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Giovanniello JR, Paredes N, Wiener A, Ramírez-Armenta K, Oragwam C, Uwadia HO, Yu AL, Lim K, Pimenta JS, Vilchez GE, Nnamdi G, Wang A, Sehgal M, Reis FM, Sias AC, Silva AJ, Adhikari A, Malvaez M, Wassum KM. A dual-pathway architecture enables chronic stress to disrupt agency and promote habit formation. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2024:2023.10.03.560731. [PMID: 37873076 PMCID: PMC10592885 DOI: 10.1101/2023.10.03.560731] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/25/2023]
Abstract
Chronic stress can change how we learn and, thus, how we make decisions. Here we investigated the neuronal circuit mechanisms that enable this. Using a multifaceted systems neuroscience approach in male and female mice, we reveal a dual pathway, amygdala-striatal neuronal circuit architecture by which a recent history of chronic stress disrupts the action-outcome learning underlying adaptive agency and promotes the formation of inflexible habits. We found that the basolateral amygdala projection to the dorsomedial striatum is activated by rewarding events to support the action-outcome learning needed for flexible, goal-directed decision making. Chronic stress attenuates this to disrupt action-outcome learning and, therefore, agency. Conversely, the central amygdala projection to the dorsomedial striatum mediates habit formation. Following stress this pathway is progressively recruited to learning to promote the premature formation of inflexible habits. Thus, stress exerts opposing effects on two amygdala-striatal pathways to disrupt agency and promote habit. These data provide neuronal circuit insights into how chronic stress shapes learning and decision making, and help understand how stress can lead to the disrupted decision making and pathological habits that characterize substance use disorders and mental health conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Anna Wiener
- Dept. of Psychology, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA 90095
| | | | | | | | - Abigail L Yu
- Dept. of Physiology, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA 90095
| | - Kayla Lim
- Dept. of Biological Chemistry, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA 90095
| | | | | | - Gift Nnamdi
- Dept. of Psychology, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA 90095
| | - Alicia Wang
- Dept. of Psychology, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA 90095
| | - Megha Sehgal
- Dept. of Psychology, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA 90095
| | | | - Ana C Sias
- Dept. of Psychology, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA 90095
| | - Alcino J Silva
- Dept. of Psychology, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA 90095
- Brain Research Institute, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
- Integrative Center for Learning and Memory, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Avishek Adhikari
- Dept. of Psychology, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA 90095
- Brain Research Institute, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
- Integrative Center for Learning and Memory, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | | | - Kate M Wassum
- Dept. of Psychology, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA 90095
- Brain Research Institute, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
- Integrative Center for Learning and Memory, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
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2
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Marzuki AA, Banca P, Garofalo S, Degni LAE, Dalbagno D, Badioli M, Sule A, Kaser M, Conway-Morris A, Sahakian BJ, Robbins TW. Compulsive avoidance in youths and adults with OCD: an aversive pavlovian-to-instrumental transfer study. Transl Psychiatry 2024; 14:308. [PMID: 39060253 PMCID: PMC11282188 DOI: 10.1038/s41398-024-03028-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/06/2024] [Revised: 07/12/2024] [Accepted: 07/17/2024] [Indexed: 07/28/2024] Open
Abstract
Compulsive behaviour may often be triggered by Pavlovian cues. Assessing how Pavlovian cues drive instrumental behaviour in obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is therefore crucial to understand how compulsions develop and are maintained. An aversive Pavlovian-to-Instrumental transfer (PIT) paradigm, particularly one involving avoidance/cancellation of negative outcomes, can enable such investigation and has not previously been studied in clinical-OCD. Forty-one participants diagnosed with OCD (21 adults; 20 youths) and 44 controls (21 adults; 23 youths) completed an aversive PIT task. Participants had to prevent the delivery of unpleasant noises by moving a joystick in the correct direction. They could infer these correct responses by learning appropriate response-outcome (instrumental) and stimulus-outcome (Pavlovian) associations. We then assessed whether Pavlovian cues elicited specific instrumental avoidance responses (specific PIT) and induced general instrumental avoidance (general PIT). We investigated whether task learning and confidence indices influenced PIT strength differentially between groups. There was no overall group difference in PIT performance, although youths with OCD showed weaker specific PIT than youth controls. However, urge to avoid unpleasant noises and preference for safe over unsafe stimuli influenced specific and general PIT respectively in OCD, while PIT in controls was more influenced by confidence in instrumental and Pavlovian learning. Thus, in OCD, implicit motivational factors, but not learnt knowledge, may contribute to the successful integration of aversive Pavlovian and instrumental cues. This implies that compulsive avoidance may be driven by these automatic processes. Youths with OCD show deficits in specific PIT, suggesting cue integration impairments are only apparent in adolescence. These findings may be clinically relevant as they emphasise the importance of targeting such implicit motivational processes when treating OCD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aleya A Marzuki
- Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience Institute, Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK.
- Department of Psychology, School of Medical and Life Sciences, Sunway University, Petaling Jaya, Selangor, Malaysia.
| | - Paula Banca
- Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience Institute, Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - Sara Garofalo
- Department of Psychology, University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy
| | - Luigi A E Degni
- Department of Psychology, University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy
| | | | - Marco Badioli
- Department of Psychology, University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy
| | - Akeem Sule
- Department of Psychiatry, School of Clinical Medicine, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - Muzaffer Kaser
- Department of Psychiatry, School of Clinical Medicine, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
- Cambridgeshire and Peterborough NHS Foundation Trust, Cambridge, UK
| | | | - Barbara J Sahakian
- Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience Institute, Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
- Department of Psychiatry, School of Clinical Medicine, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - Trevor W Robbins
- Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience Institute, Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK.
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3
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Giannone F, Ebrahimi C, Endrass T, Hansson AC, Schlagenhauf F, Sommer WH. Bad habits-good goals? Meta-analysis and translation of the habit construct to alcoholism. Transl Psychiatry 2024; 14:298. [PMID: 39030169 PMCID: PMC11271507 DOI: 10.1038/s41398-024-02965-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/08/2023] [Revised: 05/19/2024] [Accepted: 05/24/2024] [Indexed: 07/21/2024] Open
Abstract
Excessive alcohol consumption remains a global public health crisis, with millions suffering from alcohol use disorder (AUD, or simply "alcoholism"), leading to significantly reduced life expectancy. This review examines the interplay between habitual and goal-directed behaviors and the associated neurobiological changes induced by chronic alcohol exposure. Contrary to a strict habit-goal dichotomy, our meta-analysis of the published animal experiments combined with a review of human studies reveals a nuanced transition between these behavioral control systems, emphasizing the need for refined terminology to capture the probabilistic nature of decision biases in individuals with a history of chronic alcohol exposure. Furthermore, we distinguish habitual responding from compulsivity, viewing them as separate entities with diverse roles throughout the stages of the addiction cycle. By addressing species-specific differences and translational challenges in habit research, we provide insights to enhance future investigations and inform strategies for combatting AUD.
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Affiliation(s)
- F Giannone
- Institute of Psychopharmacology, Central Institute of Mental Health, Medical Faculty Mannheim, Heidelberg University, 68159, Mannheim, Germany
| | - C Ebrahimi
- Faculty of Psychology, Institute of Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, Technische Universität Dresden, 01062, Dresden, Germany
| | - T Endrass
- Faculty of Psychology, Institute of Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, Technische Universität Dresden, 01062, Dresden, Germany
| | - A C Hansson
- Institute of Psychopharmacology, Central Institute of Mental Health, Medical Faculty Mannheim, Heidelberg University, 68159, Mannheim, Germany
| | - F Schlagenhauf
- Department of Psychotherapy, Campus Charité Mitte, Charité Universitätsmedizin Berlin & St. Hedwig Hospital, 10117, Berlin, Germany
| | - W H Sommer
- Institute of Psychopharmacology, Central Institute of Mental Health, Medical Faculty Mannheim, Heidelberg University, 68159, Mannheim, Germany.
