title: Pharmacological, sensorimotor, and expectancy effects on tobacco withdrawal: a preliminary study.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Research designs for parsing the mechanisms underlying tobacco withdrawal are scant. This study introduced a novel research design that simultaneously manipulated three tobacco withdrawal mechanisms: pharmacological (nicotine dissipation), sensorimotor (elimination of the smoking ritual), and expectancy (activation of beliefs regarding the effects of nicotine deprivation), permitting examination of the effects of each mechanism while holding the other two mechanisms constant.
  
  
  METHODS
  Following overnight abstinence, 32 regular cigarette smokers were randomized in a 2 (expectancy: told patch contains nicotine versus told placebo patch) × 2 (drug: receive 21-mg transdermal nicotine patch versus receive placebo patch) × 2 (sensorimotor: smoke very low nicotine content cigarettes versus no smoking) full factorial between-subjects design. Participants repeatedly completed measures of craving, affect, and anticipated pleasure from and desire for rewarding experiences, followed by a smoking lapse analog task.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Receiving nicotine (versus placebo) increased positive affect and anticipated pleasure from and desire for reward. Expecting nicotine (versus placebo) reduced negative affect and increased smoking delay. Sensorimotor stimulation from smoking (versus no smoking) reduced smoking urge and behavior.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Results provided initial validation of this novel three-mechanism design. This design can be used in the future to advance understanding and treatment of tobacco withdrawal.
authors.affiliation: Department of Preventive Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA.
authors.forename: Casey R
authors.initials: CR
authors.lastname: Guillot
authors.affiliation: Department of Preventive Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA.
authors.forename: Matthew D
authors.initials: MD
authors.lastname: Stone
authors.affiliation: Department of Preventive Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA.
authors.forename: Bree A
authors.initials: BA
authors.lastname: Geary
authors.affiliation: Department of Preventive Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA.
authors.forename: Matthew G
authors.initials: MG
authors.lastname: Kirkpatrick
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry and Human Behavior, Brown University, Providence, RI, USA.
authors.forename: Jennifer W
authors.initials: JW
authors.lastname: Tidey
authors.affiliation: University of Wisconsin-Madison, School of Medicine and Public Health, Madison, WI, USA.
authors.forename: Jessica W
authors.initials: JW
authors.lastname: Cook
authors.affiliation: Department of Preventive Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA.|Department of Psychology, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA.
authors.forename: Adam M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Leventhal
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D059031:Anticipation, Psychological; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010865:Pilot Projects; D057181:Pleasure; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012107:Research Design; D012201:Reward; D012907:Smoking / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000523:psychology*; D013375:Substance Withdrawal Syndrome / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000523:psychology; D061485:Tobacco Use Cessation Devices; D014029:Tobacco Use Disorder / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000523:psychology
keywords: abstinence; expectancy; nicotine; sensorimotor; tobacco; withdrawal