Behavioral Momentum of Alcohol Self-Administration

药物和酒精寻求的持续性是物质治疗中的一个关键问题 滥用和依赖。药物线索在当前的成瘾理论中占有重要地位， 被认为在寻求毒品和复吸的持续性中起作用。因为吸毒是 操作性行为，基于操作性条件反射的药物自我给药动物模型， 在研究生物和环境变量如何影响药物寻求方面很有用 和复发研究持久性有机污染物的方法和理论发展 面对破坏的操作性行为可能会提供进一步的见解， 药物维持反应。行为动量理论提供了一套方法， 强化条件如何影响行为持续性的定量理论 一种刺激的存在。基于行为动量理论的预测，我们发现 在刺激存在的情况下，酒精寻求的持续性取决于所有的 刺激中的药物（药物和非药物），即使其中一些药物 干扰寻找毒品。因此，可能需要考虑所有的来源， 增强（即，药物和非药物）与药物线索相关，以了解 这暗示了人们对毒品的持续追求。方法的进一步扩展和定量 行为动量理论的理论框架可以提供重要的见解， 在药物线索存在的情况下持续寻求药物。此外，由于药物提示 似乎在复发中发挥作用，将行为动力理论扩展到动物模型 复发的可能性可以提供关于强化的背景如何有助于复发的见解， 药物线索的存在本研究的目的是：1）进一步研究 替代非药物的酒精自我管理的持久性; 2）检查 扩展行为提供的对变化的抵抗的定量解释的效用 酒精自我给药的动力;以及3）将行为动力扩展到动物 复发的模式。继续审查这些问题很重要，因为 寻求毒品是吸毒和酗酒的一个显著特征。更好的 了解药物线索如何影响药物寻求的持续性可能表明新的 行为干预旨在减少暴露于这些线索的影响。该项目对公共卫生很重要，因为它将有助于了解 这些因素使得药物和酒精滥用如此持久。该项目的发现可能表明， 旨在减少药物和酒精滥用持续性的新型行为治疗， 防止复发。

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.