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Warren K. Bickel - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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Reinforcer pathology: Narrative of hurricane-associated loss increases delay discounting, demand, and consumption of highly palatable snacks in the obese.
Psychology of Addictive Behaviors, 2019Co-Authors: Sarah E Snider, Matthew A. Kocher, Jamie K. Turner, Alexandra M Mellis, Warren K. BickelAbstract:Reinforcer pathology is derived from the integration of two measures: (a) self-control (i.e., delay discounting), and (b) reward valuation (i.e., behavioral economic demand). Narrative theory asserts that vividly imagining oneself in a hypothetical, yet realistic, scenario can acutely alter decision making, valuation of Reinforcers such as food, and how much food is consumed. The present study measured changes in reinforcer pathology for highly palatable snacks following either a negative or neutral scenario in obese individuals. Participants (N = 48), with a body mass index of 30 or greater, rated their liking of 7 calorie-dense snack items and completed discounting and purchase demand tasks for their top-rated snack. Participants then read a randomly assigned hypothetical scenario (i.e., a devastating hurricane [negative] or minor storm [neutral]), completed the tasks again, and were given ad libitum access to their top 3 ranked snack foods. Results indicated that delay discounting, demand for participants' top-rated snack food, and negative affect all increased in the hurricane group compared with the minor storm group. The hurricane group also consumed more calories, even when hunger was standardized with a preload meal bar. Consistent with reinforcer pathology, these results suggest that vivid consideration of a devastating scenario constricts the temporal window and increases demand for hedonic snack foods among obese individuals. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved).
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excessive discounting of delayed Reinforcers as a trans disease process update on the state of the science
Current opinion in psychology, 2019Co-Authors: Warren K. Bickel, Alexandra M Mellis, Liqa N Athamneh, Julia C Basso, William B Dehart, William H Craft, Derek A PopeAbstract:: Delay discounting, or the process by which Reinforcers lose value with delay to their receipt, has been identified as a trans-disease process underlying addiction, other disorders, and maladaptive health behaviors. Delay discounting has been identified as an endophenotype for multiple psychiatric disorders including substance use disorder, ADHD, and major depressive disorder, with this endophenotype being linked to deficits in dopaminergic and serotonergic neurotransmission. In addition, neuroanatomical and neurophysiological deficits in areas of the executive and impulsive systems have been associated with both steeper discounting and substance use disorders. Delay discounting constitutes a novel target for interventions to change health behaviors. A new theory, termed reinforcer pathology, has been developed uniting these findings and setting the stage for future research.
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excessive discounting of delayed Reinforcers as a trans disease process contributing to addiction and other disease related vulnerabilities emerging evidence
Pharmacology & Therapeutics, 2012Co-Authors: Warren K. Bickel, David P Jarmolowicz, Terry E Mueller, Mikhail N Koffarnus, Kirstin M GatchalianAbstract:Delay discounting describes the devaluation of a reinforcer as a function of the delay until its receipt. Although all people discount delayed Reinforcers, one consistent finding is that substance-dependent individuals tend to discount delayed Reinforcers more rapidly than do healthy controls. Moreover, these higher-than-normal discounting rates have been observed in individuals with other behavioral maladies such as pathological gambling, poor health behavior, and overeating. This suggests that high rates of delay discounting may be a trans-disease process (i.e., a process that occurs across a range of disorders, making findings from one disorder relevant to other disorders). In this paper, we argue that delay discounting is a trans-disease process, undergirded by an imbalance between two competing neurobehavioral decision systems. Implications for our understanding of, and treatment for, this trans-disease process are discussed.
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the behavioral economics and neuroeconomics of reinforcer pathologies implications for etiology and treatment of addiction
Current Psychiatry Reports, 2011Co-Authors: Warren K. Bickel, David P Jarmolowicz, Terry E Mueller, Kirstin M GatchalianAbstract:The current paper presents a novel approach to understanding and treating addiction. Drawing from work in behavioral economics and developments in the new field of neuroeconomics, we describe addiction as pathological patterns of responding resulting from the persistently high valuation of a reinforcer and/or an excessive preference for the immediate consumption of that reinforcer. We further suggest that, as indicated by the competing neurobehavioral decision systems theory, these patterns of pathological choice and consumption result from an imbalance between two distinct neurobehavioral systems. Specifically, pathological patterns of responding result from hyperactivity in the evolutionarily older impulsive system (which values immediate and low-cost Reinforcers) and/or hypoactivity in the more recently evolved executive system (which is involved in the valuation of delayed Reinforcers). This approach is then used to explain five phenomena that we believe any adequate theory of addiction must address.