- Bethania Hospital for Psychiatry, Psychosomatics and Psychotherapy, Greifswald, Germany.
- German Center for Mental Health (DZPG), Partner Site Mannheim-Heidelberg-Ulm, 68159, Mannheim, Germany.
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4
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Banca P, Herrojo Ruiz M, Gonzalez-Zalba MF, Biria M, Marzuki AA, Piercy T, Sule A, Fineberg NA, Robbins TW. Action sequence learning, habits, and automaticity in obsessive-compulsive disorder. eLife 2024; 12:RP87346. [PMID: 38722306 PMCID: PMC11081634 DOI: 10.7554/elife.87346] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/12/2024] Open
Abstract
This study investigates the goal/habit imbalance theory of compulsion in obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), which postulates enhanced habit formation, increased automaticity, and impaired goal/habit arbitration. It directly tests these hypotheses using newly developed behavioral tasks. First, OCD patients and healthy participants were trained daily for a month using a smartphone app to perform chunked action sequences. Despite similar procedural learning and attainment of habitual performance (measured by an objective automaticity criterion) by both groups, OCD patients self-reported higher subjective habitual tendencies via a recently developed questionnaire. Subsequently, in a re-evaluation task assessing choices between established automatic and novel goal-directed actions, both groups were sensitive to re-evaluation based on monetary feedback. However, OCD patients, especially those with higher compulsive symptoms and habitual tendencies, showed a clear preference for trained/habitual sequences when choices were based on physical effort, possibly due to their higher attributed intrinsic value. These patients also used the habit-training app more extensively and reported symptom relief post-study. The tendency to attribute higher intrinsic value to familiar actions may be a potential mechanism leading to compulsions and an important addition to the goal/habit imbalance hypothesis in OCD. We also highlight the potential of smartphone app training as a habit reversal therapeutic tool.
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Affiliation(s)
- Paula Banca
- Department of Psychology, University of CambridgeCambridgeUnited Kingdom
- Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience Institute, University of CambridgeCambridgeUnited Kingdom
| | - Maria Herrojo Ruiz
- Department of Psychology, Goldsmiths University of LondonLondonUnited Kingdom
| | | | - Marjan Biria
- Department of Psychology, University of CambridgeCambridgeUnited Kingdom
- Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience Institute, University of CambridgeCambridgeUnited Kingdom
| | - Aleya A Marzuki
- Department of Psychology, University of CambridgeCambridgeUnited Kingdom
- Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience Institute, University of CambridgeCambridgeUnited Kingdom
| | - Thomas Piercy
- Department of Psychiatry, School of Clinical Medicine, University of CambridgeCambridgeUnited Kingdom
| | - Akeem Sule
- Department of Psychiatry, School of Clinical Medicine, University of CambridgeCambridgeUnited Kingdom
| | - Naomi A Fineberg
- Hertfordshire Partnership University NHS Foundation TrustWelwyn Garden CityUnited Kingdom
- University of HertfordshireHatfieldUnited Kingdom
| | - Trevor W Robbins
- Department of Psychology, University of CambridgeCambridgeUnited Kingdom
- Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience Institute, University of CambridgeCambridgeUnited Kingdom
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5
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Pickenhan L, Milton AL. Opening new vistas on obsessive-compulsive disorder with the observing response task. COGNITIVE, AFFECTIVE & BEHAVIORAL NEUROSCIENCE 2024; 24:249-265. [PMID: 38316708 PMCID: PMC11039534 DOI: 10.3758/s13415-023-01153-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 12/30/2023] [Indexed: 02/07/2024]
Abstract
Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), a highly prevalent and debilitating disorder, is incompletely understood in terms of underpinning behavioural, psychological, and neural mechanisms. This is attributable to high symptomatic heterogeneity; cardinal features comprise obsessions and compulsions, including clinical subcategories. While obsessive and intrusive thoughts are arguably unique to humans, dysfunctional behaviours analogous to those seen in clinical OCD have been examined in nonhuman animals. Genetic, ethological, pharmacological, and neurobehavioural approaches all contribute to understanding the emergence and persistence of compulsive behaviour. One behaviour of particular interest is maladaptive checking, whereby human patients excessively perform checking rituals despite these serving no purpose. Dysfunctional and excessive checking is the most common symptom associated with OCD and can be readily operationalised in rodents. This review considers animal models of OCD, the neural circuitries associated with impairments in habit-based and goal-directed behaviour, and how these may link to the compulsions observed in OCD. We further review the Observing Response Task (ORT), an appetitive instrumental learning procedure that distinguishes between functional and dysfunctional checking, with translational application in humans and rodents. By shedding light on the psychological and neural bases of compulsive-like checking, the ORT has potential to offer translational insights into the underlying mechanisms of OCD, in addition to being a platform for testing psychological and neurochemical treatment approaches.
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Affiliation(s)
- Luise Pickenhan
- Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Downing Site, Cambridge, CB2 3EB, UK
| | - Amy L Milton
- Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Downing Site, Cambridge, CB2 3EB, UK.
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Nebe S, Kretzschmar A, Brandt MC, Tobler PN. Characterizing Human Habits in the Lab. COLLABRA. PSYCHOLOGY 2024; 10:92949. [PMID: 38463460 PMCID: PMC7615722 DOI: 10.1525/collabra.92949] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/12/2024]
Abstract
Habits pose a fundamental puzzle for those aiming to understand human behavior. They pervade our everyday lives and dominate some forms of psychopathology but are extremely hard to elicit in the lab. In this Registered Report, we developed novel experimental paradigms grounded in computational models, which suggest that habit strength should be proportional to the frequency of behavior and, in contrast to previous research, independent of value. Specifically, we manipulated how often participants performed responses in two tasks varying action repetition without, or separately from, variations in value. Moreover, we asked how this frequency-based habitization related to value-based operationalizations of habit and self-reported propensities for habitual behavior in real life. We find that choice frequency during training increases habit strength at test and that this form of habit shows little relation to value-based operationalizations of habit. Our findings empirically ground a novel perspective on the constituents of habits and suggest that habits may arise in the absence of external reinforcement. We further find no evidence for an overlap between different experimental approaches to measuring habits and no associations with self-reported real-life habits. Thus, our findings call for a rigorous reassessment of our understanding and measurement of human habitual behavior in the lab.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stephan Nebe
- Zurich Center for Neuroeconomics, Department of Economics, University of Zurich, Switzerland
| | - André Kretzschmar
- Individual Differences and Assessment, Department of Psychology, University of Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Maike C. Brandt
- Zurich Center for Neuroeconomics, Department of Economics, University of Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Philippe N. Tobler
- Zurich Center for Neuroeconomics, Department of Economics, University of Zurich, Switzerland
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7
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Biria M, Banca P, Healy MP, Keser E, Sawiak SJ, Rodgers CT, Rua C, de Souza AMFLP, Marzuki AA, Sule A, Ersche KD, Robbins TW. Cortical glutamate and GABA are related to compulsive behaviour in individuals with obsessive compulsive disorder and healthy controls. Nat Commun 2023; 14:3324. [PMID: 37369695 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-38695-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/10/2022] [Accepted: 05/09/2023] [Indexed: 06/29/2023] Open
Abstract
There has been little analysis of neurochemical correlates of compulsive behaviour to illuminate its underlying neural mechanisms. We use 7-Tesla proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy (1H-MRS) to assess the balance of excitatory and inhibitory neurotransmission by measuring glutamate and GABA levels in anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) and supplementary motor area (SMA) of healthy volunteers and participants with Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD). Within the SMA, trait and clinical measures of compulsive behaviour are related to glutamate levels, whereas a behavioural index of habitual control correlates with the glutamate:GABA ratio. Participants with OCD also show the latter relationship in the ACC while exhibiting elevated glutamate and lower GABA levels in that region. This study highlights SMA mechanisms of habitual control relevant to compulsive behaviour, common to the healthy sub-clinical and OCD populations. The results also demonstrate additional involvement of anterior cingulate in the balance between goal-directed and habitual responding in OCD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marjan Biria
- Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, CB2 3EB, UK.
- Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience Institute, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, CB2 3EB, UK.
| | - Paula Banca
- Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, CB2 3EB, UK
- Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience Institute, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, CB2 3EB, UK
| | - Máiréad P Healy
- Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, CB2 3EB, UK
- Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience Institute, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, CB2 3EB, UK
| | - Engin Keser
- Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, CB2 3EB, UK
| | - Stephen J Sawiak
- Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience Institute, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, CB2 3EB, UK
- Department of Physiology, Development and Neuroscience, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, CB2 3EL, UK
| | - Christopher T Rodgers
- Wolfson Brain Imaging Centre, Department of Clinical Neurosciences, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, CB2 0QQ, UK
| | - Catarina Rua
- Wolfson Brain Imaging Centre, Department of Clinical Neurosciences, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, CB2 0QQ, UK
- Department of Clinical Neurosciences and Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Trust, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - Ana Maria Frota Lisbôa Pereira de Souza
- Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, CB2 3EB, UK
- Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience Institute, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, CB2 3EB, UK
| | - Aleya A Marzuki
- Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, CB2 3EB, UK
- Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience Institute, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, CB2 3EB, UK
- Department of Psychology, School of Medical and Life Sciences, Sunway University, Petaling Jaya, Malaysia
| | - Akeem Sule
- Department of Psychiatry, School of Clinical Medicine, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - Karen D Ersche
- Department of Psychiatry, School of Clinical Medicine, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
- Department of Systems Neuroscience, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany
- Department of Addictive Behaviour and Addiction Medicine, Central Institute of Mental Health, University of Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Trevor W Robbins
- Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, CB2 3EB, UK.
- Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience Institute, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, CB2 3EB, UK.
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8
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Marzuki AA, Vaghi MM, Conway‐Morris A, Kaser M, Sule A, Apergis‐Schoute A, Sahakian BJ, Robbins TW. Atypical action updating in a dynamic environment associated with adolescent obsessive-compulsive disorder. J Child Psychol Psychiatry 2022; 63:1591-1601. [PMID: 35537441 PMCID: PMC9790358 DOI: 10.1111/jcpp.13628] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 04/13/2022] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Computational research had determined that adults with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) display heightened action updating in response to noise in the environment and neglect metacognitive information (such as confidence) when making decisions. These features are proposed to underlie patients' compulsions despite the knowledge they are irrational. Nonetheless, it is unclear whether this extends to adolescents with OCD as research in this population is lacking. Thus, this study aimed to investigate the interplay between action and confidence in adolescents with OCD. METHODS Twenty-seven adolescents with OCD and 46 controls completed a predictive-inference task, designed to probe how subjects' actions and confidence ratings fluctuate in response to unexpected outcomes. We investigated how subjects update actions in response to prediction errors (indexing mismatches between expectations and outcomes) and used parameters from a Bayesian model to predict how confidence and action evolve over time. Confidence-action association strength was assessed using a regression model. We also investigated the effects of serotonergic medication. RESULTS Adolescents with OCD showed significantly increased learning rates, particularly following small prediction errors. Results were driven primarily by unmedicated patients. Confidence ratings appeared equivalent between groups, although model-based analysis revealed that patients' confidence was less affected by prediction errors compared to controls. Patients and controls did not differ in the extent to which they updated actions and confidence in tandem. CONCLUSIONS Adolescents with OCD showed enhanced action adjustments, especially in the face of small prediction errors, consistent with previous research establishing 'just-right' compulsions, enhanced error-related negativity, and greater decision uncertainty in paediatric-OCD. These tendencies were ameliorated in patients receiving serotonergic medication, emphasising the importance of early intervention in preventing disorder-related cognitive deficits. Confidence ratings were equivalent between young patients and controls, mirroring findings in adult OCD research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aleya A. Marzuki
- Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience InstituteDepartment of PsychologyUniversity of CambridgeCambridgeUK,Department of PsychologySchool of Medical and Life SciencesSunway UniversityPetaling JayaMalaysia
| | - Matilde M. Vaghi
- Department of PsychologySchool of Humanities and SciencesStanford UniversityStanfordCAUSA
| | | | - Muzaffer Kaser
- Cambridgeshire and Peterborough NHS Foundation TrustCambridgeUK,Department of PsychiatrySchool of Clinical MedicineUniversity of CambridgeCambridgeUK
| | - Akeem Sule
- Department of PsychiatrySchool of Clinical MedicineUniversity of CambridgeCambridgeUK
| | | | - Barbara J. Sahakian
- Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience InstituteDepartment of PsychologyUniversity of CambridgeCambridgeUK,Department of PsychiatrySchool of Clinical MedicineUniversity of CambridgeCambridgeUK
| | - Trevor W. Robbins
- Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience InstituteDepartment of PsychologyUniversity of CambridgeCambridgeUK
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9
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Peng Z, He L, Wen R, Verguts T, Seger CA, Chen Q. Obsessive-compulsive disorder is characterized by decreased Pavlovian influence on instrumental behavior. PLoS Comput Biol 2022; 18:e1009945. [PMID: 36215326 PMCID: PMC9584381 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pcbi.1009945] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/23/2022] [Revised: 10/20/2022] [Accepted: 09/28/2022] [Indexed: 02/05/2023] Open
Abstract
Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is characterized by uncontrollable repetitive actions thought to rely on abnormalities within fundamental instrumental learning systems. We investigated cognitive and computational mechanisms underlying Pavlovian biases on instrumental behavior in both clinical OCD patients and healthy controls using a Pavlovian-Instrumental Transfer (PIT) task. PIT is typically evidenced by increased responding in the presence of a positive (previously rewarded) Pavlovian cue, and reduced responding in the presence of a negative cue. Thirty OCD patients and thirty-one healthy controls completed the Pavlovian Instrumental Transfer test, which included instrumental training, Pavlovian training for positive, negative and neutral cues, and a PIT phase in which participants performed the instrumental task in the presence of the Pavlovian cues. Modified Rescorla-Wagner models were fitted to trial-by-trial data of participants to estimate underlying computational mechanism and quantify individual differences during training and transfer stages. Bayesian hierarchical methods were used to estimate free parameters and compare the models. Behavioral and computational results indicated a weaker Pavlovian influence on instrumental behavior in OCD patients than in HC, especially for negative Pavlovian cues. Our results contrast with the increased PIT effects reported for another set of disorders characterized by compulsivity, substance use disorders, in which PIT is enhanced. A possible reason for the reduced PIT in OCD may be impairment in using the contextual information provided by the cues to appropriately adjust behavior, especially when inhibiting responding when a negative cue is present. This study provides deeper insight into our understanding of deficits in OCD from the perspective of Pavlovian influences on instrumental behavior and may have implications for OCD treatment modalities focused on reducing compulsive behaviors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ziwen Peng
- Key Laboratory of Brain, Cognition and Education Sciences, Ministry of Education, Guangzhou, China
- School of Psychology, Center for Studies of Psychological Application, and Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China
- Department of Child Psychiatry, Shenzhen Kangning Hospital, Shenzhen University School of Medicine, Shenzhen, China
| | - Luning He
- School of Psychology, Center for Studies of Psychological Application, and Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Rongzhen Wen
- School of Psychology, Center for Studies of Psychological Application, and Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Tom Verguts
- Department of Experimental Psychology, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium
| | - Carol A. Seger
- School of Psychology, Center for Studies of Psychological Application, and Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China
- Department of Psychology, Colorado State University, Colorado, United States of America
- * E-mail: (CS); (QC)
| | - Qi Chen
- Key Laboratory of Brain, Cognition and Education Sciences, Ministry of Education, Guangzhou, China
- School of Psychology, Center for Studies of Psychological Application, and Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China
- * E-mail: (CS); (QC)
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10
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Li DC, Dighe NM, Barbee BR, Pitts EG, Kochoian B, Blumenthal SA, Figueroa J, Leong T, Gourley SL. A molecularly integrated amygdalo-fronto-striatal network coordinates flexible learning and memory. Nat Neurosci 2022; 25:1213-1224. [PMID: 36042313 PMCID: PMC10614133 DOI: 10.1038/s41593-022-01148-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/09/2021] [Accepted: 07/18/2022] [Indexed: 01/28/2023]
