The Use of Virtual Reality to Discover Objective Correlates of Alcohol Craving

项目摘要 越来越多的人认为，对酒精和毒品的渴望的研究对于理解 成瘾的发病机制和维持。然而，有效和可靠的方法来调查这一点， 缺乏心理生物学现象。本研究旨在开发一种新颖的，生态有效的范式， 利用技术进步和虚拟现实（VR）的现实感，通过 呈现现实的酒精相关线索，并可靠地评估酒精渴望，通过测量潜在的 渴望相关（注意力偏差和自发眨眼率[EBR]）和主观报告。以下 初始可接受性测试和优化（n=15），三个酒精活性和三个中性VR场景将 给予由低中度饮酒者（n=50）和重度饮酒者组成的样本 （n=50）。将连续记录眼动追踪（以建立对酒精线索的注意力偏差）和EBR 在场景的呈现过程中。然后将通过移动的评估对参与者进行为期七天的跟踪， 并在第30天通过电话联系，以获得主观酒精渴望和酒精的自我报告反应。 在自然环境中使用。 因此，本研究的具体目标是：（1）开发一个生态有效的和身临其境的 VR线索反应范式，可靠地诱导酒精渴望，（2）测试的可行性，可靠性和实用性， VR通过与常用的测量方法进行比较，将注意力偏差作为一种客观的渴望相关性 的主观渴望和注意力偏差，（3）检查的预测效用的客观相关因素， 酒精渴望获得的范式和主观报告的酒精渴望和酒精使用期间， 随访使用EBR作为一个客观的渴求相关也将作为一个探索性的目标进行调查。 一旦得到充分的开发和测试，这种模式将在基础科学中得到巨大的应用 通过提供一个新的平台来开发干预措施，对酒精渴望和临床科学进行研究 旨在减少食欲。此外，本研究也将增进我们对注意偏向及其效用的了解 作为酒精渴望和使用的预测指标。

PROJECT SUMMARY The study of craving for alcohol and drugs is increasingly thought to be essential for understanding the pathogenesis and maintenance of addiction. However, valid and reliable methods for investigating this psychobiologic phenomenon are lacking. This study seeks to develop a novel, ecologically valid paradigm that capitalizes on the technological advances and realism of virtual reality (VR) to both induce alcohol craving, via presentation of realistic alcohol-related cues, and reliably assess alcohol craving, via measurement of potential craving correlates (attentional bias and spontaneous eye-blink rate [EBR]) and subjective reports. Following initial acceptability testing and optimization (n=15), three alcohol active and three neutral VR scenes will be administered to a sample comprised of low-moderate alcohol drinkers (n=50) and heavy alcohol drinkers (n=50). Eye-tracking (to establish attentional bias towards alcohol cues) and EBR will be continuously recorded during presentation of the scenes. Participants will then be followed for seven-days, via mobile assessment, and contacted by phone at day 30, to obtain self-report responses of subjective alcohol craving and alcohol use in their naturalistic environment. Thus, the specific aims of the proposed research are: (1) to develop an ecologically valid and immersive VR cue-reactivity paradigm that reliably induces alcohol craving, (2) test the feasibility, reliability, and utility of VR derived attentional bias as an objective craving correlate by comparing it against commonly used measures of subjective craving and attentional bias, and (3) examine the predictive utility of the objective correlates of alcohol craving acquired during the paradigm and subjective reports of alcohol craving and alcohol use during follow-up. The use of EBR as an objective craving correlate will also be investigated as an exploratory aim. Once fully developed and tested, this paradigm will have tremendous applications within basic science research on alcohol craving and within clinical science via providing a new platform to develop interventions that aim to reduce craving. Further, this project will advance our understanding of attentional bias and its utility as a predictive measure of alcohol craving and use.