Effect of nicotine on negative affect among more impulsive smokers

Longitudinal Examination of ENDS Use Among Young Adult College Students: Associations with Depressive Symptoms and Sensation Seeking

The present study examined (1) intraindividual changes in the frequency of electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS) use across young adulthood, 18 to 30 years old, and (2) if depressive symptoms and sensation-seeking tendencies, independently and in interaction with one another, were associated with these changes. Data were from a longitudinal study of students recruited from 24 Texas colleges and followed across six waves from fall 2015 to spring 2019. Participants (n = 1298; 36.3% non-Hispanic white, 56.3% women) were 18 to 26 years old in fall 2015 and all reported past 30-day ENDS use on at least one wave. We used growth curve modeling for an accelerated longitudinal design to examine if ENDS use frequency changed with increasing age and if depressive symptoms and sensation seeking, independently and in interaction with one another, were associated with these changes. Results showed that ENDS use frequency increased with increasing age. Depressive symptoms and sensation seeking were not independently associated with more frequent ENDS use or an accelerated increase in ENDS use frequency across increasing age. However, a significant two-way interaction indicated that young adults with elevated depressive symptoms used ENDS more frequently, but only when they had higher levels of sensation seeking. Findings indicate that young adults with depressive symptoms are a heterogeneous population and that those with high levels of sensation-seeking tendencies are at elevated risk for more frequent ENDS use. Interventions for young adults high in both sensation-seeking and depressive symptoms may help prevent and decrease ENDS use.

To do it now or later: The cognitive mechanisms and neural substrates underlying procrastination

Procrastination, the voluntary and irrational delay of an intended course of action, has troubled individuals and society extensively. Various studies have been conducted to explain why people procrastinate and to explore the neural substrates of procrastination. First, research has identified many contributing factors to procrastination. Specifically, task aversiveness, future incentives, and time delay of these incentives have been confirmed as three prominent task characteristics that affect procrastination. On the other hand, self-control and impulsivity have been identified as two most predictive traits of procrastination. After identifying contributing factors, two important theories proposed to explain procrastination by integrating these factors are reviewed. Specifically, an emotion-regulation perspective regards procrastination as a form of self-regulation failure that reflects giving priority to short-term mood repair over achieving long-term goals. However, temporal motivation theory explains why people's motivation to act increases when time approaches a deadline with time discounting effect. To further specify the cognitive mechanism underlying procrastination, this study proposes a novel theoretical model which clarifies how the motivation to act and the motivation to avoid vary differently when delaying a task, explaining why people decide not to act now but are willing to act in the future. Of note, few recent studies have investigated neural correlates of procrastination. Specifically, it was revealed that individual differences in procrastination are correlated with structural abnormalities and altered spontaneous metabolism in the parahippocampal cortex and the prefrontal cortex, which might contribute to procrastination through episodic future thinking or memory and emotion regulation, respectively. This article is categorized under: Economics > Individual Decision Making Psychology > Theory and Methods Psychology > Emotion and Motivation Psychology > Reasoning and Decision Making.

Externalizing behavior problems are related to substance use in adolescents across six samples from Nordic countries

The aim of this study is to investigate associations between use of cigarettes, cannabis, and alcohol (CCA) and psychosocial problems among adolescents with different cultural backgrounds living in Nordic countries. Data from six questionnaire-based surveys conducted in Denmark, Norway, and Greenland, with participants from different cultural and religious backgrounds, were compared. A total of 2212 adolescents between 15 and 18 years of age participated in the study. The surveys were carried out nationally and in school settings. All adolescents answered a 12-item questionnaire (YouthMap12) with six questions identifying externalizing behavior problems and six questions identifying internalizing behavior problems, as well as four questions regarding childhood neglect and physical or sexual abuse, and questions about last month use of CCA. Externalizing behavior problems were strongly associated with all types of CCA use, while childhood history of abuse and neglect was associated with cigarette and cannabis use. The associations did not differ by sample. Despite differences between samples in use of CCA, national, cultural, and socioeconomic background, very similar associations were found between psychosocial problems and use of CCA. Our findings highlight the need to pay special attention to adolescents with externalizing behavior problems and experiences of neglect and assault in CCA prevention programs, across different ethnic and socioeconomic backgrounds.

