Behavioral Inhibitory Control Research Articles

EPA-0262 – Volumetric alterations in the accumbens and caudate nucleus in bulimic patients

Bulimia is a psychopathological disorder characterized by the presence of episodes of binge eating, followed by compensatory mechanisms that aim to prevent weight gain. These episodes of uncontrolled ingestion of food are related with deficits in the inhibitory control of behavior (Fairburn & Harrison, 2003). The basal ganglia namely the Nucleus Accumbens (NA) and the Caudate nucleus (CN) are involved in the fronto-striatal circuits that allow the control of impulses. The main goal of this study was to investigate the presence of structural alterations in the NAc and the CN in a sample of bulimic patients, when compared to normal controls. Our sample was composed by 41 female participants, 21 diagnosed with bulimia and 20 healthy controls (CG) matched in socio-demographic features. The participants were submitted to the clinical assessment and to a structural magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) acquisition. The NA and the CN of the 41 MRIs were manually segmented using the software Slicer 3D. No differences between patients with bulimia and healthy controls were found for the volume of the NA. However, the NC volume is significantly decreased in BN. The reduction of volume in the CN of bulimic patients that was found in this study may be possibly associated with a lower functional activation of this brain structure, contributing to a lack of control of the excessive eating behavior of these patients.

Sleep enhances inhibitory behavioral control in discrimination learning in rats.

Sleep supports the consolidation of memory, and it has been proposed that this enhancing effect of sleep pertains in particular to memories which are encoded under control of prefrontal–hippocampal circuitry into an episodic memory system. Furthermore, repeated reactivation and transformation of such memories during sleep are thought to promote the de-contextualization of these memories. Here, we aimed to establish a behavioral model for the study of such sleep-dependent system consolidation in rats, using a go/nogo conditional discrimination learning task known to essentially depend on prefrontal–hippocampal function. Different groups of rats were trained to criterion on this task and, then, subjected to 80-min retention intervals filled with spontaneous morning sleep, sleep deprivation, or spontaneous evening wakefulness. In a subsequent test phase, the speed of relearning of the discrimination task was examined as indicator of memory, whereby rats were either tested in the same context as during training or in a different context. Sleep promoted relearning of the conditional discrimination task, and this effect was similar for testing memory in the same or different context (p < 0.001). Independent of sleep and wakefulness during the retention interval, animals showed faster relearning when tested in the same context as during learning, compared with testing in a different context (p < 0.001). The benefitting effect of sleep on discrimination learning was primarily due to an enhancing effect on response suppression during the nogo stimulus. We infer from these results that sleep enhances memory for inhibitory behavioral control in a generalized context-independent manner and thereby might eventually also contribute to the abstraction of schema-like representations.

Elevated Antisaccade Error Rate as an Intermediate Phenotype for Psychosis Across Diagnostic Categories

Elevated antisaccade error rate, reflecting problems with inhibitory behavioral control, is a promising intermediate phenotype for schizophrenia. Here, we consider whether it marks liability across psychotic disorders via common or different neurophysiological mechanisms and whether it represents a neurocognitive risk indicator apart from the generalized cognitive deficit. Schizophrenia (n = 267), schizoaffective (n = 150), and psychotic bipolar (n = 202) probands, their first-degree relatives (ns = 304, 193, 242, respectively), and healthy controls (n = 244), participating in the Bipolar-Schizophrenia Network on Intermediate Phenotypes consortium, performed antisaccade and prosaccade tasks and completed a neuropsychological battery. Antisaccade error rate was elevated in proband groups with greatest deficit observed in schizophrenia and was unrelated to symptoms and antipsychotic treatment. Increased error rate was also observed among relatives, even those without history of psychosis or psychosis spectrum personality traits. Relatives' deficits were similar across proband diagnoses. Error rate was familial and remained elevated in proband and relative groups after accounting for generalized cognitive impairment. Speed of attentional shifting, indexed by prosaccade latency, was similarly influenced in all groups by manipulations that freed vs increasingly engaged attention systems and was inversely associated with antisaccade error rate in all but schizophrenia probands. These findings indicate that elevated antisaccade error rate represents an intermediate phenotype for psychosis across diagnostic categories, and that it tracks risk beyond that attributable to the generalized cognitive deficit. The greater severity of antisaccade impairment in schizophrenia and its independence from attention shifting processes suggest more severe and specific prefrontal inhibitory control deficits in this disorder.

