The cue-responsivity phenomenon in dependent drinkers: 'personality' vulnerability and anxiety as intervening variables.
The cue-responsivity phenomenon to alcohol-associated stimuli in dependent drinkers was examined. In accordance with previous research, significant differences on both physiological and subjective cue-responsivity variables, between dependent and non-dependent drinkers were found. The unique contribution of this paper is two-fold. Firstly, evidence is presented which suggests that the Eysenckian personality traits of introversion and neuroticism are more predictive of cue-responsivity variance in the dependent drinkers than either severity of dependence or number of years' drinking. Secondly, within this dependent group, the relationship between cue-responsivity and 'craving' was seen to be less straightforward than traditionally thought. Specifically, it suggested that it was the extent to which autonomic cue-responsivity elicited increases in self-reported anxiety, which predicted most of the variance on the 'craving' variable. Taken together, these results raise the interesting possibility that a personality disposition akin to trait anxiety, and the degree to which cue exposure elicits state anxiety, mediated the relationship between cue-responsivity and 'craving' in dependent drinkers.
McCusker
C G
CG
School of Psychology, Queens University, Belfast.
Brown
K
K
D000328:Adult; D000437:Alcoholism / Q000517:prevention & control / Q000523:psychology*; D001007:Anxiety / Q000150:complications* / Q000523:psychology; D001143:Arousal; D003463:Cues; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010553:Personality Development; D012307:Risk Factors