Abstract
Behavioral flexibility-that is, the ability to deviate from established behavioral sequences-is critical for navigating dynamic environments and requires the durable encoding and retrieval of new memories to guide future choice. The orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) supports outcome-guided behaviors. However, the coordinated neural circuitry and cellular mechanisms by which OFC connections sustain flexible learning and memory remain elusive. Here we demonstrate in mice that basolateral amygdala (BLA)→OFC projections bidirectionally control memory formation when familiar behaviors are unexpectedly not rewarded, whereas OFC→dorsomedial striatum (DMS) projections facilitate memory retrieval. OFC neuronal ensembles store a memory trace for newly learned information, which appears to be facilitated by circuit-specific dendritic spine plasticity and neurotrophin signaling within defined BLA-OFC-DMS connections and obstructed by cocaine. Thus, we describe the directional transmission of information within an integrated amygdalo-fronto-striatal circuit across time, whereby novel memories are encoded by BLA→OFC inputs, represented within OFC ensembles and retrieved via OFC→DMS outputs during future choice.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dan C Li
- Medical Scientist Training Program, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA
- Department of Pediatrics, Children's Healthcare of Atlanta, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA
- Emory National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Niharika M Dighe
- Department of Pediatrics, Children's Healthcare of Atlanta, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA
- Emory National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Britton R Barbee
- Department of Pediatrics, Children's Healthcare of Atlanta, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA
- Emory National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Elizabeth G Pitts
- Department of Pediatrics, Children's Healthcare of Atlanta, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA
- Emory National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Brik Kochoian
- Emory National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Sarah A Blumenthal
- Emory National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Janet Figueroa
- Department of Pediatrics, Children's Healthcare of Atlanta, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Traci Leong
- Department of Pediatrics, Children's Healthcare of Atlanta, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Shannon L Gourley
- Department of Pediatrics, Children's Healthcare of Atlanta, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA.
- Emory National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA.
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11
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Hemed E, Karsh N, Mark-Tavger I, Eitam B. Motivation(s) from control: response-effect contingency and confirmation of sensorimotor predictions reinforce different levels of selection. Exp Brain Res 2022; 240:1471-1497. [PMID: 35316354 DOI: 10.1007/s00221-022-06345-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/06/2021] [Accepted: 03/04/2022] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Humans and other animals live in dynamic environments. To reliably manipulate the environment and attain their goals they would benefit from a constant modification of motor-responding based on responses' current effect on the current environment. It is argued that this is exactly what is achieved by a mechanism that reinforces responses which have led to accurate sensorimotor predictions. We further show that evaluations of a response's effectiveness can occur simultaneously, driven by at least two different processes, each relying on different statistical properties of the feedback and affecting a different level of responding. Specifically, we show the continuous effect of (a) a sensorimotor process sensitive only to the conditional probability of effects given that the agent acted on the environment (i.e., action-effects) and of (b) a more abstract judgement or inference that is also sensitive to the conditional probabilities of occurrence of feedback given no action by the agent (i.e., inaction-effects). The latter process seems to guide action selection (e.g., should I act?) while the former the manner of the action's execution. This study is the first to show that different evaluation processes of a response's effectiveness influence different levels of responding.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eitan Hemed
- Department of Psychology, University of Haifa, Haifa, Israel.
| | - Noam Karsh
- Department of Psychology, University of Haifa, Haifa, Israel.,Department of Psychology, Academic College of Tel-Hai, Qiryat Shemona, Israel
| | | | - Baruch Eitam
- Department of Psychology, University of Haifa, Haifa, Israel
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12
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Ramakrishnan S, Robbins TW, Zmigrod L. The Habitual Tendencies Questionnaire: A tool for psychometric individual differences research. Personal Ment Health 2022; 16:30-46. [PMID: 34196130 DOI: 10.1002/pmh.1524] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/10/2021] [Revised: 05/31/2021] [Accepted: 06/08/2021] [Indexed: 01/06/2023]
Abstract
Habits are automatic responses to learned stimuli or contextual cues that are insensitive to goals. Although habits may allow for automated behaviours that increase efficiency in our daily lives, an over-reliance on habits has been suggested to contribute to disorders such as obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). There are currently few established measures of individual differences in habitual tendencies. To fill this gap, the present study generated and validated a novel 11-item scale, the Habitual Tendencies Questionnaire (HTQ), to measure individual differences in habitual tendencies in the general population. In Study 1, factor analysis revealed three underlying subcomponents of the HTQ: Compulsivity, Preference for Regularity, and Aversion to Novelty, with Compulsivity showing the strongest association with subclinical OCD symptomatology. Study 2 validated the HTQ and replicated the findings of Study 1 in a larger sample, and explored relationships with other personality traits. The results emphasise the importance of measuring individual variation in habitual thinking styles, illustrating that different facets of habitual tendencies may contribute to diverse behavioural and clinical outcomes. The present investigation provides a new, reliable way of measuring habitual tendencies and has important implications for future explorations into the nature of individual differences from a dimensional perspective to psychiatry.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Trevor W Robbins
- Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK.,Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience Institute, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - Leor Zmigrod
- Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK.,Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience Institute, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
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13
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Dombrovski AY, Hallquist MN. Search for solutions, learning, simulation, and choice processes in suicidal behavior. WILEY INTERDISCIPLINARY REVIEWS. COGNITIVE SCIENCE 2022; 13:e1561. [PMID: 34008338 PMCID: PMC9285563 DOI: 10.1002/wcs.1561] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/12/2020] [Revised: 03/06/2021] [Accepted: 04/07/2021] [Indexed: 12/25/2022]
Abstract
Suicide may be viewed as an unfortunate outcome of failures in decision processes. Such failures occur when the demands of a crisis exceed a person's capacity to (i) search for options, (ii) learn and simulate possible futures, and (iii) make advantageous value-based choices. Can individual-level decision deficits and biases drive the progression of the suicidal crisis? Our overview of the evidence on this question is informed by clinical theory and grounded in reinforcement learning and behavioral economics. Cohort and case-control studies provide strong evidence that limited cognitive capacity and particularly impaired cognitive control are associated with suicidal behavior, imposing cognitive constraints on decision-making. We conceptualize suicidal ideation as an element of impoverished consideration sets resulting from a search for solutions under cognitive constraints and mood-congruent Pavlovian influences, a view supported by mostly indirect evidence. More compelling is the evidence of impaired learning in people with a history of suicidal behavior. We speculate that an inability to simulate alternative futures using one's model of the world may undermine alternative solutions in a suicidal crisis. The hypothesis supported by the strongest evidence is that the selection of suicide over alternatives is facilitated by a choice process undermined by randomness. Case-control studies using gambling tasks, armed bandits, and delay discounting support this claim. Future experimental studies will need to uncover real-time dynamics of choice processes in suicidal people. In summary, the decision process framework sheds light on neurocognitive mechanisms that facilitate the progression of the suicidal crisis. This article is categorized under: Economics > Individual Decision-Making Psychology > Emotion and Motivation Psychology > Learning Neuroscience > Behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Michael N. Hallquist
- Department of Psychology and NeuroscienceUniversity of North CarolinaChapel HillNorth CarolinaUSA
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14