Impulsivity related personality traits and cigarette smoking in adults: A meta-analysis using the UPPS-P model of impulsivity and reward sensitivity

BACKGROUND

Although there is considerable evidence of an association between impulsivity and cigarette smoking, the magnitude of this association varies across studies. Impulsivity comprises several discrete traits that may influence cigarette use in different ways. The present meta-analysis aims to examine the direction and magnitude of relationships between specific impulsivity-related traits, namely lack of premeditation, lack of perseverance, sensation seeking, negative urgency, positive urgency and reward sensitivity and both smoking status and severity of nicotine dependence in adults across studies and to delineate differences in effects across these relationships.

METHODS

Ninety-seven studies were meta-analysed using random-effects models to examine the relationship between impulsivity-related traits and smoking status and severity of nicotine dependence. A number of demographic and methodological variables were also assessed as potential moderators.

RESULTS

Smoking status and severity of nicotine dependence were significantly associated with all impulsivity-related traits except reward sensitivity. Lack of premeditation and positive urgency showed the largest associations with smoking status (r = 0.20, r = 0.24 respectively), while positive urgency showed the largest association with severity of nicotine dependence (r = 0.23). Study design moderated associations between lack of premeditation and lack of perseverance and smoking status, with larger effects found in cross-sectional compared to prospective studies.

CONCLUSIONS

Finding suggest that impulsivity is associated with an increased likelihood of being a smoker and greater nicotine dependence. Specific impulsivity-related traits differentially relate to smoking status and severity of nicotine dependence. Understanding the complexity of impulsivity-related traits in relation to smoking can help to identify potential smokers and could inform cessation treatment.

Do personality traits related to affect regulation predict other tobacco product use among young adult non-daily smokers?

INTRODUCTION

Understanding factors that influence non-cigarette tobacco use is important given these products' prevalence and health risks. The goal of this study was to test the hypothesis that personality traits related to affect regulation would be associated with greater frequency of other tobacco product (OTP) use in a sample of young adult non-daily smokers.

METHODS

Participants (n=518, 51% male) aged 18-24 were non-daily cigarette smokers recruited from the community for a longitudinal study of tobacco use. Personality characteristics (impulsivity, anhedonia, and negative affectivity) were measured at baseline, and participants reported recent tobacco use at baseline and 3, 6, and 9months later. Assessments were conducted online or via mobile phone.

RESULTS

Across the 4 assessments, 33-52% of participants reported recent OTP use, with frequency of use decreasing over time. Longitudinal negative binomial regression models indicated that greater sensation seeking and lack of premeditation were associated with more frequent OTP use (ps<0.05). These effects were consistent over time.

CONCLUSIONS

Findings suggest that young adult non-daily cigarette smokers with greater propensity for immediately rewarding behaviors may use OTPs more frequently. Young, non-daily cigarette smokers with high levels of sensation seeking and/or lack of premeditation may be at increased risk for harms related to OTP use and may benefit from prevention and cessation strategies that specifically address affect.

Depressive Symptoms and Cigarette Demand as a Function of Induced Stress

INTRODUCTION

Depressed smokers may disproportionately value cigarettes as compared to other reinforcers in the context of increases in negative affect (NA). Thus, cigarette demand may be an important construct for understanding the relationship between depression, NA change, and tobacco use. The aim of the current study was to examine the interaction between depressive symptoms and change in NA as a function of induced mood as a predictor of cigarette demand.

METHODS

Participants included 73 young adult daily smokers (41.70% female, 73.60% White, age M (SD) = 19.70 (1.15)) who attended two experimental sessions: one stress and one neutral. During each session, participants completed ratings of depressive symptoms, NA, and cigarette demand.