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replacing relative reinforcing efficacy with behavioral economic demand curves
Journal of the Experimental Analysis of Behavior, 2006Co-Authors: Matthew W Johnson, Warren K. BickelAbstract:Relative reinforcing efficacy refers to the behavior-strengthening or maintaining property of a reinforcer when compared to that of another reinforcer. Traditional measures of relative reinforcing efficacy sometimes have led to discordant results across and within studies. By contrast, previous investigations have found traditional measures to be congruent with behavioral economic measures, which provide a framework for integrating the discordant results. This study tested whether the previously demonstrated congruence between traditional relative reinforcing efficacy measures and behavioral economic demand curve measures is sufficiently robust to persist when demand for one reinforcer is altered. Cigarette smokers pulled plungers for cigarettes or two magnitudes of money on progressive-ratio schedules that increased the response requirement across sessions. Demand for the two different Reinforcers was assessed in single-schedule and concurrent-schedule sessions. Demand curve measures Pmax and Omax correlated significantly with traditional measures of breakpoint and peak response rate, respectively. Relative locations of demand curves for money and cigarettes under single schedules predicted preference in concurrent schedules in most cases. Although measures of relative reinforcing efficacy for money changed with money magnitude, the congruence between traditional and behavioral economic measures remained intact. This robust congruence supports the proposal that demand curves should replace measures of relative reinforcing efficacy. The demand curve analysis illustrates why concordance between traditional measures is expected under some experimental conditions but not others.
Kirstin M Gatchalian - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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excessive discounting of delayed Reinforcers as a trans disease process contributing to addiction and other disease related vulnerabilities emerging evidence
Pharmacology & Therapeutics, 2012Co-Authors: Warren K. Bickel, David P Jarmolowicz, Terry E Mueller, Mikhail N Koffarnus, Kirstin M GatchalianAbstract:Delay discounting describes the devaluation of a reinforcer as a function of the delay until its receipt. Although all people discount delayed Reinforcers, one consistent finding is that substance-dependent individuals tend to discount delayed Reinforcers more rapidly than do healthy controls. Moreover, these higher-than-normal discounting rates have been observed in individuals with other behavioral maladies such as pathological gambling, poor health behavior, and overeating. This suggests that high rates of delay discounting may be a trans-disease process (i.e., a process that occurs across a range of disorders, making findings from one disorder relevant to other disorders). In this paper, we argue that delay discounting is a trans-disease process, undergirded by an imbalance between two competing neurobehavioral decision systems. Implications for our understanding of, and treatment for, this trans-disease process are discussed.
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the behavioral economics and neuroeconomics of reinforcer pathologies implications for etiology and treatment of addiction
Current Psychiatry Reports, 2011Co-Authors: Warren K. Bickel, David P Jarmolowicz, Terry E Mueller, Kirstin M GatchalianAbstract:The current paper presents a novel approach to understanding and treating addiction. Drawing from work in behavioral economics and developments in the new field of neuroeconomics, we describe addiction as pathological patterns of responding resulting from the persistently high valuation of a reinforcer and/or an excessive preference for the immediate consumption of that reinforcer. We further suggest that, as indicated by the competing neurobehavioral decision systems theory, these patterns of pathological choice and consumption result from an imbalance between two distinct neurobehavioral systems. Specifically, pathological patterns of responding result from hyperactivity in the evolutionarily older impulsive system (which values immediate and low-cost Reinforcers) and/or hypoactivity in the more recently evolved executive system (which is involved in the valuation of delayed Reinforcers). This approach is then used to explain five phenomena that we believe any adequate theory of addiction must address.