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Ramakrishnan S, Robbins TW, Zmigrod L. Cognitive Rigidity, Habitual Tendencies, and Obsessive-Compulsive Symptoms: Individual Differences and Compensatory Interactions. Front Psychiatry 2022; 13:865896. [PMID: 35573321 PMCID: PMC9094714 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyt.2022.865896] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/30/2022] [Accepted: 04/01/2022] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Recent theories have posited a range of cognitive risk factors for obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), including cognitive inflexibility and a maladaptive reliance on habits. However, empirical and methodological inconsistencies have obscured the understanding of whether inflexibility and habitual tendencies indeed shape OCD symptoms in clinical and sub-clinical populations, and whether there are notable interactions amongst these traits. The present investigation adopted an interactionist individual differences approach to examine the associations between behaviorally-assessed cognitive flexibility and subclinical OCD symptomatology in a healthy population. It also explored the nature of the interactions between cognitive flexibility and habitual tendencies, and the degree to which these cognitive traits predict subclinical OCD symptomatology. Across two studies, including a preregistration, Bayesian and regression analyses revealed that cognitive inflexibility and compulsive habitual tendencies act as unique and independent predictors of subclinical OCD symptomatology in healthy populations. Furthermore, there was a significant interaction between cognitive rigidity and habitual compulsivity, which accounted for 49.4% of the variance in subclinical OCD symptomatology in Study 1, and 37.3% in Study 2. In-depth analyses revealed a compensatory effect between cognitive inflexibility and habitual compulsivity such that both are necessary for OCD symptomatology, but neither is sufficient. These results imply that in order to generate reliable and nuanced models of the endophenotype of OCD symptomatology, it is essential to account for interactions between psychological traits. Moreover, the present findings have important implications for theories on the cognitive roots of OCD, and potentially in the development of interventions that target both cognitive inflexibility and habitual compulsivity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Smriti Ramakrishnan
- School of Clinical Medicine, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom
| | - Trevor W Robbins
- Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom.,Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience Institute, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom
| | - Leor Zmigrod
- Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom.,Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience Institute, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom
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15
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Ahmari SE, Rauch SL. The prefrontal cortex and OCD. Neuropsychopharmacology 2022; 47:211-224. [PMID: 34400778 PMCID: PMC8617188 DOI: 10.1038/s41386-021-01130-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/12/2021] [Revised: 07/13/2021] [Accepted: 07/22/2021] [Indexed: 01/03/2023]
Abstract
Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) is a highly prevalent and severe neuropsychiatric disorder, with an incidence of 1.5-3% worldwide. However, despite the clear public health burden of OCD and relatively well-defined symptom criteria, effective treatments are still limited, spotlighting the need for investigation of the neural substrates of the disorder. Human neuroimaging studies have consistently highlighted abnormal activity patterns in prefrontal cortex (PFC) regions and connected circuits in OCD during both symptom provocation and performance of neurocognitive tasks. Because of recent technical advances, these findings can now be leveraged to develop novel targeted interventions. Here we will highlight current theories regarding the role of the prefrontal cortex in the generation of OCD symptoms, discuss ways in which this knowledge can be used to improve treatments for this often disabling illness, and lay out challenges in the field for future study.
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Affiliation(s)
- Susanne E Ahmari
- Translational Neuroscience Program, Department of Psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA.
- Center for Neuroscience, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA.
- Center for the Neural Basis of Cognition, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA, USA.
| | - Scott L Rauch
- Department of Psychiatry, McLean Hospital, Belmont, MA, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
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16
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Prével A, Hoofs V, Krebs RM. Effect of non-instructed instrumental contingency of monetary reward and positive affect in a cognitive control task. ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE 2021; 8:202002. [PMID: 34457322 PMCID: PMC8385383 DOI: 10.1098/rsos.202002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/10/2020] [Accepted: 08/02/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
In recent years, we observed a strong interest in the influence of motivation and emotion on cognitive control. Prior studies suggest that the instrumental contingency between a response and a rewarding or affective stimulus is particularly important in that context-which is resonating with observations in the associative learning literature. However, despite this overlap, and the relevance of non-instructed learning in real life, the vast majority of studies investigating motivation-cognition interactions use direct instructions to inform participants about the contingencies between responses and stimuli. Thus, there is little experimental insight regarding how humans detect non-instructed contingencies between their actions and motivational or affective outcomes, and how these learned contingencies come to influence cognitive control processes. In an attempt to close this gap, the goal of the present study was to test the effect of non-instructed contingent and non-contingent outcomes (i.e. monetary reward and positive affective stimuli) on cognitive control using the AX-continuous performance task (AX-CPT) paradigm. We found that entirely non-instructed contingencies between responses and positive outcomes (both monetary and affective ones) led to significant performance improvement. The present results open new perspectives for studying the influence of motivation and emotion on cognitive control at the insertion with associative learning.
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Affiliation(s)
- Arthur Prével
- Department of Experimental Psychology, Ghent University, Henri Dunantlaan, 2, Ghent 9000, Belgium
| | - Vincent Hoofs
- Department of Experimental Psychology, Ghent University, Henri Dunantlaan, 2, Ghent 9000, Belgium
| | - Ruth M Krebs
- Department of Experimental Psychology, Ghent University, Henri Dunantlaan, 2, Ghent 9000, Belgium
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17
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Prével A, Krebs RM, Kukkonen N, Braem S. Selective reinforcement of conflict processing in the Stroop task. PLoS One 2021; 16:e0255430. [PMID: 34329341 PMCID: PMC8323904 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0255430] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/02/2021] [Accepted: 07/16/2021] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Motivation signals have been shown to influence the engagement of cognitive control processes. However, most studies focus on the invigorating effect of reward prospect, rather than the reinforcing effect of reward feedback. The present study aimed to test whether people strategically adapt conflict processing when confronted with condition-specific congruency-reward contingencies in a manual Stroop task. Results show that the size of the Stroop effect can be affected by selectively rewarding responses following incongruent versus congruent trials. However, our findings also suggest important boundary conditions. Our first two experiments only show a modulation of the Stroop effect in the first half of the experimental blocks, possibly due to our adaptive threshold procedure demotivating adaptive behavior over time. The third experiment showed an overall modulation of the Stroop effect, but did not find evidence for a similar modulation on test items, leaving open whether this effect generalizes to the congruency conditions, or is stimulus-specific. More generally, our results are consistent with computational models of cognitive control and support contemporary learning perspectives on cognitive control. The findings also offer new guidelines and directions for future investigations on the selective reinforcement of cognitive control processes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Arthur Prével
- Department of Experimental Psychology, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium
- * E-mail:
| | - Ruth M. Krebs
- Department of Experimental Psychology, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium
| | - Nanne Kukkonen
- Department of Experimental Psychology, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium
| | - Senne Braem
- Department of Experimental Psychology, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium
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18
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Gillan CM, Vaghi MM, Hezemans FH, van Ghesel Grothe S, Dafflon J, Brühl AB, Savulich G, Robbins TW. Experimentally induced and real-world anxiety have no demonstrable effect on goal-directed behaviour. Psychol Med 2021; 51:1467-1478. [PMID: 32114998 PMCID: PMC8311820 DOI: 10.1017/s0033291720000203] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/01/2019] [Revised: 01/17/2020] [Accepted: 01/23/2020] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Goal-directed control guides optimal decision-making and it is an important cognitive faculty that protects against developing habits. Previous studies have found some evidence of goal-directed deficits when healthy individuals are stressed, and in psychiatric conditions characterised by compulsive behaviours and anxiety. Here, we tested if goal-directed control is affected by state anxiety, which might explain the former results. METHODS We carried out a causal test of this hypothesis in two experiments (between-subject N = 88; within-subject N = 50) that used the inhalation of hypercapnic gas (7.5% CO2) to induce an acute state of anxiety in healthy volunteers. In a third experiment (N = 1413), we used a correlational design to test if real-life anxiety-provoking events (panic attacks, stressful events) are associated with impaired goal-directed control. RESULTS In the former two causal experiments, we induced a profoundly anxious state, both physiologically and psychologically, but this did not affect goal-directed performance. In the third, correlational, study, we found no evidence for an association between goal-directed control, panic attacks or stressful life eventsover and above variance accounted for by trait differences in compulsivity. CONCLUSIONS In sum, three complementary experiments found no evidence that anxiety impairs goal-directed control in human subjects.