P.4.b.008 Structural covariance of striatal and limbic regions in obsessive–compulsive disorder

Neural substrates of behavioral inhibitory control have been probed in a variety of animal model, physiologic, behavioral, and imaging studies, many emphasizing the role of prefrontal circuits. Likewise, the neurocircuitry of emotion has been investigated from a variety of perspectives. Recently, neural mechanisms mediating the interaction of emotion and behavioral regulation have become the focus of intense study. To further define neurocircuitry specifically underlying the interaction between emotional processing and response inhibition, we developed an emotional linguistic go/no-go fMRI paradigm with a factorial block design which joins explicit inhibitory task demand (i.e., go or no-go) with task-unrelated incidental emotional stimulus valence manipulation, to probe the modulation of the former by the latter. In this study of normal subjects focusing on negative emotional processing, we hypothesized activity changes in specific frontal neocortical and limbic regions reflecting modulation of response inhibition by negative stimulus processing. We observed common fronto-limbic activations (including orbitofrontal cortical and amygdalar components) associated with the interaction of emotional stimulus processing and response suppression. Further, we found a distributed cortico-limbic network to be a candidate neural substrate for the interaction of negative valence-specific processing and inhibitory task demand. These findings have implications for elucidating neural mechanisms of emotional modulation of behavioral control, with relevance to a variety of neuropsychiatric disease states marked by behavioral dysregulation within the context of negative emotional processing.

Effects of mild TBI from repeated blast overpressure on the expression and extinction of conditioned fear in rats

Mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) are pressing medical issues for the Warfighter. Symptoms of mTBI can overlap with those of PTSD, suggesting the possibility of a causal or mediating role of mTBI in PTSD. To address whether mTBI can exacerbate the neurobiological processes associated with traumatic stress, we evaluated the impact of mTBI from a blast overpressure (BOP) on the expression of a conditioned fear. In the rat, conditioned fear models are used to evaluate the emotional conditioning processes that are known to become dysfunctional in PTSD. Rats were first trained on a variable interval (VI), food maintained, operant conditioning task that established a general measure of performance. Inescapable electric shock (IES) was paired with an audio-visual conditioned stimulus (CS) and followed 1day later by three daily exposures to BOP (75kPa). Subsequently, the CS alone was presented once every 7days for 2months, beginning 4days following the last BOP. The CS was presented during the VI sessions allowing a concurrent measure of performance. Treatment groups (n=10, each group) received IES+BOP, IES+sham-BOP, sham-IES+BOP or sham-IES+sham-BOP. As expected, pairing the CS with IES produced a robust conditioned fear that was quantified by a suppression of responding on the VI. BOP significantly decreased the expression of the conditioned fear. No systematic short- or long-term performance deficits were observed on the VI from BOP. These results show that mTBI from BOP can affect the expression of a conditioned fear and suggests that BOP caused a decrease in inhibitory behavioral control. Continued presentation of the CS produced progressively less response suppression in both fear conditioned treatments, consistent with extinction of the conditioned fear. Taken together, these results show that mTBI from BOP can affect the expression of a conditioned fear but not necessarily in a manner that increases the conditioned fear or extends the extinction process.