Nadia Chaudhri - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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operant responding for conditioned and unconditioned Reinforcers in rats is differentially enhanced by the primary reinforcing and reinforcement enhancing effects of nicotine
Psychopharmacology, 2006Co-Authors: Matthew I Palmatier, Eric C Donny, Anthony R Caggiula, Nadia Chaudhri, Maysa Gharib, Laure Craven, Sheri Booth, Alan F SvedAbstract:Nicotine self-administration in rats is modest when response-contingent nicotine infusions are delivered alone (primary reinforcement) but robust when nicotine infusions are combined with a mildly reinforcing non-pharmacological stimulus. Furthermore, response-independent (non-contingent) nicotine administration also elevates responding for that same non-pharmacological stimulus, suggesting that in addition to primary reinforcement, nicotine can enhance the incentive value of other Reinforcers. In this study, we tested the hypothesis that the reinforcement-enhancing effects of non-contingent nicotine are more dependent on the reinforcing strength of the non-pharmacological stimulus than are the effects of contingent nicotine. A weakly reinforcing light-tone stimulus was established as a conditioned reinforcer by repeated pairings with sucrose for some rats, or by delivery in an explicitly unpaired design with sucrose to other rats. Subsequently, both groups lever pressed for the stimulus with contingent nicotine, non-contingent nicotine (0.06 mg kg−1 per infusion, freebase), or non-contingent saline, according to fixed ratio and progressive ratio reinforcement schedules. Compared to sucrose-unpaired training, repeated association with sucrose established the light-tone stimulus as a robust conditioned reinforcer. Contingent and non-contingent nicotine equally elevated responding for this conditioned stimulus. Conversely, for the less reinforcing (sucrose-unpaired) stimulus contingent nicotine more effectively elevated behavior compared to non-contingent nicotine. The reinforcement-enhancing effect of nicotine increases behavior controlled by both conditioned and unconditioned Reinforcers; however, for less salient stimuli associative processes derived from the primary reinforcing effects of contingent nicotine may also be important. These data suggest that nicotine present in tobacco may differentially modulate stimulus-driven behavior in smokers.
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dissociating the primary reinforcing and reinforcement enhancing effects of nicotine using a rat self administration paradigm with concurrently available drug and environmental Reinforcers
Psychopharmacology, 2006Co-Authors: Matthew I Palmatier, Eric C Donny, Anthony R Caggiula, Fay F Evansmartin, Alycia Hoffman, Nadia Chaudhri, Sherri Booth, Maysa Gharib, Laure CravenAbstract:Rationale Nicotine has two effects on reinforcement in traditional self-administration paradigms. It serves as a primary reinforcer by increasing the probability of behaviors that result in nicotine delivery. However, nicotine also potently enhances behaviors that result in the delivery of nonpharmacological Reinforcers.
William L. Woolverton - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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Shallow discounting of delayed cocaine by male rhesus monkeys when immediate food is the choice alternative.
Experimental and Clinical Psychopharmacology, 2016Co-Authors: Sally L. Huskinson, Joel Myerson, Leonard Green, William L. Woolverton, James K. Rowlett, Kevin B. FreemanAbstract:Huskinson et al. (2015) recently examined delay discounting in monkeys choosing between an immediate drug (cocaine) reinforcer and a delayed nondrug (food) reinforcer. The present experiment examined the reverse situation: choice between immediate nondrug (food) and delayed drug (cocaine) Reinforcers. Whereas the former choice situation exemplifies drug abuse from a delay-discounting perspective, our interest in the latter choice situation is derived from the observation that drug abusers, who characteristically are associated with impulsive choice, typically must devote considerable time to procuring drugs, often at the expense of immediate nondrug alternatives. Accordingly, we analyzed 3 male rhesus monkeys' choices between immediate food and delayed cocaine (0.1 and 0.2 mg/kg/injection) using a hyperbolic model that allowed us to compare discounting rates between qualitatively different Reinforcers. Choice of immediate food increased with food amount, and choice functions generally shifted leftward as delay to cocaine increased, indicating a decrease in the subjective value of cocaine. Compared with our previous delay-discounting experiment with immediate cocaine versus delayed food, both doses of delayed cocaine were discounted at a shallow rate. The present results demonstrate that rhesus monkeys will tolerate relatively long delays in an immediate-food versus delayed-drug situation, suggesting that in intertemporal choices between cocaine and food, the subjective value of cocaine is less affected by the delay until reinforcement than is the subjective value of delayed food. More generally, the present findings suggest that although drug abusers may choose impulsively when immediate drug reinforcement is available, they exercise self-control in the acquisition of a highly preferred, delayed drug reinforcer. (PsycINFO Database Record
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Delay discounting of food by rhesus monkeys: Cocaine and food choice in isomorphic and allomorphic situations.
