Drinking alcohol by mid-adolescence is related to reduced reward reactivity: Novel evidence of positive valence system alterations in early initiating female youth

Alexander M. Kallen; Christopher J. Patrick; Bruce D. Bartholow; Greg Hajcak

doi:10.1016/j.biopsycho.2023.108597

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Drinking alcohol by mid-adolescence is related to reduced reward reactivity: Novel evidence of positive valence system alterations in early initiating female youth

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Drinking alcohol by mid-adolescence is related to reduced reward reactivity: Novel evidence of positive valence system alterations in early initiating female youth

Alexander M. Kallen, Christopher J. Patrick, Bruce D. Bartholow and Greg Hajcak

Biological psychology, Vol.181, pp.108597-108597

07/01/2023

DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsycho.2023.108597

PMID: 37268265

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Abstract

Initiation of alcohol use at younger ages is prognostic of later drinking problems. Reward system dysfunction is theorized to contribute to early initiation and escalation of drinking, but existing evidence supports both hyposensitivity and hypersensitivity as risk-markers; research employing effective indices of reward processing is needed for clarification. The reward positivity (RewP) is a well-established neurophysiological index of hedonic “liking,” an important aspect of reward processing. Adult research has yielded conflicting findings, with different studies reporting reduced, enhanced, or null associations of RewP with engagement in or risk for harmful alcohol use. No study has examined relations between RewP and multiple indices of drinking in youth. Here, we examined how RewP measured in a gain/loss feedback task related to self-reported drinking initiation and past-month drinking, when accounting for age along with depression and externalizing symptoms, in 250 mid-adolescent females. Analyses showed that (1) compared to not-yet drinkers, adolescents endorsing drinking initiation responded less strongly to monetary gain (RewP) but not loss feedback (FN), and (2) past-month drinking was unrelated to both RewP and FN magnitude. These findings provide evidence for reduced hedonic “liking” as a concomitant of early drinking initiation in adolescent females and warrant further research with mixed-sex adolescent samples exhibiting greater drinking variability. •Direction of reward sensitivity’s relationship with early alcohol use is unclear.•ERPs to reward feedback have rarely been tested as correlates of youth alcohol use.•Small RewP to gain—but not loss—positively predicts female youths’ drinking initiation.•Reduced RewP among initiators not attributable to depression, externalizing, or age.•Reward insensitivity as indexed by small RewP may help predict early initiation.

Adolescence

Alcohol

EEG

Reward sensitivity

RewP

Details

Title: Subtitle: Drinking alcohol by mid-adolescence is related to reduced reward reactivity: Novel evidence of positive valence system alterations in early initiating female youth
Creators: Alexander M. Kallen - Florida State University
Christopher J. Patrick - Florida State University
Bruce D. Bartholow - University of Missouri
Greg Hajcak - Florida State University
Resource Type: Journal article
Publication Details: Biological psychology, Vol.181, pp.108597-108597
DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsycho.2023.108597
PMID: 37268265
NLM abbreviation: Biol Psychol
ISSN: 0301-0511
eISSN: 1873-6246
Publisher: Elsevier B.V
Grant note: DOI: 10.13039/100000025, name: National Institute of Mental Health, award: MH097767
Language: English
Date published: 07/01/2023
Academic Unit: Psychological and Brain Sciences; Iowa Neuroscience Institute
Record Identifier: 9984446429002771

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