Heroin-related attentional bias and monthly frequency of heroin use are positively associated in attenders of a harm reduction service.
The relationship between heroin-related attentional bias (AB) and a proxy for dependence severity (monthly frequency of heroin use-injecting or inhaling) was measured in individuals attending a heroin harm reduction service. A flicker change blindness paradigm was employed in which change detection latencies were measured to either a heroin-related or to a neutral change made to a stimulus array containing an equal number of heroin-related and neutral words. Individuals given the heroin-related change to detect showed a positive relationship between heroin-related AB and the proxy for dependence severity; those given the neutral change showed a negative relationship. Both findings complement each other--and are consistent with the sending of more attention to heroin-related stimuli than neutral, the more severe is the dependence.
Bearre
Louise
L
Department of Psychology, University of Glasgow, Glasgow G12 8QQ, Scotland, UK.
Sturt
Patrick
P
Bruce
Gillian
G
Jones
Barry T
BT
D000328:Adult; D001288:Attention / Q000502:physiology; D003071:Cognition / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D040261:Harm Reduction; D006556:Heroin Dependence / Q000517:prevention & control*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010775:Photic Stimulation; D011930:Reaction Time / Q000502:physiology; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D014796:Visual Perception / Q000502:physiology*