Examining the interaction between cognitive control and reward sensitivity in substance use dependence

Abstract

Background Drug dependence is characterized by altered reward processing and poor cognitive control, expressed as a preference for immediate rewards and impaired inhibitory control, respectively. To examine the interaction between reward processing (via the presence or absence of reward) and mechanisms of inhibitory control in drug dependence, the current study used the Monetary Incentive Control Task (MICT) to examine whether a group of opiate dependent persons demonstrated greater difficulty exerting control over immediate rewards compared to neutral stimuli. Methods The MICT is a Go/Stop paradigm that examines inhibitory control over immediate rewards. Performance of 32 opiate dependent i..