RESULTS

We examined the predictive utility of depressive symptoms, change in NA as a result of a stressor, and the interaction between depressive symptoms and NA change on demand indices. Separate models were constructed by session. Results indicated significant interactive effects between depressive symptoms and change in NA for predicting intensity, breakpoint, and P max during the stress session. Specifically, change in NA moderated the relationship between depression and demand indices such that among individuals high in NA change, depressive symptoms were positively related to P max and breakpoint, whereas among individuals low in NA change, depressive symptoms were positively related to intensity.

CONCLUSIONS

When exposed to stress, cigarettes may become more valuable for individuals with depressive symptoms.

IMPLICATIONS

This study contributes to the literature attempting to understand the complex relationships between depression, stress-related changes in NA, and tobacco use. This study suggests that one mechanism that may be important to the relationship between depression and tobacco use is cigarette demand. Specifically, for individuals with elevated depressive symptoms, certain aspects of cigarette demand may be higher (intensity, breakpoint, and P max) when exposed to stress, which may contribute to tobacco use being maintained over time.

Associations between nicotine dependence, anhedonia, urgency and smoking motives

Models of nicotine dependence have suggested that the association between urgency, a subconstruct of impulsivity, and smoking behaviors may be mediated by motivations. Motives that are driven by expectations that smoking will relieve negative affect or increase positive affect may be especially salient in persons who have depression symptoms such as anhedonia. Support for associations between symptoms of depression, urgency, and addiction has been found for alcohol dependence, but empirical analysis is lacking for an interactive effect of urgency and depression symptoms on nicotine dependence. The current study investigated relationships among the urgency facet of impulsivity, anhedonia, smoking motives, and nicotine dependence with secondary analyses of a sample of 1084 daily smokers using simultaneous moderation and multiple mediation analyses. The moderation analysis revealed that although urgency was significantly associated with smoking at average or higher levels of anhedonia, it was unrelated to smoking when few anhedonia symptoms were endorsed. Further, multiple mediation analyses revealed that the smoking motives of craving, cue exposure, positive reinforcement, and tolerance significantly mediated the relationship between urgency and nicotine dependence. Results suggest that models of alcohol addiction that include an interactive effect of urgency and certain symptoms of depression may be applied to nicotine dependence. Examination of the multiple mediational pathways between urgency and nicotine dependence suggests directions for intervention efforts.

Greater externalizing personality traits predict less error-related insula and anterior cingulate cortex activity in acutely abstinent cigarette smokers

Attenuated activity in performance-monitoring brain regions following erroneous actions may contribute to the repetition of maladaptive behaviors such as continued drug use. Externalizing is a broad personality construct characterized by deficient impulse control, vulnerability to addiction and reduced neurobiological indices of error processing. The insula and dorsal anterior cingulate cortex (dACC) are regions critically linked with error processing as well as the perpetuation of cigarette smoking. As such, we examined the interrelations between externalizing tendencies, erroneous task performance, and error-related insula and dACC activity in overnight-deprived smokers (n = 24) and non-smokers (n = 20). Participants completed a self-report measure assessing externalizing tendencies (Externalizing Spectrum Inventory) and a speeded Flanker task during functional magnetic resonance imaging scanning. We observed that higher externalizing tendencies correlated with the occurrence of more performance errors among smokers but not non-smokers. Suggesting a neurobiological contribution to such suboptimal performance among smokers, higher externalizing also predicted less recruitment of the right insula and dACC following error commission. Critically, this error-related activity fully mediated the relationship between externalizing traits and error rates. That is, higher externalizing scores predicted less error-related right insula and dACC activity and, in turn, less error-related activity predicted more errors. Relating such regional activity with a clinically relevant construct, less error-related right insula and dACC responses correlated with higher tobacco craving during abstinence. Given that inadequate error-related neuronal responses may contribute to continued drug use despite negative consequences, these results suggest that externalizing tendencies and/or compromised error processing among subsets of smokers may be relevant factors for smoking cessation success.

