Behavioral Momentum of Alcohol Self-Administration

酒精自我管理的行为动力

基本信息

批准号：
7850202
负责人：
Timothy A Shahan
金额：
$ 2万
依托单位：
UTAH STATE UNIVERSITY
依托单位国家：
美国
项目类别：
财政年份：
2009
资助国家：
美国
起止时间：
2009-06-18 至 2010-08-31
项目状态：
已结题

项目摘要

The persistence of drug and alcohol seeking is a critical issue in the treatment of substance abuse and dependence. Drug cues figure prominently in current theories of addiction and are thought to play a role in the persistence of drug seeking and relapse. Because drug taking is operant behavior, animal models of drug self-administration based on operant conditioning have been useful in examining how biological and environmental variables contribute to drug seeking and relapse. Methodological and theoretical developments in the study of the persistence of operant behavior in the face of disruption may provide further insights into to the persistence of drug-maintained responding. Behavioral momentum theory provides a set of methods and a quantitative theory of how reinforcement conditions affect the persistence of behavior in the presence of a stimulus. Based on a prediction of behavioral momentum theory, we have found that the persistence of alcohol seeking in the presence of a stimulus depends on all the reinforcers (both drug and non-drug) available in that stimulus, even if some of those reinforcers interfere with drug-seeking. Thus, it may be necessary to consider all of the sources of reinforcement (i.e., drug and non-drug) associated with a drug cue to understand the impact of that cue on the persistence of drug seeking. Further extensions of the methods and quantitative theoretical framework of behavioral momentum theory may provide important insights into the persistence of drug seeking in the presence of drug cues. In addition, because drug cues appear to play a role in relapse, extensions of behavioral momentum theory to an animal model of relapse may provide insights into how the context of reinforcement contributes to relapse in the presence of drug cues. The proposed research aims to: 1) Further examine the effects of alternative non-drug reinforcers on the persistence of alcohol self-administration; 2) Examine the utility of extending the quantitative account of resistance to change provided by behavioral momentum to alcohol self-administration; and 3) Extend behavioral momentum to an animal model of relapse. Continued examination of these issues is important because the persistence of drug seeking is one of the defining features of drug and alcohol abuse. A better understanding of how drug cues impact the persistence of drug seeking may suggest novel behavioral interventions targeted at reducing the impact of exposure to such cues. This project is important to public health because it will help provide an understanding of the factors that make drug and alcohol abuse so persistent. Findings from this project may suggest novel behavioral treatments targeted at reducing the persisence of drug and alcohol abuse and preventing relapse.

毒品和酒精的持续性是治疗物质的关键问题滥用和依赖。药物提示在当前成瘾理论中显着，是被认为在寻求和复发的持续存在中发挥作用。因为吸毒是操作行为，基于操作条件的药物自我管理的动物模型具有在研究生物学和环境变量如何促进药物寻求药物方面很有用和复发。方法论和理论发展研究面对破坏的操作行为可能会进一步了解毒品维护的反应。行为动量理论提供了一组方法和强化条件如何影响行为持续性的定量理论存在刺激。基于对行为动量理论的预测，我们发现在刺激存在下寻求酒精的持续性取决于所有即使其中一些增强剂干扰寻求毒品。因此，可能有必要考虑所有的来源与药物提示相关的加固（即药物和非药物），以了解关于寻求毒品的持续存在的暗示。方法和定量的进一步扩展行为动量理论的理论框架可能会提供对该行为的重要见解在毒品提示的情况下寻求药物的持续存在。另外，因为药物提示似乎在复发中起作用，行为动量理论扩展到动物模型复发可能会提供有关加强背景如何有助于复发的见解毒品提示的存在。拟议的研究旨在：1）进一步研究关于酒精自我管理的持续性的替代非药物增强剂； 2）检查扩展行为抗拒变化的抵抗力的定量说明的实用性饮酒的动力自我管理； 3）将行为动量扩展到动物复发模型。继续检查这些问题很重要，因为持久性寻求毒品是滥用毒品和酒精的决定性特征之一。更好了解药物提示如何影响毒品寻求药物的持久性可能表明新颖旨在减少暴露于此类提示的影响的行为干预措施。该项目对公共卫生很重要，因为它将有助于了解使毒品和酗酒如此持续的因素。这个项目的发现可能暗示用于减少毒品和酒精滥用的持久性的新型行为治疗和防止复发。