Experimental and Clinical Psychopharmacology, 2015Co-Authors: Sally L. Huskinson, Joel Myerson, Leonard Green, William L. Woolverton, Kevin B. FreemanAbstract:Research on delay discounting has focused largely on non-drug Reinforcers in an isomorphic context in which choice is between alternatives that involve the same type of reinforcer. Less often, delay discounting has been studied with drug Reinforcers in a more ecologically valid allomorphic context where choice is between alternatives involving different types of Reinforcers. The present experiment is the first to examine discounting of drug and non-drug Reinforcers in both isomorphic and allomorphic situations using a theoretical model (i.e., the hyperbolic discounting function) that allows for comparisons of discounting rates between reinforcer types and amounts. The goal of the current experiment was to examine discounting of a delayed, non-drug reinforcer (food) by male rhesus monkeys when the immediate alternative was either food (isomorphic situation) or cocaine (allomorphic situation). In addition, we sought to determine whether there was a magnitude effect with delayed food in the allomorphic situation. Choice of immediate food and immediate cocaine increased with amount and dose, respectively. Choice functions for immediate food and cocaine generally shifted leftward as delay increased. Compared to isomorphic situations in which food was the immediate alternative, delayed food was discounted more steeply in allomorphic situations where cocaine was the immediate alternative. Notably, discounting was not affected by the magnitude of the delayed reinforcer. These data indicate that how steeply a delayed non-drug reinforcer is discounted may depend more on the qualitative characteristics of the immediate reinforcer and less on the magnitude of the delayed one.
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Assessment of the effects of contingent histamine injections on the reinforcing effectiveness of cocaine using behavioral economic and progressive-ratio designs
Psychopharmacology, 2014Co-Authors: Kevin B. Freeman, Brian C. Mcmaster, Peter G. Roma, William L. WoolvertonAbstract:Rationale Recent research has demonstrated that the drug, histamine, can function as a punisher of cocaine self-administration. However, little is known about how drug punishers affect the maximum reinforcing effectiveness of drugs as Reinforcers. Objective The goal of the present study was to determine if histamine, when self-administered as a mixture with cocaine, could reduce cocaine's maximum reinforcing effectiveness using two procedures designed for measuring reinforcing effectiveness. Methods In the first experiment, rhesus monkeys were allowed to self-administer cocaine (0.1 mg/kg/inj) alone or as a mixture with histamine (0.012–0.05 mg/kg/inj) in a behavioral economic design. In the second experiment, monkeys were allowed to self-administer cocaine alone (0.006–0.56 mg/kg/inj) or as a mixture with histamine (0.025–0.1 mg/kg/inj) under a progressive-ratio schedule of reinforcement. Results In Experiment 1 , histamine decreased the reinforcing effectiveness of cocaine in a dose-dependent manner as evidenced by increases in cocaine's demand elasticity with increases in histamine dose. In Experiment 2 , histamine decreased cocaine's potency and effectiveness as a reinforcer in a dose-dependent manner as indicated by rightward and downward shifts, respectively, in the dose–response functions. Conclusion The reinforcing effectiveness of cocaine can be reduced by contingent self-administration of histamine. These results indicate that combining drug punishers with drug Reinforcers reduces the maximum reinforcing effect of the drug reinforcer, which suggests a use for drug punishers as a deterrent to drug abuse (e.g., as mixtures with prescription medications with abuse potential).
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Comparison of the reinforcing efficacy of two dopamine D2-like receptor agonists in rhesus monkeys using a progressive-ratio schedule of reinforcement
Pharmacology Biochemistry and Behavior, 2002Co-Authors: William L. Woolverton, Robert RanaldiAbstract:Abstract High-efficacy D2-like dopamine (DA) receptor agonists can function as positive Reinforcers when made available to animals for intravenous self-administration under a fixed-ratio (FR) schedule of reinforcement. In a previous study, however, low-efficacy D2-like agonists failed to maintain self-administration under an FR schedule, suggesting that agonist efficacy is directly related to efficacy as a positive reinforcer. To examine this hypothesis further, the present study compared two D2-like DA receptor agonists that maintained FR responding, but differ in their D2-like receptor efficacy and selectivity, using a procedure designed to rank-order drugs according to their efficacy as Reinforcers. Rhesus monkeys (n=5) were prepared with chronic, indwelling intravenous catheters and allowed to self-administer cocaine (0.1 mg/kg/injection) or saline on different days under a progressive-ratio (PR) schedule. When responding was stable, doses of the full D2-like agonist R(−)-propylnorapomorphine (NPA) or the partial D2-like agonist R(−)-apomorphine (APO) were made available for self-administration in the test sessions. Both compounds maintained self-administration with sigmoidal or biphasic dose–response functions. Surprisingly, the lower efficacy agonist APO was the more efficacious positive reinforcer. This result fails to support the hypothesis that D2-like receptor efficacy is directly related to efficacy as a reinforcer. It is possible that other pharmacological effects, e.g., D1 receptor activity, influenced self-administration.