Relationships between trait urgency, smoking reinforcement expectancies, and nicotine dependence

Urgency (i.e., the tendency to act rashly during negative/positive affect) may increase vulnerability to a variety of risky behaviors. This cross-sectional study of nontreatment-seeking smokers examined the relationship between urgency, level of nicotine dependence, and smoking reinforcement expectancies. Both positive and negative urgency were associated with nicotine dependence. Mediational analyses illustrated that smoking reinforcement expectancies significantly accounted for urgency-dependence relations, with negative reinforcement expectancies displaying incremental mediational effects. If replicated and extended, these findings may support the use of treatments that modify beliefs regarding smoking reinforcement outcomes as a means of buffering the risk of nicotine dependence carried by urgency.

Tobacco smoking and mental illness: important considerations

Tobacco smoking is a contributory factor in the death of 50% of individuals who are regular or heavy smokers (The Office of Tobacco Control Ireland defines a regular smoker as someone who smokes 11-20 per day and a heavy smoker as someone who smokes 21 or more cigarettes per day). The World Health Organisation (WHO) regards tobacco smoking as the leading preventable cause of death worldwide. In Ireland, approximately 750,000 people smoke tobacco regularly (23.5% of the population) with 7,000 Irish people dying annually from smoking-related causes. Although there are no exact figures for prevalence rates of smoking in individuals with mental illness in Ireland, international studies unequivocally state that the prevalence of smoking is significantly higher in those with mental illness, with greater nicotine intake and increased prevalence of nicotine dependence also reported. Furthermore people with mental illness experience greater withdrawal symptoms and have lower cessation rates when attempting to stop smoking compared to the general population.

Associations of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder symptom dimensions with smoking deprivation effects in adult smokers

Identifying relations of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) symptom dimensions to individual facets of the tobacco withdrawal syndrome could elucidate the mechanisms linking ADHD and regular smoking. This study examined the unique relations of inattention (IN) and hyperactivity-impulsivity (HI) symptom dimensions of ADHD to a variety of tobacco withdrawal symptoms. One hundred thirty-two community-dwelling adult smokers recruited without regard to ADHD status completed a self-report measure of ADHD symptoms experienced over the past 6 months at a baseline visit. At two subsequent experimental sessions (one following overnight tobacco deprivation and one nondeprived; order counterbalanced), participants completed measures of tobacco withdrawal symptoms, mood, and desire to smoke. Preliminary analyses showed that higher levels of IN and HI symptoms were both associated with higher levels of negative affect and concentration difficulties during nondeprived ("baseline") states (ps < .01). Over and above nondeprived ratings, higher levels of HI symptoms were associated with larger deprivation-induced increases in negative affect, concentration problems, and desire to smoke, particularly for negative affect relief, during deprived states (ps < .01). ADHD symptoms, particularly HI symptoms, are associated with more severe exacerbations in abstinence-induced withdrawal symptoms, which could be an important mechanism of ADHD-smoking comorbidity. These findings suggest the need for clinical studies examining the role of these unique and potentially more severe withdrawal profiles experienced by smokers with high-levels of ADHD symptoms in smoking reinstatement and cessation outcomes.

Negative mood effects on craving to smoke in women versus men

Negative mood situations increase craving to smoke, even in the absence of any tobacco deprivation (e.g. "stressors"). Individual differences in effects of negative mood situations on craving have received relatively little attention but may include variability between men and women. Across two separate within-subjects studies, we examined sex differences in craving (via the QSU-brief) as functions of brief smoking abstinence (versus satiation; Study 1) and acute induction of negative mood (versus neutral mood; Study 2). Subjective ratings of negative affect (via the Mood Form) were also assessed. In Study 1, we compared the effects of overnight (>12h) abstinence versus non-abstinence on craving and affect in adult male (n=63) and female (n=42) smokers. In Study 2, these responses to negative versus neutral mood induction (via pictorial slides and music) were examined in male (n=85) and female (n=78) satiated smokers. Results from each study were similar in showing that craving during the abstinence and negative mood induction conditions was greater in women than men, as hypothesized, although the sex difference in craving due to abstinence was only marginal after controlling for dependence. Craving was strongly associated with negative affect in both studies. These results suggest that very acute negative mood situations (e.g. just a few minutes in Study 2), and perhaps overnight abstinence, may increase craving to smoke to a greater extent in women relative to men.

