Attention to pleasant stimuli in early adolescence predicts alcohol-related problems in mid-adolescence

Joshua BB Garfield; Nicholas B Allen; Ali Cheetham; Julian G Simmons; Dan I Lubman

Journal article

Attention to pleasant stimuli in early adolescence predicts alcohol-related problems in mid-adolescence

Joshua BB Garfield, Nicholas B Allen, Ali Cheetham, Julian G Simmons, Dan I Lubman

BIOLOGICAL PSYCHOLOGY | ELSEVIER SCIENCE BV | Published : 2015

DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsycho.2015.03.014

Abstract

Attenuated responses to natural rewards have been found to predict subsequent substance use among dependent populations, suggesting that this may be a premorbid risk factor for later problematic substance use. However, research on adolescent risk-taking suggests that exaggerated, rather than blunted, reward responsiveness predicts later substance abuse. Acoustic startle-induced event-related potentials (ERP) were recorded in a sample of 11-13 year-olds while they viewed affective pictures, and participants were reassessed four years later regarding alcohol use and experience of alcohol-related problems. Increased attenuation of the amplitude of the P300 component of the ERP during viewing of..

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University of Melbourne Researchers

Nick Allen Author Melbourne School of Psychological Sciences

Julian Simmons Author Melbourne School of Psychological Sciences

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Grants

Awarded by National Health and Medical Research Council of Australia (NHMRC)

Awarded by Australian Research Council

Awarded by NHMRC

Funding Acknowledgements

This research was supported by grants from the Colonial Foundation, the National Health and Medical Research Council of Australia (NHMRC; Program Grant 350241) and the Australian Research Council (Discovery Grant DP0878136). In addition, Dr. Garfield was supported by a grant from the NHMRC (ID: 1006749) and Dr. Cheetham was supported by an Australian Postgraduate Award. These funding bodies played no role in the design of this study; in the collection, analysis, or interpretation of data; in the writing of the report; or in decisions regarding its submission for publication.