The Healthy for Life Taekwondo pilot study: A preliminary evaluation of effects on executive function and BMI, feasibility, and acceptability

There is growing consensus that exercise improves cognitive functioning, but research is needed to identify exercise interventions that optimize effects on cognition. The objective of this pilot study was to evaluate Taekwondo implemented in public middle school physical education (PE). Two classes were randomly assigned to either: five sessions per week of PE or three sessions of PE and two sessions of Taekwondo. In PE sessions, evidence-based curriculum to address the Presidential Core Fitness Guidelines and California Physical Fitness Tests was implemented. Taekwondo sessions included traditional techniques and forms taught in an environment emphasizing respect and self-control. Sixty students were evaluated at baseline and during the last week of the intervention (nine months later). Differences in mean residualized change scores for parent-rated inhibitory behavioral control yielded a significant, large effect size (d = .95, p = .00), reflecting greater improvement among Taekwondo students. Results from an executive function computer-administered task revealed greater accuracy on the congruent trial (d = 2.00, p = .02) for Taekwondo students. Differences in mean residualized change scores for BMI z scores yielded a moderate, non-significant effect size (d = −.51, p = .16). The majority of Taekwondo students reported positive perceptions of Taekwondo and perceived self-improvement in self-control and physical fitness. Results suggest that Taekwondo is an exercise program that improves cognitive functioning and is both feasible and acceptable to implement in a public school setting.

Adenosine signaling in striatal circuits and alcohol use disorders.

Adenosine signaling has been implicated in the pathophysiology of alcohol use disorders and other psychiatric disorders such as anxiety and depression. Numerous studies have indicated a role for A1 receptors (A1R) in acute ethanol-induced motor incoordination, while A2A receptors (A2AR) mainly regulate the rewarding effect of ethanol in mice. Recent findings have demonstrated that dampened A2AR-mediated signaling in the dorsomedial striatum (DMS) promotes ethanol-seeking behaviors. Moreover, decreased A2AR function is associated with decreased CREB activity in the DMS, which enhances goal-oriented behaviors and contributes to excessive ethanol drinking in mice. Interestingly, caffeine, the most commonly used psychoactive substance, is known to inhibit both the A1R and A2AR. This dampened adenosine receptor function may mask some of the acute intoxicating effects of ethanol. Furthermore, based on the fact that A2AR activity plays a role in goal-directed behavior, caffeine may also promote ethanol-seeking behavior. The A2AR is enriched in the striatum and exclusively expressed in striatopallidal neurons, which may be responsible for the regulation of inhibitory behavioral control over drug rewarding processes through the indirect pathway of the basal ganglia circuit. Furthermore, the antagonistic interactions between adenosine and dopamine receptors in the striatum also play an integral role in alcoholism and addiction-related disorders. This review focuses on regulation of adenosine signaling in striatal circuits and the possible implication of caffeine in goal-directed behaviors and addiction.

Childhood maltreatment is associated with a sex-dependent functional reorganization of a brain inhibitory control network.

Childhood adversity represents a major risk factor for drug addiction and other mental disorders. However, the specific mechanisms by which childhood adversity impacts human brain organization to confer greater vulnerability for negative outcomes in adulthood is largely unknown. As an impaired process in drug addiction, inhibitory control of behavior was investigated as a target of childhood maltreatment (abuse and neglect). Forty adults without Axis-I psychiatric disorders (21 females) completed a Childhood Trauma Questionnaire (CTQ) and underwent functional MRI (fMRI) while performing a stop-signal task. A group independent component analysis identified a putative brain inhibitory control network. Graph theoretical analyses and structural equation modeling investigated the impact of childhood maltreatment on the functional organization of this neural processing network. Graph theory outcomes revealed sex differences in the relationship between network functional connectivity and inhibitory control which were dependent on the severity of childhood maltreatment exposure. A network effective connectivity analysis indicated that a maltreatment dose-related negative modulation of dorsal anterior cingulate (dACC) activity by the left inferior frontal cortex (IFC) predicted better response inhibition and lesser attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) symptoms in females, but poorer response inhibition and greater ADHD symptoms in males. Less inhibition of the right IFC by dACC in males with higher CTQ scores improved inhibitory control ability. The childhood maltreatment-related reorganization of a brain inhibitory control network provides sex-dependent mechanisms by which childhood adversity may confer greater risk for drug use and related disorders and by which adaptive brain responses protect individuals from this risk factor.