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Affiliation(s)
- C. M. Gillan
- Trinity College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland
- New York University, New York, USA
| | | | | | | | | | - A. B. Brühl
- University Hospital of Psychiatry Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
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19
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Duan LY, Horst NK, Cranmore SAW, Horiguchi N, Cardinal RN, Roberts AC, Robbins TW. Controlling one's world: Identification of sub-regions of primate PFC underlying goal-directed behavior. Neuron 2021; 109:2485-2498.e5. [PMID: 34171290 PMCID: PMC8346232 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuron.2021.06.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/05/2020] [Revised: 04/13/2021] [Accepted: 06/02/2021] [Indexed: 12/30/2022]
Abstract
Impaired detection of causal relationships between actions and their outcomes can lead to maladaptive behavior. However, causal roles of specific prefrontal cortex (PFC) sub-regions and the caudate nucleus in mediating such relationships in primates are unclear. We inactivated and overactivated five PFC sub-regions, reversibly and pharmacologically: areas 24 (perigenual anterior cingulate cortex), 32 (medial PFC), 11 (anterior orbitofrontal cortex, OFC), 14 (rostral ventromedial PFC/medial OFC), and 14-25 (caudal ventromedial PFC) and the anteromedial caudate to examine their role in expressing learned action-outcome contingencies using a contingency degradation paradigm in marmoset monkeys. Area 24 or caudate inactivation impaired the response to contingency change, while area 11 inactivation enhanced it, and inactivation of areas 14, 32, or 14-25 had no effect. Overactivation of areas 11 and 24 impaired this response. These findings demonstrate the distinct roles of PFC sub-regions in goal-directed behavior and illuminate the candidate neurobehavioral substrates of psychiatric disorders, including obsessive-compulsive disorder. Monkey pgACC-24 is necessary for detecting causal control of actions over outcomes Its projection target in the caudate nucleus is also implicated Three other subregions of the ventromedial prefrontal cortex are not necessary Anterior OFC-11 may mediate Pavlovian influences on goal-directed behavior
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Affiliation(s)
- Lisa Y Duan
- Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Downing Street, Cambridge CB2 3EB, UK; Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience Institute, Downing Street, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 3EB, UK.
| | - Nicole K Horst
- Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Downing Street, Cambridge CB2 3EB, UK; Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience Institute, Downing Street, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 3EB, UK
| | - Stacey A W Cranmore
- Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Downing Street, Cambridge CB2 3EB, UK; Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience Institute, Downing Street, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 3EB, UK
| | - Naotaka Horiguchi
- Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Downing Street, Cambridge CB2 3EB, UK; Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience Institute, Downing Street, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 3EB, UK
| | - Rudolf N Cardinal
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Cambridge, Herchel Smith Building for Brain & Mind Sciences, Forvie Site, Robinson Way, Cambridge CB2 0SZ, UK; Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience Institute, Downing Street, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 3EB, UK; Cambridgeshire and Peterborough NHS Foundation Trust, Liaison Psychiatry Service, Box 190, Cambridge Biomedical Campus, Cambridge CB2 0QQ, UK
| | - Angela C Roberts
- Department of Physiology, Development and Neuroscience, University of Cambridge, Downing Street, Cambridge CB2 3DY, UK; Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience Institute, Downing Street, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 3EB, UK
| | - Trevor W Robbins
- Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Downing Street, Cambridge CB2 3EB, UK; Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience Institute, Downing Street, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 3EB, UK
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20
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Ersche KD, Lim TV, Murley AG, Rua C, Vaghi MM, White TL, Williams GB, Robbins TW. Reduced Glutamate Turnover in the Putamen Is Linked With Automatic Habits in Human Cocaine Addiction. Biol Psychiatry 2021; 89:970-979. [PMID: 33581835 PMCID: PMC8083107 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsych.2020.12.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/09/2020] [Revised: 12/09/2020] [Accepted: 12/14/2020] [Indexed: 12/20/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND The balance between goal-directed behavior and habits has been hypothesized to be biased toward the latter in individuals with cocaine use disorder (CUD), suggesting possible neurochemical changes in the putamen, which may contribute to their compulsive behavior. METHODS We assessed habitual behavior in 48 patients with CUD and 42 healthy control participants using a contingency degradation paradigm and the Creature of Habit Scale. In a subgroup of this sample (CUD: n = 21; control participants: n = 22), we also measured glutamate and glutamine concentrations in the left putamen using ultra-high-field (7T) magnetic resonance spectroscopy. We hypothesized that increased habitual tendencies in patients with CUD would be associated with abnormal glutamatergic metabolites in the putamen. RESULTS Compared with their non-drug-using peers, patients with CUD exhibited greater habitual tendencies during contingency degradation, which correlated with increased levels of self-reported daily habits. We further identified a significant reduction in glutamate concentration and glutamate turnover (glutamate-to-glutamine ratio) in the putamen in patients with CUD, which was significantly related to the level of self-reported daily habits. CONCLUSIONS Patients with CUD exhibit enhanced habitual behavior, as assessed both by questionnaire and by a laboratory paradigm of contingency degradation. This automatic habitual tendency is related to a reduced glutamate turnover in the putamen, suggesting a dysregulation of habits caused by chronic cocaine use.
