Stress, negative reinforcement and compulsive drug seeking

Compulsive alcohol seeking can derive from 3 multiple sources that comprise neuroadaptations in the 3 stages of the addiction cycle binge/intoxication stage, withdrawal/negative affect stage, and preoccupation-anticipation ( “craving”) stage. A powerful driving force in both the withdrawal/negative affect and preoccupation-anticipation stages in alcohol use disorders is the construct of negative reinforcement, defined here as drug taking that alleviates a negative emotional state created by drug abstinence.
Source: Alcohol - Category: Addiction Authors: Tags: Plenary lectures Source Type: research