Clark - Gambling Disorder Flashcards
(47 cards)
Chronic exposure to many drugs (of abuse) can exert harmful effects on the brain, however, one can assume these effects to be negligible in GD.
What question does this contrast pose for GD?
What insights can be made from the neural or cognitive consequences seen in a behavioural addiction?
Drugs of abuse exogenously (external source) stimulate the neurotransmitter systems (mesolimbic, especially). Natural rewards target the same systems, but do so endogenously and in a less potent manner.
What question does this rase for GD?
How do behaviours, like gambling, actually become addictive?
Drug abuse often leads to neurotoxicity, how does gambling generally affect the brain?
Not going into specific changes
That of neuroadaptation (i.e., neuroplasticity related to learning)
What could be an advantage of studying the brain changes that result from gambling (as opposed to those of substances)?
Gambling doesn’t introduce harmful substances into the brain, thus, it may serve as a useful model to study addiction without confounding drug effects
Gambling is not chemically harmful, yet it activates _ responses
Stress-related physiological
What psychological trait is shared between both GD and SUD (compared to non-addicted controls)?
Impulsivity
fMRI of gamblers & smokers show what similar brain activation deficits? (2)
Areas linked to:
- Learning from rewards
- Inhibitory processes
The similar brain activation deficits seen in gamblers and smokers further support what commonality?
That of impulsivity as a common vulnerability
How does impulsivity affect addiction as a whole (i.e., not just gambling)?
Impulsivity is generally a core risk for addiction; early impulsivity predicts later problems with addiction
Note that this is generalized from gambling
Why must caution be taken when using GD to generalize about addiction vulnerability?
Hint: brain change related
Recent research has detected small increases in gray matter in regions like the PFC and striatum
May be related to gambling or more general behavioural patterns
Studies on brain changes in gambling are limited, but what minor connectivity changes have also been observed in GD?
note the word connectivity
White matter and brain connectivity changes
Mixed evidence has been found regarding abnormal brain activity in GD in reward areas- what are these?
Both reduced and heightened brain activity in reward areas have been found
What does the mixed evidence regarding abnormal brain activity in GD lead to?
Competing theories:
- Reward deficiency
- Reward sensitivity
What could be an explanation for the conflicting findings from fMRI studies on GD?
Don’t overcomplicate this answer
Methodological issues
Two recent studies offer alternative insights on the conflicting findings from fMRI studies on GD (thus not the prior issue)- what are these?
for both, 2 points
Reward explanation:
- Gamblers may overvalue monetary rewards (as opposed to natural ones)
- Indicates an imbalance in reward processing
Cue explanation:
- Gambling cues increased craving and impulsive decisions in gamblers
- These cues altered how brain areas valued rewards
Shifts away from the hypo/hyperactivity debate
What do PET imaging studies show about dopamine in GD?
That gamblers do not have reduced dopamine D2 receptor bindings (as opposed to substance users)
What does the PET imaging result indicate about GD?
That gamblers’ dopamine system may not be as disrupted as those that use substances
The PET imaging results were conducted on group-level, what results are seen on an individual level?
Impulsivity and symptom severity did correlate with dopamine markers in gamblers
How do gamblers, as opposed to drug users, react to amphetamine? What does this indicate?
Gamblers show increased dopamine release in response to amphetamine
- Suggests that gambling affects dopamine differently than drugs
To what was the dopamine response in gamblers to amphetamine linked to? (2)
- Symptom severity
- D2 availability
Drugs are more potent than natural rewards. Regardless, what do animal studies show in this regard?
Drugs cause stronger dopamine spikes, yet natural rewards are still often preferred
What notion does animals preferring natural rewards (even after long-term use) challenge? What does it highlight?
This preference is obvs not a guarantee
- It challenges the notion that drugs are always more rewarding (“hijacks systems”)
- Highlights individual vulnerability
What other results, that of comparing how neurons respond to both drugs and non-drug rewards, challenge the notion of drugs always being more rewarding?
Neurons respond to both, the differences in strength are only modest (thus not always as extreme as previously indicated)
Brain manipulations can affect drug and natural rewards differently, what two things does this indicate?
- Drug and behavioural addictions might not share all mechanisms
- Behavioural addictions require additional ingredients to become truly compulsive