Temporal discounting in heroin-dependent patients: No sign effect, weaker magnitude effect, and the relationship with inhibitory control.

Impulsive behavior in heroin-dependent individuals and matched smokers was studied within the framework of temporal discounting. Two well-known effects were examined: the sign and magnitude effects (Kirby, 1997). The study also investigated the relationship between cognitive impulsivity and inhibitory control as measured by a Go/No-go task. Fifty-six heroin-dependent patients in the postmethadone treatment stage and an equal number of matched daily smokers participated in the study. The heroin-dependent patients showed higher discount rates in both gain and loss conditions. They also showed no sign effect by demonstrating similar discount rates in gains and losses. Heroin-dependent patients also exhibited a magnitude effect, which was weaker than that observed in smokers. Differential relationships between impulsivity and inhibitory control were found in the two groups. For smokers, decision-making and inhibitory control behaviors pertained to different psychological processes, whereas for heroin-dependent patients, the two behaviors were partially related. Finally, a significant correlation between length of heroin use and temporal discounting with small magnitude was found. The present study advances our understanding of the specific behavioral impulsive patterns in heroin-dependent individuals.

Hippocampal-Prefrontal Cortical Circuit Mediates Inhibitory Response Control in the Rat

We investigated the interdependent function of the ventral hippocampus (vHC) and ventral prefrontal cortex (vPFC) in visuospatial attention and inhibitory control using a disconnection lesion approach. Rats were trained, and several aspects of their cognitive performance tested on the 5-choice reaction time task. The animals were prepared with unilateral lesions of both the vPFC and vHC, either in the same hemisphere ("ipsilateral") or in opposite hemispheres ("disconnection"). The disconnection lesion led to both impulsive and compulsive behavior. This deficit is reminiscent of the effects of either bilateral vPFC or bilateral vHC lesions on the same task and is thought to reflect the bihemispheric disruption of the hippocampal-prefrontal circuit. With ipsilateral lesions, behavioral deficits were transient or absent altogether, suggesting that the intact hemisphere was able to exert near normal levels of behavioral control. These behavioral effects were observed in the absence of any changes to visual attention, speed of response, or general motivation. This study provides evidence that optimal inhibitory control of behavior draws upon the functional interaction between the vHC and vPFC.

Alcohol-related stimuli reduce inhibitory control of behavior in drinkers

Poor behavioral control and heightened attentional bias toward alcohol-related stimuli have independently received considerable attention in regard to their roles in alcohol abuse. Theoretical accounts have begun to speculate as to potential reciprocal interactions between these two mechanisms that might promote excessive alcohol consumption, yet experimental evidence is lacking. The objective of the study was to integrate these two lines of research through the development of a novel laboratory task that examines the degree to which alcohol cues serve to disrupt mechanisms of behavioral control. Fifty adult drinkers were recruited to perform the attentional bias-behavioral activation (ABBA) task. The ABBA task, an adaptation of traditional cued go/no-go tasks, is a reaction time model that measures the degree to which alcohol-related stimuli can increase behavioral activation of a drinker and reduce the ability to inhibit inappropriate responses. Participants also completed a novel measure of attentional bias, the scene inspection paradigm (SIP), that measures fixation time on alcohol content imbedded in complex scenes. As hypothesized, the proportion of inhibitory failures on the ABBA task was significantly higher following alcohol images compared to neutral images. Correlational analyses showed that heightened attentional bias on the SIP was associated with greater response activation following alcohol images on the ABBA task. These findings suggest that alcohol stimuli serve to disrupt mechanisms of behavioral control, and that heightened attentional bias is associated with greater disruption of control mechanisms following alcohol images.