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Effects of increasing the magnitude of an alternative reinforcer on drug choice in a discrete-trials choice procedure
Psychopharmacology, 1991Co-Authors: Michael A. Nader, William L. WoolvertonAbstract:Rhesus monkeys were trained in a discretetrials choice procedure and allowed to choose between food delivery (1–16 pellets; 1 g/pellet) and intravenous injections of cocaine (0.03–0.56 mg/kg/injection; N =4) or procaine (1.0–10 mg/kg/injection; N =4) during daily 3-h sessions. Injections were available as the alternative to food. When the amount of food available as the alternative to drug was held constant and dose of drug was varied, the frequency of drug choice and total drug intake increased in a dose-related fashion for both cocaine and procaine. For both drugs, when the amount of food available as the alternative to drug was increased and the dose of the drug was held constant, the frequency of drug choice and total drug intake decreased. Thus, increases in the magnitude of an alternative non-drug reinforcer decreased cocaine and procaine self-administration. Further, the results suggest that while increasing the magnitude of the alternative reinforcer decreased the potency of cocaine as a positive reinforcer, the reinforcing efficacy of procaine was decreased. Because drug use by humans typically occurs in a context in which other Reinforcers are available, the present results are consistent with the hypothesis that drug self-administration by humans can be decreased by increasing the value of alternative positive Reinforcers. In addition, these results suggest that the extent to which drug self-administration is sensitive to this manipulation varies across drugs.
Alan F Sved - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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bupropion and nicotine enhance responding for nondrug Reinforcers via dissociable pharmacological mechanisms in rats
Psychopharmacology, 2009Co-Authors: Matthew I Palmatier, Melissa E Levin, Kara L Mays, Eric C Donny, Anthony R Caggiula, Alan F SvedAbstract:Rationale Nicotine serves as a primary reinforcer but also potently enhances responding for nonnicotine stimuli with reinforcing properties. One of the most successful pharmacotherapies for smoking cessation, bupropion, also increases responding for nondrug Reinforcers such as food and brain stimulation rewards.
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operant responding for conditioned and unconditioned Reinforcers in rats is differentially enhanced by the primary reinforcing and reinforcement enhancing effects of nicotine
Psychopharmacology, 2006Co-Authors: Matthew I Palmatier, Eric C Donny, Anthony R Caggiula, Nadia Chaudhri, Maysa Gharib, Laure Craven, Sheri Booth, Alan F SvedAbstract:Nicotine self-administration in rats is modest when response-contingent nicotine infusions are delivered alone (primary reinforcement) but robust when nicotine infusions are combined with a mildly reinforcing non-pharmacological stimulus. Furthermore, response-independent (non-contingent) nicotine administration also elevates responding for that same non-pharmacological stimulus, suggesting that in addition to primary reinforcement, nicotine can enhance the incentive value of other Reinforcers. In this study, we tested the hypothesis that the reinforcement-enhancing effects of non-contingent nicotine are more dependent on the reinforcing strength of the non-pharmacological stimulus than are the effects of contingent nicotine. A weakly reinforcing light-tone stimulus was established as a conditioned reinforcer by repeated pairings with sucrose for some rats, or by delivery in an explicitly unpaired design with sucrose to other rats. Subsequently, both groups lever pressed for the stimulus with contingent nicotine, non-contingent nicotine (0.06 mg kg−1 per infusion, freebase), or non-contingent saline, according to fixed ratio and progressive ratio reinforcement schedules. Compared to sucrose-unpaired training, repeated association with sucrose established the light-tone stimulus as a robust conditioned reinforcer. Contingent and non-contingent nicotine equally elevated responding for this conditioned stimulus. Conversely, for the less reinforcing (sucrose-unpaired) stimulus contingent nicotine more effectively elevated behavior compared to non-contingent nicotine. The reinforcement-enhancing effect of nicotine increases behavior controlled by both conditioned and unconditioned Reinforcers; however, for less salient stimuli associative processes derived from the primary reinforcing effects of contingent nicotine may also be important. These data suggest that nicotine present in tobacco may differentially modulate stimulus-driven behavior in smokers.