A prospective study of the effects of the DRD2/ANKK1 TaqIA polymorphism and impulsivity on smoking initiation

This study tested whether DRD2/ANKK1 TaqIA genotype predicted smoking initiation and subsequent use, and effects were mediated by sensation seeking and negative urgency. Between 2009 and 2012, college never smokers (n = 387) completed six assessments over 15 months; those who reported smoking were classified as initiators. Logistic regression indicated that the A1 allele was associated with initiation (p = .003). This effect was partially mediated by sensation seeking and negative urgency. Effects were stronger in Asian Americans. Findings have implications for improving prevention by including elements focused on urges to seek positive or negative reinforcement. Limitations and future directions are discussed.

A prospective study of the Acquired Preparedness Model: the effects of impulsivity and expectancies on smoking initiation in college students

This study reports on a prospective test of the Acquired Preparedness Model, which posits that impulsivity influences cigarette smoking through the formation of more positive and fewer negative expectancies about smoking effects. College freshman never-smokers (n = 400; 45% male) completed a baseline interview and quarterly online follow-up assessments for 15 months after baseline. Structural equation modeling indicated that the effects of the impulsivity components of sensation seeking and negative urgency on risk of smoking initiation were mediated by expectancies for positive and negative reinforcement from smoking, respectively. Expectancies about negative consequences from smoking predicted initiation but did not mediate the effects of sensation seeking or negative urgency. Findings are consistent with the Acquired Preparedness Model and suggest that heightened impulsivity is associated with heightened expectancies for reinforcement from smoking, and thus with greater risk for smoking initiation.

Do expectancies for reinforcement from smoking change after smoking initiation?

Expectancies are important predictors of smoking behavior. Recent research suggests that expectancies are not stable and vary across internal and external states and levels of cigarette consumption. Expectancies may also vary between individuals as a function of temperamental characteristics such as behavioral undercontrol (BU). Although pre-initiation expectancies have been linked to subsequent smoking behaviors, no study has assessed the effect of smoking initiation on expectancies. The present study was designed to test the hypotheses that both positive (PRE) and negative (NRE) reinforcement expectancies would increase following initiation, and that these changes would be moderated by BU. College students were interviewed 12-15 months apart. Those who initiated smoking between assessments (n = 69) were included in the present study. Linear mixed models showed a significant increase in PRE but not NRE from pre- to postinitiation. The relationship between NRE and time was moderated by BU, such that higher BU was associated with significantly larger post-initiation increases in NRE. Findings suggest that PRE and NRE change significantly following experience with smoking. Furthermore, undercontrolled, impulsive individuals may be particularly vulnerable to smoking with the intention of alleviating aversive states.

Mediating influences of negative affect and risk perception on the relationship between sensation seeking and adolescent cigarette smoking

INTRODUCTION

A substantial number of adolescents are current and regular cigarette smokers, and there is a need to better understand factors that contribute to smoking behavior during these years. Sensation seeking (SS) is one factor that has consistently been associated with smoking, but less is known about mechanisms that may explain this relationship.

METHODS

The present study tested the hypothesis that high school students high in SS would report heavier cigarette smoking and that this relationship would be mediated by negative affect and by perceptions about the risks of smoking. Students (n = 1,688) participated in an annual survey of substance use and related attitudes and characteristics.

RESULTS

As expected, higher SS was associated with greater levels of past 30-day (odds ratio [OR] = 1.46, p = .004) and lifetime (OR = 1.37, p = .004) smoking, particularly for males. Multiple mediation models indicated that effect of SS on both 30-day (combined indirect effect z = 5.38, p < .001) and lifetime (z = 6.14, p < .001) smoking was mediated by both negative affect and risk perception.