Dissociating effects of subclinical anxiety and depression on cognitive control.

Even at subclinical levels, anxiety and depression are associated with impaired cognitive control. It is unclear, though, to what extent these deficits reflect a common underlying dysfunction. Using a non-affective hybrid masked prime-Simon task, we obtained several measures of within- and between- trial inhibitory behavioral control in 80 young, healthy volunteers, together with measures of their anxiety and depression levels. Neither depression nor anxiety affected low-level within-trial control, or any of the between-trial control measures. However, increased levels of depression, but not of anxiety, were associated with impaired high-level within-trial control (increased Simon effect). Results indicate that depression, but not anxiety, impairs voluntary online response-control mechanisms independent of affective content.

P-123 - Inhibitory control difficulties in trait-anxiety: the hypervigilance to angry faces

The behavioural inhibitory control (IC) is known to be influenced by emotion. For instance, anxiety is associated with executive impairments such as difficulties in suppression of prepotent responses (Ansari & Derakshan, 2011; Yuan et al., 2011). In faces processing, bias towards threatening faces has been considered as a marker of trait-anxiety (TA) (Pérez-Edgar et al., 2010). Our goal was to explore if IC impairment is expressed with an emotion in particular in TA. We hypothesized that there is a bias concerning engagement of attention towards angry faces. Thirty healthy participants were included (7 M/ 23 F; mean age = 21, range: 18–29 years). State and trait anxiety was assessed with the STAI (Spielberger et al., 1983). Participants were also assessed with a modified Simon task showing controlled Emotional Facial Expressions (EFE). Negative faces (fear, sadness, anger) and positive faces (happiness) were in the same proportion. Incongruent trials constituted 20% of the task. Participants were asked to press a key if the EFE was positive or negative. TA scores were between 31 and 67 (mean = 48). We found a significant correlation only for angry faces during incongruent condition with TA (r = −.44; p = .016). Time to engage attention to angry faces (in incongruent condition) decreased while TA increased. Biases towards negative stimuli appear in attentional constraints in a sample of healthy adults from the general population. TA is characterised by a hypervigilance to anger in situations where attentional control is tested.

The valence strength of unpleasant emotion modulates brain processing of behavioral inhibitory control: Neural correlates

As an ability critical for adaptive social living, behavioral inhibitory control (BIC) is known to be influenced substantially by unpleasant emotion. Nevertheless, how unpleasant emotion of diverse strength influences this control, and the spatiotemporal dynamics underlying this influence, remain undetermined. For this purpose, Event-related potentials (ERPs) were recorded for standard stimulus which required no BIC, and for deviant stimuli that required controlling habitual responses, during highly unpleasant (HU), mildly unpleasant (MU) and Neutral blocks. The results showed delayed response latencies for deviant compared to standard stimuli, irrespective of emotionality. Moreover, there were significant main effects of stimulus type, and significant stimulus type and block interaction effects on the averaged amplitudes of the 230–310ms and 330–430ms intervals. In the deviant-standard difference waves which directly index BIC-relevant processing, these interactions were manifested by increased negative potentials as a function of the strength of unpleasant emotion across N2 and P3 components. In addition, these influences are specific to unpleasant emotion, as pleasant emotion of diverse strength produced a similar impact in the control experiment. Therefore, unpleasant emotion of diverse strength is different in impact on brain processing of behavioral inhibitory control. This impact is evident not only in early monitoring of response conflicts, but also in late processing of response inhibition.

