Discounting, Cognitive Inflexibility, and Antisocial Traits as Predictors of Adolescent Drug Involvement

Cognitive impairments, such as steep delay discounting, have been correlated with substance-related disorders. However, antisocial traits, cognitive inflexibility, and loss discounting have been barely considered despite having a high relationship with problematic consumption. This study aims to identify the predictive power of these variables in four types of drug use. Fifty-two adolescents (age range of 13 to 19 years) were assessed with a substance involvement test, four discounting tasks using $3,000, a card sorting test, and antisocial screening. Discriminant analysis with simultaneous estimation and varimax rotation was carried out. Function one included discounting of both losses, function two AT and CI, and function three probabilistic gains. The three functions explained 60.1% of the variance. The results show that preference for small and soon punishments and larger and unlikely punishments distinguished non-use and experimental use of moderate consumption and problematic consumption. High antisocial traits and low cognitive inflexibility distinguished experimental use groups of non-use. Risk-taking did not discriminate effectively between moderate consumption and problematic consumption. A replication of this study with a larger sample size is recommended to verify the results.

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Cognitive Inflexibility and Pre-frontal Dysfunction in Schizophrenia and Mania

The British Journal of Psychiatry ◽

10.1192/bjp.157.1.50 ◽

1990 ◽

Vol 157 (1) ◽

pp. 50-54 ◽

Cited By ~ 178

Author(s):

Rodney Morice

Keyword(s):

Cognitive Assessment ◽

Poor Performance ◽

Wisconsin Card Sorting Test ◽

Control Group ◽

Card Sorting ◽

Frontal Dysfunction ◽

Cognitive Inflexibility ◽

Wisconsin Card Sorting ◽

Sorting Test ◽

And Control

The ability to shift cognitive set, which is probably subserved, at least in part, by the pre-frontal cortex, was determined for schizophrenic, bipolar (manic) and control subjects, using the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test (WCST). The schizophrenic and manic subjects both demonstrated poor performance on the WCST, suggesting that cognitive inflexibility and/or pre-frontal dysfunction, is not specific to schizophrenia (although laterality differences could exist). Moderate levels of poor performance in the non-psychiatric control group suggest the need for a review of the cut-off figures in the WCST currently used for predicting ‘brain damage’ and ‘focal frontal involvement‘, especially given the trend for the increasing use of cognitive assessment and rehabilitation in the major psychoses.

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Adolescent Illicit Drug Use and Policy Options in Australia: A Multicriteria Decision Analysis

Journal of Drug Issues ◽

10.1177/0022042617719444 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 47 (4) ◽

pp. 638-664 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Gabriel T. W. Wong ◽

Matthew Manning

Keyword(s):

Drug Use ◽

Drug Testing ◽

Illicit Drug ◽

Policy Impact ◽

Policy Options ◽

Alternative Interventions ◽

Drug Involvement ◽

Social Environmental ◽

Substance Involvement ◽

Experimental Use

The etiology of illicit substance involvement is a multidimensional problem shaped by factors across individual, social, and environmental domains. In this study, a multicriteria framework is employed to incorporate the input of specialists regarding risk and protective factors and the effectiveness of alternative interventions to mitigate the adverse harms and consequences associated with adolescent drug initiation and subsequent use. Using a seven-stage drug use continuum (nonuse, priming, initial use, experimental use, occasional use, regular use, and dysfunctional use), experts rate social and environmental factors as the most important from nonuse to occasional use. Experts often support preventive and harm-minimizing strategies to interrupt the progression of drug involvement and accumulation of drug-related harms among adolescents. Compared with preferable interventions, less preferable options (e.g., drug testing/monitoring) are considered to have a negative policy impact on key social, environmental, and drug dimension domains, which tend to override their positive impacts on other areas.

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Toward a Computational Neuropsychology of Cognitive Flexibility

Brain Sciences ◽

10.3390/brainsci10121000 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 10 (12) ◽

pp. 1000

Author(s):

Alexander Steinke ◽

Bruno Kopp

Keyword(s):

Computational Modeling ◽

Cognitive Flexibility ◽

Computational Models ◽

Neurological Diseases ◽

Wisconsin Card Sorting Test ◽

Future Research ◽

Card Sorting ◽

Stimulus Response ◽

Cognitive Inflexibility ◽

Sorting Test

Cognitive inflexibility is a well-documented, yet non-specific corollary of many neurological diseases. Computational modeling of covert cognitive processes supporting cognitive flexibility may provide progress toward nosologically specific aspects of cognitive inflexibility. We review computational models of the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test (WCST), which represents a gold standard for the clinical assessment of cognitive flexibility. A parallel reinforcement-learning (RL) model provides the best conceptualization of individual trial-by-trial WCST responses among all models considered. Clinical applications of the parallel RL model suggest that patients with Parkinson’s disease (PD) and patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) share a non-specific covert cognitive symptom: bradyphrenia. Impaired stimulus-response learning appears to occur specifically in patients with PD, whereas haphazard responding seems to occur specifically in patients with ALS. Computational modeling hence possesses the potential to reveal nosologically specific profiles of covert cognitive symptoms, which remain undetectable by traditionally applied behavioral methods. The present review exemplifies how computational neuropsychology may advance the assessment of cognitive flexibility. We discuss implications for neuropsychological assessment and directions for future research.