CONCLUSIONS

These findings suggest a need for increasing the sensation value of anti-tobacco messages to increase their efficacy for high SS youth. High SS youth may also benefit from prevention efforts designed to teach healthy ways of coping with negative affect.

Acute negative affect relief from smoking depends on the affect situation and measure but not on nicotine

BACKGROUND

Smoking acutely relieves negative affect (NA) due to smoking abstinence but may not relieve NA from other sources, such as stressors.

METHODS

Dependent smokers (n = 104) randomly assigned to one of three smoking conditions (nicotine or denicotinized cigarettes, or no smoking) completed four negative mood induction procedures (one per session): 1) overnight smoking abstinence, 2) challenging computer task, 3) public speech preparation, and 4) watching negative mood slides. A fifth session involved a neutral mood control. The two smoking groups took four puffs on their assigned cigarette and then smoked those same cigarettes ad libitum during continued mood induction. All subjects rated their level of NA and positive affect on several measures (Mood Form, Positive and Negative Affect Scale, Stress-Arousal Checklist, and State-Trait Anxiety Inventory-state). They also rated craving and withdrawal.

RESULTS

Negative affect relief from smoking depended on the NA source (i.e., mood induction procedure) and the affect measure. Smoking robustly relieved NA due to abstinence on all four measures but only modestly relieved NA due to the other sources and typically on only some measures. Smoking's effects on positive affect and withdrawal were similar to effects on NA, but relief of craving depended less on NA source. Smoking reinforcement only partly matched the pattern of NA relief. Few responses differed between the nicotine and denicotinized smoking groups.

CONCLUSIONS

Acute NA relief from smoking depends on the situation and the affect measure used but may not depend on nicotine intake. These results challenge the common assumption that smoking, and nicotine in particular, broadly alleviates NA.

Smoking cessation and inattention or hyperactivity/impulsivity: a post hoc analysis

Tobacco use is more prevalent and smoking cessation less likely among persons with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) than the general population. Evidence that tobacco use and nicotine hold divergent relationships with inattention and hyperactivity/impulsivity, the core symptoms of ADHD, prompted this post hoc investigation of abstinence patterns by type of ADHD symptoms. Subjects were 583 adult smokers treated openly with bupropion and nicotine patch during the initial 8-week phase of a maintenance treatment study. Using the ADHD Current Symptom Scale, clinically significant ADHD symptom subtypes, i.e., predominantly inattention (ADHD-inattention) and predominantly hyperactivity/impulsivity with or without inattention (ADHD-hyperactivity/impulsivity with or without inattention), were identified. The study outcome was abstinence status, verified by expired carbon monoxide </=8 parts per million, at five clinic visits from Week 1 through the end of treatment at Week 8. The distribution by ADHD symptom status was: No ADHD = 540; ADHD-inattention = 20; ADHD-hyperactivity/impulsivity with/without inattention = 23. The study groups did not differ on demographic or smoking variables. The frequency of past major depression was highest with ADHD-inattention and the frequency of past alcohol dependence was highest with ADHD-hyperactivity/impulsivity with/without inattention. Compared to smokers with no ADHD, smokers of both ADHD subtypes combined showed lower abstinence rates throughout the study (OR = 0.54, 95% CI = 0.32-0.99). Disaggregation by symptom subtype and separate comparisons against smokers with no ADHD showed that lower odds of quitting occurred mainly with ADHD-hyperactivity/impulsivity with/without inattention (OR = 0.40, 95% CI = 0.19-0.82), not with ADHD-inattention (OR = 0.74, 95% CI = 0.36-1.51). Combined bupropion and nicotine patch treatment appears to be helpful for smokers with inattention but not smokers with hyperactivity/inattention symptoms. The reasons for this divergent treatment response warrant further investigation.