Intervención logopédica en un caso de dispraxia verbal y trastorno por déficit de atención con hiperactividad

This article describes the assessment and intervention process carried out in a case of verbal dyspraxia associated with attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), combined subtype. In ADHD, deficits occur in behavioral inhibitory control, affecting the control, flow and syntax of the performance of complex motor sequences, such as speech articulation. During language development, the characteristics of ADHD probably hamper articulatory control, sometimes contributing to aggravating a core symptom of verbal dyspraxia. Verbal dyspraxia involves difficulty in automatically and unconsciously creating motor programs for phonemes, syllables and words during first language acquisition. The present article discusses strategies for assessing dyspraxia, as well as diagnosis of this order based on the criteria included in the specialized literature. The intervention was based on three key elements: careful selection and sequencing of linguistic objectives, enhancement of feedback mechanisms and introduction of an augmentative system (gestures to support the phoneme) to achieve slow and progressive automation of motor programs or verbal automatisms. In addition, to achieve treatment goals, the instruction and methodology were adapted to the child's ADHD status. As the child's speech became fluent, language difficulties were manifested in morphology and syntax, predictable in these cases, pointing to a broader symptomatology of the disorder, not limited to the praxis component.

The impact of emotion valence on brain processing of behavioral inhibitory control: Spatiotemporal dynamics

Emotion is known to interact with behavioral inhibitory control (BIC), an ability critical for adaptive living. Nevertheless, how emotion valence influences this control, and the spatiotemporal dynamics underlying this influence, remain undetermined. For this purpose, the present study recorded event-related potentials (ERPs) for a standard stimulus which required no BIC, and for deviant stimuli that required controlling habitual responses during pleasant, neutral and unpleasant blocks. Behavioral results showed prolonged reaction times (RTs) and diminished accuracy rates for deviant than for standard stimuli, irrespective of the emotionality of deviants. Moreover, there were significant main effects of stimulus type, and significant stimulus and emotion interaction effects on the averaged amplitudes of the 200–300ms and 300–500ms intervals. Through analyzing the deviant–standard difference ERPs that index BIC directly, we found larger N2 and smaller P3 amplitudes during the unpleasant block than during the neutral block. The pleasant block, in contrast, showed a trend of more pronounced P3 amplitudes than the neutral block. Thus, by synchronizing BIC with emotion induction, we found distinct impact of pleasant and unpleasant emotions on behavioral inhibitory processing, not only in early monitoring of response conflicts but also in the late stage of response inhibition.

Negative Emotion Interferes with Behavioral Inhibitory Control: An ERP Study

Considerable studies have shown that emotional processes interact with behavioral inhibitory control (Shafritz, Collins, Blumberg, 2006; Goldstein, et al., 2007). However, how visual induced emotion influences behavioral inhibitory control remains unknown. Specifically, whether emotion of different valences influences behavioral inhibitory control similarly or positive and negative emotions impact this control in different ways remains undetermined. Based on previous studies reporting different effects of positive and negative emotions on cognitive processes (Rowe, Hirsh and Anderson, 2007), the present study hypothesize that the inducement of negative emotion may impair behavioral control while that of positive emotion promotes the achievement of the control. Using a two-choice oddball task (standard vs. deviant ratio: 85%:15%) and event-related potential measures (ERPs), the present study investigated the effect of emotion on behavioral inhibitory control. ERPs were recorded for standard stimuli, positive, neutral and negative deviant stimuli while subjects classify deviant and standard stimuli by pressing different keys, irrespective of the emotionality of deviants. All stimuli were emotionally evocative scenes taken from Chinese Affective Picture System. Response times for negative deviant stimuli were longer than those for neutral and positive deviants. ERP data showed significant amplitude differences between deviant and standard conditions during 240-300ms and 350-550ms intervals, suggesting that the present task is valid in inducing processes of behavioral inhibitory control. In the deviant-standard difference ERPs that purely index effect of this control, there were pronounced deviant-related N2 and P3 components in 240-300ms and 350-550ms intervals respectively. The deviant-related N2 during negative condition was larger than that during neutral condition, while deviant-related P3 was less pronounced in response to negative stimuli than in response to neutral stimuli. In contrast, the N2 was smaller while the P3 was larger during positive versus neutral conditions. Additionally, the peak latencies of N2 and P3 components were delayed during negative compared to neutral conditions. To summarize, the present study demonstrated a significant influence of emotion valence on processes of behavioral inhibitory control in both behavioral and electrophysiological levels. Negative emotion impairs processes of the response conflict monitoring and subsequent behavioral inhibition, while positive emotion may promote these processes.

