Trauma, Trauma Sequela, and Alcohol Information Processing

描述（由申请人提供）：创伤、创伤后遗症和酒精信息处理大学生面临创伤和由此产生的创伤应激后遗症（TSS）的风险。或许并非巧合的是，饮酒（ALC）在美国校园很普遍，并与各种各样的后果有关。TSS和ALC通常同时发生，并被认为是相互因果关系。然而，还没有研究检验创伤应激后遗症可能影响这一高危人群饮酒的相关认知机制。消极情绪和信息加工在理解TSS-ALC关联中的相关性在自我药物治疗和社会学习（SLT）模型中都得到了注意。数据表明，创伤及其后遗症可能会改变信息处理机制，例如，患有TSS的个体对相关线索表现出注意偏差。这种偏见似乎只针对与情感相关的信息。我们假设TSS和饮酒的共同发生可以通过TSS和ALC信息记忆网络密切相关来解释，这些信息记忆网络通过扩散激活过程联系在一起。也就是说，创伤线索可能会依次激活负面情绪和酒精相关信息，导致以可能导致饮酒的方式处理这些信息的偏见。我们提出，创伤记忆网络的激活将以三种方式影响酒精信息处理。首先，这种激活会导致对处理积极酒精预期的偏见，最具体地说，是对自我药物治疗的预期。其次，当创伤网络被激活时，处理酒精信息会干扰处理其他与情感无关的信息。最后，当创伤记忆网络被激活时，酒精在记忆中与积极价值信息的关联会更强。内隐认知已被证明是理解酒精使用的重要因素，并被认为是创伤后应激的关键病因。本研究采用多任务（期望反应时间、E-TASK、修正Stroop、M-Stroop、IAT）来评估TSS-ALC的内隐认知过程。两个实验将检验创伤线索影响有或无创伤后应激障碍（PTSD）大学生酒精信息处理的因果路径。第一项研究将评估创伤线索和创伤后应激障碍对酒精期望加工偏差（E-TASK）和酒精信息加工干扰（M-Stroop）的影响。第二部分将测试线索暴露和创伤后应激障碍对使用IAT评估酒精信息（积极和消极关联）的影响。研究结果将为干预措施提供信息，旨在改变人们对酒精的积极看法，以减少大学校园里的酗酒现象。公共健康相关性：大学时代代表着向成年的过渡，在此期间，学生们经历了成人的自由和责任，同时他们必须学会在饮酒是常态的环境中进行谈判。这可能对那些已经试图应对创伤后压力的人构成特别的挑战。从这项关于酒精信仰如何受到创伤和创伤后精神障碍（PTSD）影响的研究中获得的知识，将为旨在减少大学校园里酗酒和酗酒问题的干预措施提供信息。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Trauma, Trauma Sequelae, and Alcohol Information Processing College students are at risk for both trauma and resulting traumatic stress sequelae (TSS). Perhaps not coincidentally, the use of alcohol (ALC) is prevalent on U.S. campuses, and is associated with myriad consequences. TSS and ALC commonly co-occur, and are posited to be causally related to one another. Yet, no research has examined interrelated cognitive mechanisms by which traumatic stress sequelae may affect alcohol use in this at-risk group. The relevance of negative emotion and information processing in understanding TSS-ALC associations is noted in both Self-Medication and Social Learning (SLT) models. Data suggest that trauma and its sequelae may alter information processing mechanisms, such that individuals with TSS demonstrate an attentional bias to relevant cues. This bias appears to be specific to emotionally relevant information. We posit that the co-occurrence of TSS and drinking may be explained by closely associated TSS and ALC information memory networks that are linked by a process of spreading activation. That is, trauma cues may activate both negative emotions and alcohol-related information in sequence, resulting in a bias to process this information in ways that are likely to lead to drinking. We propose that activation of a trauma memory network will impact alcohol information processing in three ways. First, this activation will result in a bias to process positive alcohol expectancies, most specifically, self-medication expectancies. Second, processing alcohol information will interfere with processing other emotionally irrelevant information when a trauma network is activated. Finally, alcohol will be more strongly associated in memory with positively valenced information when a trauma memory network is activated. Implicit cognition has been shown to be important for understanding alcohol use, and has been suggested to be a critical etiological factor in posttraumatic stress. Here, we use multiple tasks (expectancy reaction time; E-TASK, Modified Stroop;M-Stroop, IAT) to assess implicit TSS-ALC cognitive processes. Two experiments will examine causal paths through which trauma cues affect alcohol information processing in college students with and without posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The first will evaluate the impact of trauma cue and PTSD on bias in processing alcohol expectancies (E-TASK) and interference in processing alcohol information (M-Stroop). The second will test the impact of cue exposure and PTSD on the evaluation (positive, negative associations) of alcohol information using the IAT. Findings will inform interventions designed to modify positive beliefs about alcohol in the interest of decreasing heavy drinking on college campuses. PUBLIC HEALTH RELEVANCE: The college years represent a transition into adulthood, during which students experience adult freedoms and responsibilities, and when they must learn to negotiate these in an environment where drinking is the norm. This may pose a particular challenge to those already attempting to cope with post- traumatic stress. Knowledge from this study regarding how alcohol beliefs are affected by trauma and posttraumatic disorder (PTSD) will inform interventions designed to decrease heavy and problem drinking on college campuses.