and CLE waves did not habituate in amplitude after 120 tones; however, the pattern of responses for each waveform was different. OR and ASR significantly decreased amplitude across trials with OR exhibiting a faster, more pronounced decrement. Some separation exists between the peripheral (OR and ASR) and central (PGOE and CLE) components of alerting. PGO and CL waves may have common underlying neural mechanisms. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Smoking, stress, and negative affect: Correlation, causation, and context across stages of smoking.

This transdisciplinary review of the literature addresses the questions, Do stress and negative affect (NA) promote smoking? and Does smoking genuinely relieve stress and NA? Drawing on both human and animal literatures, the authors examine these questions across three developmental stages of smoking--initiation, maintenance, and relapse. Methodological and conceptual distinctions relating to within- and between-subjects levels of analyses are emphasized throughout the review. Potential mechanisms underlying links between stress and NA and smoking are also reviewed. Relative to direct-effect explanations, the authors argue that contextual mediator-moderator approaches hold greater potential for elucidating complex associations between NA and stress and smoking. The authors conclude with recommendations for research initiatives that draw on more sophisticated theories and methodologies. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effects of reflection, restatement, probe, and nonverbal behaviors on client affect.

Examined the effects of counselor verbal behavior (reflections, probes, and restatements) and nonverbal behavior (presence or absence of nodding and smiling) on the verbal responses of 48 undergraduates. Each S participated in a half-hour counseling session which was divided into 4 time periods (baseline, counselor intervention, baseline, and counselor intervention). It was observed that probes resulted in more discussion of feelings than did either reflections or restatements. Nonverbal behavior did not affect discussion of feelings. Possible reasons for the effectiveness of the probe are considered. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Self-report knowledge: At the crossroads of ability, interest, and personality.

The authors describe an approach to adult intellect on the basis of content, unlike the traditional approach, which is mostly based on process. Thirty-two academic knowledge scales were rated by 202 college students, who also completed ability, vocational interest, and personality scales. Analyses of knowledge clusters and individual scales were used to evaluate commonality across ability constructs (verbal and spatial ability), vocational interests (realistic, investigative, and artistic), and personality (typical intellectual engagement and openness). The results support knowledge differentiation across fluid and crystallized abilities, show a pattern of positive correlations of arts and humanities knowledge with typical intellectual engagement and openness, and show correlations between math and physical sciences knowledge and realistic and investigative interests. Implications for the study of adult intelligence are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Programmed therapeutic messages as a smoking treatment adjunct: Reducing the impact of negative affect.

Maintaining treatment gains remains a challenge to smoking cessation programs. Smokers prone to negative affect are most likely to relapse. In an effort to improve maintenance, a standard cognitive behavioral treatment was supplemented with the provision of computer-controlled audiotape players containing personalized therapeutic messages. Either the standard treatment alone or the standard treatment plus 2 months use of the tape player were provided to 41 smokers. No outcome difference was found between the 2 conditions during the 1-year follow-up. (The combined 1-year abstinence rate was 61%, with 34% continuously abstinent.) The frequency with which participants used the device predicted both posttreatment coping skill use and smoking rate. Most notable was an interaction between treatment condition and negative affect. Provision of the devices negated or reversed the usual association between negative affect and poorer outcome. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The experience of affect as a determinant of smoking behavior: A series of validity studies.

Conducted a series of 4 studies testing the validity of self-report data on the Tomkins-Ikard Smoking Scale concerning types of smoking. The hypothesis that smoking is related to source affect experience was supported in a study with 57 undergraduates and in a field study observing individuals at a race track. Smoking increased as a function of an increase in negative affect. The effect of smoking deprivation was studied by assessing craving in 24 university students during a 3-hr deprivation period and by assessing the number of cigarettes smoked by 32 Ss in a smoking clinic. The effect of deprivation and the ability to smoke on a schedule were related to the type of smoker. Psychological addicts suffered most from deprivation or scheduling. Data indicate that techniques for achieving cessation should be tailored to the individual and that techniques for managing negative affect should be developed to reduce smoking dependency. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Influence of paid and unpaid work on psychophysiological stress responses of men and women.

Female labor force participation has increased considerably, but women's traditional responsibility for home and family has not changed accordingly. Although women's employment per se does not seem to have negative health consequences, studies in Sweden show that role conflicts and work overload is reflected in women's elevated psychophysiological arousal not only at work but also off work, which may induce psychosomatic symptoms (e.g., cardiovascular and musculoskeletal disorders). In addition, multiple role demands reduce women's possibilities to make a professional career on the same terms as men. Data emphasize the need for a new allocation of work functions between the sexes and the need for organizational changes leading to more influence and control over work to make it possible for both men and women to continue a qualified job with a meaningful family life. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The relationship between self-efficacy and reductions in smoking in a contingency management procedure.