Effects of acute intra-cerebral administration of the 5-HT 2A/C receptor ligands DOI and ketanserin on impulse control in rats

Impulsivity or diminished inhibitory control of behavior (impulse control) is a prominent feature of several neuropsychiatric diseases. Serotonin (5-HT) plays an important role in impulse control. In order to examine the role of 5-HT 2 receptors in a network comprising the orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) and the basolateral amygdala (BLA) in impulse control, the present study investigated effects of local infusions of the 5-HT 2 receptor ligands DOI [(±)-1-(2,5-dimethoxy-4-iodophenyl)-2-aminopropan hydrochloride] and ketanserin on the performance of rats in the 5-choice serial reaction time task (5-CSRTT). Simultaneous bilateral infusion of the 5-HT 2A/C receptor agonist DOI (5 μg/0.3 μl) into the OFC and the BLA significantly increased impulsive responding in the 5-CSRTT. These data suggest that both the OFC and the BLA are implicated in the mediation of DOI-induced impulsivity in the 5-CSRTT. Furthermore, these data support the notion that impulsivity caused by excessive 5-HT receptor stimulation is not mediated by just one particular brain structure, but rather by additive effects in at least two cortico-limbic structures, or perhaps by interactions of different transmitter systems within forebrain circuits.

Gender differences in behavioral inhibitory control: ERP evidence from a two‐choice oddball task

The inhibition of inappropriate behaviors is important for adaptive living in changing environments. The present study investigated gender-related behavioral inhibitory control by recording event-related potentials for standard and deviant stimuli while subjects performed a standard/deviant distinction task by accurately pressing different keys within 1000 ms. The results showed faster reaction times (RTs) for deviant stimuli in women than in men, although RTs for standard stimuli were similar across genders. There were significant gender and stimulus interaction effects on mean amplitudes during each of the 170-230-ms, 250-330-ms, and 350-600-ms intervals, and women exhibited shorter latencies and larger amplitudes than men at deviant-related P2, N2, and P3 components. As an accurate, fast response to the rare deviant stimuli involves behavioral inhibitory control on the prepotent response whereas the response to the standard stimuli does not, it is clear that there is a general gender difference in behavioral control for human adults. This may relate to differential inhibitory demands by each gender during evolution.

The Role of Behavioral Impulsivity in the Development of Alcohol Dependence: A 4‐Year Follow‐Up Study

Although many studies have established a close relation between impulsivity and alcohol use disorders, little is known about the role of behavioral impulsivity in the development of these disorders. To determine the role of 2 laboratory paradigms of impulsivity in the development of alcohol use disorders. Follow-up study carried out with 471 participants diagnosed as heavy drinkers (HD) and followed-up for 4 years. Initially, they were compared with a healthy control group. Assessment of behavioral impulsivity was carried out with the Continuous Performance Test (CPT), and the Stop-Signal Task (SST) assessed behavioral inhibitory control. Differential reinforcement for low-rate responding (DRLR) was used to evaluate the delay reward dimension. The Structured Clinical Interview (SCID-DSM-IV) was used to diagnose alcohol dependence. The HD performed worse than the control group in all the behavioral tests of impulsivity. Performance in DRLR was the only behavioral impulsivity test that classified the HD correctly compared to controls. Logistic regression analysis indicated that performance on SST was a significant predictor [odds = 1.52(CI = 1.08-2.31)] of developing alcohol dependence. Our results support the relation between behavioral impulsivity and alcohol use disorders. The paradigm related to delay of reward may be a factor associated with the use of alcohol and the incapacity to control inhibition as dependence develops.