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Theory of Mind and Executive Functioning in Alcohol Dependence Syndrome

International Journal of Indian Psychology ◽

10.25215/0302.186 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 3 (2) ◽

Author(s):

Preeti Singh ◽

Narendra Nath Samantaray ◽

Masroor Jahan

Keyword(s):

Theory Of Mind ◽

Executive Functioning ◽

Alcohol Dependence ◽

Wisconsin Card Sorting Test ◽

Card Sorting ◽

Perseverative Error ◽

First Order ◽

Alcohol Dependence Syndrome ◽

Sorting Test ◽

Age Range

Title: Theory of mind and executive functioning in alcohol dependence syndrome. Objectives: The objective of study to examine the relationship of the Theory of Mind (TOM) deficit and Executive Functioning difficulties of the Alcohol Dependence Syndrome (ADS). Methods: Forty-five patients of ADS age range between 18 to 35 years participated in the study. All patients selected for study were inpatients of de-addiction ward of the Ranchi Institute of Neuropsychiatry and Allied Sciences (RINPAS), Ranchi. All participants were tested on measures of TOM tasks and Wisconsin Card Sorting Test (WCST). Results: The result findings suggest that the First Order Deception Tasks (FODT) of TOM was significantly correlated with the WCST’s no. of error, percentage of error, non-perseverative error and First Order Deception Tasks (FODT) of Memory with all variables of WCST. Second Order Deception Tasks (FODT) of TOM was significantly correlated with the WCST’s percentage of error, non-perseverative error and conceptual level responses. Attribution of Intention Tasks (AIT) of TOM was significantly correlated with the all variables of the WCST. Conclusions: The ADS patients having difficulty in TOM tasks and this difficulty may be related to underlying deficit in executive functioning.

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The Role of Shifting, Inhibition and Working Memory in Older Adults' Performance in the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test

PsycEXTRA Dataset ◽

10.1037/e512682013-588 ◽

2007 ◽

Author(s):

Nadia Gamboz ◽

Erika Borella ◽

Maria Antonella Brandimonte

Keyword(s):

Older Adults ◽

Working Memory ◽

Wisconsin Card Sorting Test ◽

Card Sorting ◽

Wisconsin Card Sorting ◽

Sorting Test

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Dopaminergic Genes Polymorphisms and Prefrontal Cortex Efficiency Among Obese People - Whether Gender is a Differentiating Factor?

Current Molecular Medicine ◽

10.2174/1566524019666190424143653 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 19 (6) ◽

pp. 405-418

Author(s):

Maciej Bieliński ◽

Natalia Lesiewska ◽

Roman Junik ◽

Anna Kamińska ◽

Andrzej Tretyn ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Prefrontal Cortex ◽

Executive Functions ◽

Tandem Repeats ◽

Wisconsin Card Sorting Test ◽

Variable Number ◽

Card Sorting ◽

Obese People ◽

Perseverative Errors ◽

Wisconsin Card Sorting ◽

Sorting Test

Background:Obesity is a chronic condition associated with poorer cognitive functioning. Wisconsin Card Sorting Test (WCST) is a useful tool for evaluating executive functions. In this study, we assessed the association between dopaminergic gene polymorphisms: DAT1 (SLC6A3), COMTVal158Met, DRD4 (48-bp variable number of tandem repeats - VNTR) and WCST parameters to investigate the functions of the frontal lobes in obese individuals.Objective:To find the significant correlations between polymorphisms of DAT1, COMTVal158Met, DRD4 and executive functions in obese subjects.Methods:The analysis of the frequency of individual alleles was performed in 248 obese patients (179 women, 69 men). Evaluation of the prefrontal cortex function (operating memory and executive functions) was measured with the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test (WCST). Separate analyzes were performed in age subgroups to determine different activities and regulation of genes in younger and older participants.Results:Scores of WCST parameters were different in the subgroups of women and men and in the age subgroups. Regarding the COMT gene, patients with A/A and G/A polymorphisms showed significantly better WCST results in WCST_P, WCST_CC and WCST_1st. Regarding DAT1 men with L/L and L/S made less non-perseverative errors, which was statistically significant. In DRD4, significantly better WCST_1st results were found only in older women with S allele.Conclusion:Obtained results indicate the involvement of dopaminergic transmission in the regulation of prefrontal cortex function. Data analysis indicates that prefrontal cortex function may ensue, from different elements such as genetic factors, metabolic aspects of obesity, and hormonal activity (estrogen).

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