Social–cognitive and behavioral theories of change disagree on what the relevant controlling variables for initiating behavior change are. Correlations between baseline smoking cessation self-efficacy and the changes in breath carbon monoxide (CO) and the reduction in breath CO and increases in smoking cessation self-efficacy from baseline were obtained from a contingency management smoking cessation procedure. A test of the difference between the cross-lag correlations suggested a nonspurious causal relationship between smoking cessation self-efficacy and changes in breath CO. Path analyses showed that decreases in breath CO (reductions in smoking) predicted later increases in smoking cessation self-efficacy. Baseline self-reports of smoking cessation self-efficacy were not significantly correlated with subsequent changes in breath CO. Rather, significant correlations were found between reductions in breath CO and later increases in smoking cessation self-efficacy. These results suggest that self-efficacy may be a cognitive response to one’s own behavior, and are inconsistent with a social–cognitive view of self-efficacy’s role in behavior change. Implications for the development of smoking cessation programs and health-promoting behavior changes in general are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Aging, selective attention, and inhibitory processes: A psychophysiological approach.

Investigated the efficiency with which younger and older adults allocate attention to relevant and irrelevant stimuli. The model of attention guiding this research links the orienting response with the allocation of attention and habituation with the inhibition of the allocation of attention. The authors adapted a paradigm developed by W. G. Iacono and D. T. Lykken (1983) in which Ss are instructed unambiguously either to attend or to ignore a series of innocuous tones, and the skin conductance orienting response elicited by each tone is measured. Results revealed that young Ss instructed to ignore the tones habituated more quickly than did those instructed to attend to the tones. However, older adults exhibited nondifferential orienting across the 2 instruction conditions. These results suggest an age-related deficit in the ability to inhibit attention to irrelevant stimuli. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effect of reflection of feeling and probe on client self-referenced affect.

Examined the relative effectiveness of reflection of feeling and probe in eliciting self-referenced affect in a low-structured counseling situation with 40 female undergraduates. Both reflection of feeling and probe significantly increased client production of self-referenced affect, indicating the feasibility of training counselors to utilize both reflection of feeling and probe as appropriate counselor responses for increasing client feeling statements. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Associations between childhood trauma and emotion-modulated psychophysiological responses to startling sounds: A study of police cadets.

Childhood trauma may confer risk for adult psychopathology by altering emotional and physiological responses to subsequent stressors. Few studies have distinguished effects of childhood trauma from effects of current Axis I psychopathology on adult psychophysiological reactivity. The authors exposed 90 psychiatrically healthy police cadets to startling sounds under increasing threat of shock while assessing their eyeblink electromyogram (EMG), skin conductance (SC), and heart rate responses. When compared with those who did not endorse early trauma (n = 65), cadets reporting childhood trauma (n = 25) reported less positive emotion and showed greater SC responses across all threat levels. They also showed threat-dependent elevations in reported negative emotions and EMG responses. Results suggest that childhood trauma may lead to long-lasting alterations in emotional and psychophysiological reactivity even in the absence of current Axis I psychopathology. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Cognitive and behavioral treatments of agoraphobia: Clinical, behavioral, and psychophysiological outcomes.

39 severe and chronic agoraphobics with panic attacks, diagnosed using the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-III) criteria, were randomly assigned to 1 of 3 cognitive-behavioral treatments: paradoxical intention (PI), graduated exposure (GE), or progressive deep muscle relaxation training (RT). Treatment consisted of 12 2-hr weekly sessions conducted by experienced therapists whose treatment integrity was objectively monitored. All 31 23–63 yr old Ss who completed the program received an extensive rationale emphasizing self-directed exposure and programmed practice in addition to their primary treatment. A comprehensive assessment battery consisting of clinical ratings of severity, phobia, anxiety, depression, and panic, as well as direct measures of behavioral, psychophysiological, and cognitive response systems was administered at pre-, mid- (6 wks), and posttreatment (12 wks) and at 3-mo follow-up. Analyses revealed significant improvement for all Ss. GE and RT tended to evoke more rapid effects. At follow-up, GE and RT evidenced the greatest potency and stability, as compared with PI. The GE condition experienced twice the drop-out rate of PI and RT. The phenomenon of synchrony appeared to be associated with overall improvement at 12 wks and follow-up. (20 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Amygdala efferents mediating electrically evoked startle-like responses and fear potentiation of acoustic startle.

One-pulse stimulation of the ventral amygdalofugal pathway (VAF), ventrolateral midbrain, or medial medulla evoked startle-like responses. Refractory periods tested by 2-pulse stimulation ranged from 0.2 to 0.5 msec in both midbrain and medulla sites and from 0.4 to 0.8 msec in VAF sites. Symmetric collision effects between midbrain and medulla sites suggest that fast-conducting axons between the sites mediate the response. Asymmetric collision effects between VAF and midbrain suggest that strong synapses between these sites mediate the response, with a transmission time of 1 msec. No collision was observed between contralateral sites. Bilateral lesions of midbrain sites blocked VAF responses and fear-conditioned startle, but failed to block acoustic startle, and partially blocked medulla responses. A new neural model of fear-potentiated startle is proposed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)