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Affiliation(s)
- Karen D Ersche
- Departments of Psychiatry, Psychology, and Clinical Neurosciences, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom.
| | - Tsen Vei Lim
- Departments of Psychiatry, Psychology, and Clinical Neurosciences, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom
| | - Alexander G Murley
- Departments of Psychiatry, Psychology, and Clinical Neurosciences, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom
| | - Catarina Rua
- Wolfson Brain Imaging Centre, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom
| | - Matilde M Vaghi
- Departments of Psychiatry, Psychology, and Clinical Neurosciences, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom; Department of Psychology, Stanford University, Stanford, California
| | - Tara L White
- Department of Behavioral and Social Sciences, Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island
| | - Guy B Williams
- Departments of Psychiatry, Psychology, and Clinical Neurosciences, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom; Wolfson Brain Imaging Centre, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom
| | - Trevor W Robbins
- Departments of Psychiatry, Psychology, and Clinical Neurosciences, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom
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21
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Vaghi MM, Moutoussis M, Váša F, Kievit RA, Hauser TU, Vértes PE, Shahar N, Romero-Garcia R, Kitzbichler MG, Bullmore ET, Dolan RJ. Compulsivity is linked to reduced adolescent development of goal-directed control and frontostriatal functional connectivity. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2020; 117:25911-25922. [PMID: 32989168 PMCID: PMC7568330 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1922273117] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/18/2022] Open
Abstract
A characteristic of adaptive behavior is its goal-directed nature. An ability to act in a goal-directed manner is progressively refined during development, but this refinement can be impacted by the emergence of psychiatric disorders. Disorders of compulsivity have been framed computationally as a deficit in model-based control, and have been linked also to abnormal frontostriatal connectivity. However, the developmental trajectory of model-based control, including an interplay between its maturation and an emergence of compulsivity, has not been characterized. Availing of a large sample of healthy adolescents (n = 569) aged 14 to 24 y, we show behaviorally that over the course of adolescence there is a within-person increase in model-based control, and this is more pronounced in younger participants. Using a bivariate latent change score model, we provide evidence that the presence of higher compulsivity traits is associated with an atypical profile of this developmental maturation in model-based control. Resting-state fMRI data from a subset of the behaviorally assessed subjects (n = 230) revealed that compulsivity is associated with a less pronounced change of within-subject developmental remodeling of functional connectivity, specifically between the striatum and a frontoparietal network. Thus, in an otherwise clinically healthy population sample, in early development, individual differences in compulsivity are linked to the developmental trajectory of model-based control and a remodeling of frontostriatal connectivity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matilde M Vaghi
- Max Planck University College London Centre for Computational Psychiatry and Ageing Research, University College London, WC1 B5EH London, United Kingdom;
- Wellcome Centre for Human Neuroimaging, University College London, WC1N 3AR London, United Kingdom
| | - Michael Moutoussis
- Max Planck University College London Centre for Computational Psychiatry and Ageing Research, University College London, WC1 B5EH London, United Kingdom
- Wellcome Centre for Human Neuroimaging, University College London, WC1N 3AR London, United Kingdom
| | - František Váša
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Cambridge, CB2 2QQ Cambridge, United Kingdom
- Centre for Neuroimaging Sciences, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience, King's College London, SE5 8AF London, United Kingdom
| | - Rogier A Kievit
- Max Planck University College London Centre for Computational Psychiatry and Ageing Research, University College London, WC1 B5EH London, United Kingdom
- Medical Research Council Cognition and Brain Sciences Unit, Cambridge, CB2 7EF Cambridge, United Kingdom
| | - Tobias U Hauser
- Max Planck University College London Centre for Computational Psychiatry and Ageing Research, University College London, WC1 B5EH London, United Kingdom
- Wellcome Centre for Human Neuroimaging, University College London, WC1N 3AR London, United Kingdom
| | - Petra E Vértes
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Cambridge, CB2 2QQ Cambridge, United Kingdom
- The Alan Turing Institute, NW1 2DB London, United Kingdom
- School of Mathematical Sciences, Queen Mary University of London, E1 4NS London, United Kingdom
| | - Nitzan Shahar
- Max Planck University College London Centre for Computational Psychiatry and Ageing Research, University College London, WC1 B5EH London, United Kingdom
- Wellcome Centre for Human Neuroimaging, University College London, WC1N 3AR London, United Kingdom
| | - Rafael Romero-Garcia
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Cambridge, CB2 2QQ Cambridge, United Kingdom
| | - Manfred G Kitzbichler
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Cambridge, CB2 2QQ Cambridge, United Kingdom
| | - Edward T Bullmore
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Cambridge, CB2 2QQ Cambridge, United Kingdom
| | - Raymond J Dolan
- Max Planck University College London Centre for Computational Psychiatry and Ageing Research, University College London, WC1 B5EH London, United Kingdom
- Wellcome Centre for Human Neuroimaging, University College London, WC1N 3AR London, United Kingdom
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22
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Berghäuser J, Bensmann W, Zink N, Endrass T, Beste C, Stock AK. Alcohol Hangover Does Not Alter the Application of Model-Based and Model-Free Learning Strategies. J Clin Med 2020; 9:jcm9051453. [PMID: 32414137 PMCID: PMC7290484 DOI: 10.3390/jcm9051453] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/02/2020] [Revised: 05/06/2020] [Accepted: 05/07/2020] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Frequent alcohol binges shift behavior from goal-directed to habitual processing modes. This shift in reward-associated learning strategies plays a key role in the development and maintenance of alcohol use disorders and seems to persist during (early stages of) sobriety in at-risk drinkers. Yet still, it has remained unclear whether this phenomenon might be associated with alcohol hangover and thus also be found in social drinkers. In an experimental crossover design, n = 25 healthy young male participants performed a two-step decision-making task once sober and once hungover (i.e., when reaching sobriety after consuming 2.6 g of alcohol per estimated liter of total body water). This task allows the separation of effortful model-based and computationally less demanding model-free learning strategies. The experimental induction of alcohol hangover was successful, but we found no significant hangover effects on model-based and model-free learning scores, the balance between model-free and model-based valuation (ω), or perseveration tendencies (π). Bayesian analyses provided positive evidence for the null hypothesis for all measures except π (anecdotal evidence for the null hypothesis). Taken together, alcohol hangover, which results from a single binge drinking episode, does not impair the application of effortful and computationally costly model-based learning strategies and/or increase model-free learning strategies. This supports the notion that the behavioral deficits observed in at-risk drinkers are most likely not caused by the immediate aftereffects of individual binge drinking events.
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Affiliation(s)
- Julia Berghäuser
- Chair of Addiction Research, Institute for Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, Faculty of Psychology TU Dresden, Chemnitzer Str. 46, 01062 Dresden, Germany; (J.B.); (T.E.)
| | - Wiebke Bensmann
- Cognitive Neurophysiology, Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, TU Dresden, Fetscherstr. 74, 01307 Dresden, Germany; (W.B.); (N.Z.); (C.B.)
| | - Nicolas Zink
- Cognitive Neurophysiology, Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, TU Dresden, Fetscherstr. 74, 01307 Dresden, Germany; (W.B.); (N.Z.); (C.B.)
| | - Tanja Endrass
- Chair of Addiction Research, Institute for Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, Faculty of Psychology TU Dresden, Chemnitzer Str. 46, 01062 Dresden, Germany; (J.B.); (T.E.)
| | - Christian Beste
- Cognitive Neurophysiology, Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, TU Dresden, Fetscherstr. 74, 01307 Dresden, Germany; (W.B.); (N.Z.); (C.B.)
| | - Ann-Kathrin Stock
- Cognitive Neurophysiology, Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, TU Dresden, Fetscherstr. 74, 01307 Dresden, Germany; (W.B.); (N.Z.); (C.B.)
- Correspondence:
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23
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Pérez OD, Soto FA. Evidence for a dissociation between causal beliefs and instrumental actions. Q J Exp Psychol (Hove) 2020; 73:495-503. [PMID: 31931662 DOI: 10.1177/1747021819899808] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/15/2022]
Abstract
Human experiments have demonstrated that instrumental performance of an action and the causal beliefs of the effectiveness of an action in producing a reward are correlated and controlled by the probability of an action leading to a reward. The animal literature, however, shows that instrumental performance under free-operant training differs even when the reward probabilities are matched while subjects undergo training under ratio or interval schedules of reward. In two experiments, we investigated whether causal beliefs would correlate with instrumental performance under ratio and interval schedules for matched reward probabilities. In both experiments, we found that performance was higher under ratio than under interval training. However, causal beliefs were similar between these two conditions despite these differences in instrumental performance. When reward probabilities were increased by experimental manipulations in Experiment 2, the causal beliefs increased but performance decreased with respect to Experiment 1. This is evidence that instrumental performance and causal action-reward attribution may not follow from the same psychological process under free-operant training.
