Abstract
Rationale
Different theories of addiction make conflicting predictions about whether attentional and approach biases for smoking-related cues are enhanced, or reduced, as a function of the level of nicotine dependence.
Objective
These theoretical views were evaluated by examining cognitive biases in smokers.
Methods
We monitored the eye movements of 41 smokers (predominantly young adults, who smoked from one to 40 cigarettes per day) as they completed a visual probe task in which smoking-related and matched control pictures were presented. Participants also completed a stimulus-response compatibility task, which measured the tendency to approach smoking-related cues, and a rating task.
Results
Smokers with lower levels of nicotine dependence showed greater maintained attention and faster approach responses to smoking-related cues. Longer gaze times for smoking cues were associated not only with lower levels of nicotine dependence, but also with higher levels of craving.
Conclusions
Overall, the results seem consistent with an integrated ‘incentive-habit’ model of addiction.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Allport A (1989) Visual attention. In: Posner MI (ed) Foundations of cognitive science. MIT Press, Cambridge, MA, pp 631–682
Baxter BW, Hinson RE (2001) Is smoking automatic? Demands of smoking behaviour on attentional resources. J Abnorm Psychology 110:59–66
Bindra D (1978) How adaptive behaviour is produced: a perceptual-motivational alternative to response-reinforcement. Behav Brain Sci 1:41–91
Bradley BP, Mogg K, Wright T, Field M (2003) Attentional bias in drug dependence: vigilance for cigarette-related cues in smokers. Psychol Addict Behav 17:66–72
Bradley BP, Field M, Mogg K, De Houwer J (2004) Attentional and evaluative biases for smoking cues in nicotine dependence: component processes of biases in visual orienting. Behav Pharmacol 15:29–36
Cox LS, Tiffany ST, Christen AG (2001) Evaluation of the brief questionnaire of smoking urges (QSU-brief) in laboratory and clinical settings. Nicotine Tob Res 3:7–16
Di Chiara G (2000) Role of dopamine in the behavioural actions of nicotine related to addiction. Eur J Pharmacol 393:295–314
Dickinson A, Balleine B (1995) Motivational control of instrumental action. Curr Dir Psychol Sci 4:162–167
Ehrman RN, Robbins SJ, Bromwell MA, Lankford ME, Monterosso JR, O’Brien CP (2002) Comparing attentional bias to smoking cues in current smokers, former smokers, and non-smokers using a dot-probe task. Drug Alcohol Depend 67:185–191
Everitt BJ, Dickinson A, Robbins TW (2001) The neuropsychological basis of addictive behaviour. Brains Res Rev 36:129–138
Fagerstrom KO (1978) Measuring degree of physical dependence to tobacco smoking with reference to individualization of treatment. Addict Behav 3:235–241
Field M, Mogg K, Bradley BP (2004a) Eye movements to smoking-related cues: effects of nicotine deprivation. Psychopharmacology 173:116–123
Field M, Mogg K, Bradley BP (2004b) Cognitive bias and drug craving in recreational cannabis users. Drug Alcohol Depend 74:105–111
Franken IHA, Kroon LY, Hendriks VM (2000) Influence of individual differences in craving and obsessive cocaine thoughts on attentional processes in cocaine abuse patients. Addict Behav 25:99–102
Heatherton TF, Koslowski LT, Frecker RC, Fagerstrom KO (1991) The Fagerstrom test for nicotine dependence: a revision of the Fagerstrom tolerance questionnaire. Br J Addict 86:1119–1127
Hogarth LC, Mogg K, Bradley BP, Duka T, Dickinson A (2003) Attentional orienting towards smoking-related stimuli. Behav Pharmacol 14:153–160
Johnsen BH, Thayer JF, Laberg JC, Asbjornsen AE (1997) Attentional bias in active smokers, abstinent smokers, and nonsmokers. Addict Behav 22:813–817
LaBerge D (1995) Attentional processing. Harvard, Cambridge, MA
Lipkus IM, Green JD, Feaganes JR, Sedikides C (2001) The relationship between attitudinal ambivalence and desire to quit smoking among college smokers. J Appl Soc Psychol 31:113–133
Lubman DI, Peters LA, Mogg K, Bradley BP, Deakin JFW (2000) Attentional bias for drug cues in opiate dependence. Psychol Med 30:169–175
Mogg K, Bradley BP (2002) Selective processing of smoking-related cues in smokers: manipulation of deprivation level and comparison of three measures of processing bias. J Psychopharmacol 16:385–392
Mogg K, Bradley BP, Field M, De Houwer J (2003) Eye movements to smoking-related pictures in smokers: relationship between attentional biases and implicit and explicit measures of stimulus valence. Addiction 98:825–836
Munafo M, Mogg K, Roberts S, Bradley BP, Murphy M (2003) Selective processing of smoking-related cues in current smokers, ex-smokers and never-smokers on the modified Stroop task. J Psychopharmacol 17:310–316
Palfai TP, Ostafin BD (2003) Alcohol-related motivational tendencies in hazardous drinkers: assessing implicit response tendencies using the modified-IAT. Behav Res Ther 41:1149–1162
Prokhorov AV, Pallonen UE, Fava JL, Ding L, Niaura R (1996) Measuring nicotine dependence among high-risk adolescent smokers. Addict Behav 21:117–127
Prokhorov AV, Koehly LM, Pallonen UE, Hudmon KS (1998) Adolescent nicotine dependence measured by the modified Fagerstrom tolerance questionnaire at two time points. J Child Adolesc Subst Abuse 7:34–47
Prokhorov AV, De Moor C, Pallonen UE, Hudmon KS, Koehly L, Hu SH (2000) Validation of the modified Fagerstrom Tolerance Questionnaire with salivary cotinine among adolescents. Addict Behav 25:429–433
Robinson TE, Berridge KC (1993) The neural basis of drug craving: an incentive-sensitization theory of addiction. Brain Res Rev 18:247–291
Robinson TE, Berridge KC (2003) Addiction. Annu Rev Psychol 54:25–53
Schneider W (1995) MEL professional user’s guide. Psychology Software Tools, Pittsburgh
Tiffany ST (1990) A cognitive model of drug-urges and drug-use behaviour: role of automatic and non-automatic processes. Psychol Rev 97:147–168
Waters AJ, Feyerabend C (2000) Determinants and effects of attentional bias in smokers. Psychol Addict Behav 14:111–120
Waters AJ, Shiffman S, Sayette MA, Paty JA, Gwaltney CJ, Balabanis MH (2003a) Attentional bias predicts outcome in smoking cessation. Health Psychol 22:378–387
Waters AJ, Shiffman S, Bradley BP, Mogg K (2003b) Attentional shifts to smoking cues in smokers. Addiction 98:1409–1417
Zack M, Belsito L, Scher R, Eissenberg T, Corrigall WA (2001) Effects of abstinence and smoking on information processing in adolescent smokers. Psychopharmacology 153:249–257
Acknowledgements
This work was supported by a grant from the Wellcome Trust to Brendan Bradley and Karin Mogg (reference number 57076). Karin Mogg holds a Wellcome Senior Research Fellowship in Basic Biomedical Science.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Mogg, K., Field, M. & Bradley, B.P. Attentional and approach biases for smoking cues in smokers: an investigation of competing theoretical views of addiction. Psychopharmacology 180, 333–341 (2005). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00213-005-2158-x
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00213-005-2158-x