Impulsivity and cigarette craving: differences across subtypes

RATIONALE

Cigarette smoking has been linked to a number of personality characteristics, including impulsivity. Smokers tend to endorse high levels of impulsivity, and more impulsive smokers have greater difficulty quitting, but little is known about potential explanatory mechanisms. Although indirect evidence suggests craving as a candidate mechanism, direct evidence has been mixed.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

This study assessed whether specific aspects of impulsivity (sensation seeking, lack of premeditation, lack of perseverance, and urgency) were associated with cue-induced craving. Regular smokers (n = 60; 50% female) were exposed to a smoking cue and a neutral cue in a repeated measure counter-balanced design.

RESULTS

Mixed effects regression models indicated that smokers who were high in sensation seeking reported greater increases in appetitive craving after smoking cue exposure, whereas, smokers who were high in urgency and lack of perseverance reported greater increases in negative affect craving.

CONCLUSIONS

Findings suggest a complex relationship between impulsivity and cue-induced craving that may be masked by single construct conceptualizations of impulsivity.

Cue-elicited negative affect in impulsive smokers

Impulsivity is associated with cigarette smoking, but the nature of this relationship and the mechanisms that maintain it are relatively unknown. The relationship has often been thought to reflect appetitive processes, but research suggests that an affective pathway exists as well. The present study tested the effect of impulsivity on affective responses to an environmental smoking cue. Adult smokers (N=62) were exposed to a neutral cue and a smoking cue in separate experimental sessions in a repeated-measures design. Mixed-effects regression analyses showed that larger postexposure increases in negative affect were associated with high scores on 2 facets of impulsivity: urgency, t(179)=6.16, p<.001, and sensation seeking, t(179)=4.75, p<.001. Heightened impulsivity was associated with lower levels of positive affect generally but not with positive affective responses to cue exposure. Findings provide support for the existence of a negative affective pathway linking impulsivity and cigarette smoking, and they suggest that this pathway may be specific to the urgency and sensation-seeking components of impulsivity.

Impulsivity and the role of smoking-related outcome expectancies among dependent college-aged cigarette smokers

The relationship between trait-impulsivity and smoking expectancies on smoking progression in undergraduate college students was examined over a 48-hour period of smoking abstinence. Participants were forty-nine college-aged dependent cigarette smokers who completed measures designed to assess impulsivity, nicotine dependence, and smoking expectancies. Using a series of multilevel models, impulsivity by time analyses indicated significant differences in positive reinforcement expectancies, [F (2, 94)=3.19, p<.05], but not in negative reinforcement expectancies, [F (2, 94)=0.49, p=.61]. Simple slopes analyses indicated that heightened trait-impulsivity predicted greater increases in positive reinforcement outcome expectancies at 48 h of abstinence. Level of impulsivity, however, was not related to changes in negative reinforcement expectancies. Results indicate that during an abstinence period, college students higher in trait-impulsivity may be more prone to relapse due to stronger beliefs about the positive effects from smoking a cigarette. These findings highlight the importance of understanding the interaction of personality and cognitive factors when working with young adult smokers wishing to quit this health-compromising behavior.

Associations between Cloninger's temperament dimensions and acute tobacco withdrawal

This study examined associations between three temperament dimensions measured by the Temperament and Character Inventory-125 [Cloninger, C.R. (1992). The Temperament and Character Inventory-125 (TCI-125; Version 1.)] and tobacco abstinence effects. Smokers (N=203, >/= 15 cigarettes/day) attended two laboratory sessions, one following 12 h of abstinence and the other following ad libitum smoking (order counterbalanced). Participants completed measures of withdrawal symptoms, cigarette urges, and affect. Smokers high in Novelty Seeking reported greater abstinence-induced increases in several nicotine withdrawal symptoms, negative affect, and cigarette craving. Smokers high in Harm Avoidance reported greater abstinence-induced increases in negative affect and urges to smoke to relieve distress. Reward Dependence was not associated with abstinence effects. Novelty Seeking and Harm Avoidance showed independent predictive associations with negative affect and urges, and their associations with abstinence effects persisted when controlling for FTND scores. Smokers with different temperaments display different patterns of acute tobacco withdrawal, and may benefit from treatments matched to their particular abstinence profile.