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Affiliation(s)
- Omar D Pérez
- Division of the Humanities and Social Sciences, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA, USA
- Nuffield College CESS-Santiago, Facultad de Administracion y Economia, Universidad de Santiago de Chile, Santiago, Chile
| | - Fabian A Soto
- Department of Psychology, Florida International University, North Miami, FL, USA
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24
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O'Callaghan C, Vaghi MM, Brummerloh B, Cardinal RN, Robbins TW. Impaired awareness of action-outcome contingency and causality during healthy ageing and following ventromedial prefrontal cortex lesions. Neuropsychologia 2019; 128:282-289. [PMID: 29355648 PMCID: PMC6562272 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2018.01.021] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/01/2017] [Revised: 01/13/2018] [Accepted: 01/15/2018] [Indexed: 01/20/2023]
Abstract
Detecting causal relationships between actions and their outcomes is fundamental to guiding goal-directed behaviour. The ventromedial prefrontal cortex (vmPFC) has been extensively implicated in computing these environmental contingencies, via animal lesion models and human neuroimaging. However, whether the vmPFC is critical for contingency learning, and whether it can occur without subjective awareness of those contingencies, has not been established. To address this, we measured response adaption to contingency and subjective awareness of action-outcome relationships in individuals with vmPFC lesions and healthy elderly subjects. We showed that in both vmPFC damage and ageing, successful behavioural adaptation to variations in action-outcome contingencies was maintained, but subjective awareness of these contingencies was reduced. These results highlight two contexts where performance and awareness have been dissociated, and show that learning response-outcome contingencies to guide behaviour can occur without subjective awareness. Preserved responding in the vmPFC group suggests that this region is not critical for computing action-outcome contingencies to guide behaviour. In contrast, our findings highlight a critical role for the vmPFC in supporting awareness, or metacognitive ability, during learning. We further advance the hypothesis that responding to changing environmental contingencies, whilst simultaneously maintaining conscious awareness of those statistical regularities, is a form of dual-tasking that is impaired in ageing due to reduced prefrontal function.
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Affiliation(s)
- Claire O'Callaghan
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK; Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience Institute, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK; Brain and Mind Centre, University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia.
| | - Matilde M Vaghi
- Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience Institute, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK; Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - Berit Brummerloh
- Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience Institute, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK; MRC Cognition and Brain Sciences Unit, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK; Department of Experimental Psychology and Methods, Leipzig University, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Rudolf N Cardinal
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK; Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience Institute, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK; Liaison Psychiatry Service, Cambridgeshire and Peterborough NHS Foundation Trust, UK
| | - Trevor W Robbins
- Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience Institute, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK; Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
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25
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Burchi E, Makris N, Lee MR, Pallanti S, Hollander E. Compulsivity in Alcohol Use Disorder and Obsessive Compulsive Disorder: Implications for Neuromodulation. Front Behav Neurosci 2019; 13:70. [PMID: 31139059 PMCID: PMC6470293 DOI: 10.3389/fnbeh.2019.00070] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/30/2019] [Accepted: 03/22/2019] [Indexed: 01/22/2023] Open
Abstract
Alcohol use Disorder (AUD) is one of the leading causes of morbidity and mortality worldwide. The progression of the disorder is associated with the development of compulsive alcohol use, which in turn contributes to the high relapse rate and poor longer term functioning reported in most patients, even with treatment. While the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5) defines AUD by a cluster of symptoms, parsing its heterogeneous phenotype by domains of behavior such as compulsivity may be a critical step to improve outcomes of this condition. Still, neurobiological underpinnings of compulsivity need to be fully elucidated in AUD in order to better design targeted treatment strategies. In this manuscript, we review and discuss findings supporting common mechanisms between AUD and OCD, dissecting the construct of compulsivity and focusing specifically on characteristic disruptions in habit learning and cognitive control in the two disorders. Finally, neuromodulatory interventions are proposed as a probe to test compulsivity as key pathophysiologic feature of AUD, and as a potential therapy for the subgroup of individuals with compulsive alcohol use, i.e., the more resistant stage of the disorder. This transdiagnostic approach may help to destigmatize the disorder, and suggest potential treatment targets across different conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elisabetta Burchi
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Montefiore Medical Center, Bronx, NY, United States.,Department of Health Sciences, University of Florence, Florence, Italy
| | - Nikolaos Makris
- Center for Morphometric Analysis, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States.,Psychiatry Neuroimaging Laboratory, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States
| | - Mary R Lee
- Section on Clinical Psychoneuroendocrinology and Neuropsychopharmacology, National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism and National Institute on Drug Abuse, Bethesda, MD, United States
| | - Stefano Pallanti
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University Medical Center, Stanford, CA, United States
| | - Eric Hollander
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Montefiore Medical Center, Bronx, NY, United States
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26
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Robbins TW, Vaghi MM, Banca P. Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder: Puzzles and Prospects. Neuron 2019; 102:27-47. [PMID: 30946823 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuron.2019.01.046] [Citation(s) in RCA: 263] [Impact Index Per Article: 52.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/16/2018] [Revised: 01/11/2019] [Accepted: 01/18/2019] [Indexed: 02/02/2023]
Abstract
Obsessive-compulsive disorder is a severe and disabling psychiatric disorder that presents several challenges for neuroscience. Recent advances in its genetic and developmental causation, as well as its neuropsychological basis, are reviewed. Hypotheses concerning an imbalance between goal-directed and habitual behavior together with neural correlates in cortico-striatal circuitry are evaluated and contrasted with metacognitive theories. Treatments for obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) tend to be of mixed efficacy but include psychological, pharmacological, and surgical approaches, the underlying mechanisms of which are still under debate. Overall, the prospects for new animal models and an integrated understanding of the pathophysiology of OCD are considered in the context of dimensional psychiatry.
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Affiliation(s)
- Trevor W Robbins
- Department of Psychology, Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience Institute, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 3EB, UK.
| | - Matilde M Vaghi
- Department of Psychology, Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience Institute, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 3EB, UK.
| | - Paula Banca
- Department of Psychology, Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience Institute, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 3EB, UK.
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27
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Abstract
Active avoidance is the prototypical paradigm for studying aversively-motivated instrumental behavior. However, avoidance research stalled amid heated theoretical debates and the hypothesis that active avoidance is essentially Pavlovian flight. Here I reconsider key "avoidance problems" and review neurobehavioral data collected with modern tools. Although the picture remains incomplete, these studies strongly suggest that avoidance has an instrumental component and is mediated by brain circuits that resemble appetitive instrumental actions more than Pavlovian fear reactions. Rapid progress may be possible if investigators consider important factors like safety signals, response-competition, goal-directed vs. habitual control and threat imminence in avoidance study design. Since avoidance responses likely contribute to active coping, this research has important implications for understanding human resilience and disorders of control.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christopher K Cain
- NYU School of Medicine, Dept. of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, 1 Park Avenue, 8 Floor, New York, NY 10016.,Nathan S. Kline Institute for Psychiatric Research, Emotional Brain Institute, 140 Old Orangeburg Road, Orangeburg, NY 10962
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