Goal-driven attentional capture by appetitive and aversive smoking-related cues in nicotine-dependent smokers

Lists

Brown, Chris ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4960-5564, Forster, Sophie and Duka, Theodora (2018) Goal-driven attentional capture by appetitive and aversive smoking-related cues in nicotine-dependent smokers. Drug and Alcohol Dependence, 190. pp. 209-215. ISSN 0376-8716

[thumbnail of Goal-driven attentional biases towards smoking cues - accepted.docx] Microsoft Word
Goal-driven attentional biases towards smoking cues - accepted.docx - Accepted Version
Available under License Creative Commons Attribution Non-commercial No Derivatives.
Download (316kB)

Abstract

Background: Conventionally, involuntary attentional capture by tobacco cues in smokers are seen as an implicit bias, operating independently of current search goals. Prominent attention research, however, has suggested that search goals can actually induce an involuntary attentional capture. In the current investigation, we tested whether appetitive and aversive smoking images affected attention through such a mechanism, and whether there were group differences based on nicotine dependence.
Methods: We instructed non-smokers (NS), occasional smokers (OS; low dependence), and nicotine dependent smokers (NDS; moderate-high dependence), to hold search goals for either an aversive or appetitive smoking category, or a category of non-smoking images. These images were presented in a stream of briefly appearing filler images, whilst task-irrelevant distractors were presented outside the stream. Distractors could be aversive or appetitive smoking images, or a category of non-smoking images. Therefore, in some conditions, the distractors matched the current category being searched for, whilst in others it was incongruent.
Results: Task-irrelevant smoking distractors reduced target detection, compared to the non-smoking distractors, only when they were congruent with the specific category being searched for. There was no effect of either aversive or appetitive smoking distractors on performance when participants were searching for the non-smoking targets. Distractor interference did not differ between smokers and non-smokers.
Conclusions: The results support a goal-driven mechanism underpinning involuntary attentional capture by smoking cues. These findings can be used to inform models of addiction and attention, and the display of health warnings.

Item Type: Article
Identifier: 10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2018.06.011
Keywords: Smoking; Addiction, Tobacco health warnings, attentional bias
Subjects: Psychology
Related URLs:
Depositing User: Chris Brown
Date Deposited: 24 Jan 2019 13:44
Last Modified: 06 Feb 2024 15:59
URI: https://repository.uwl.ac.uk/id/eprint/5768

Downloads

Downloads per month over past year

Actions (login required)

View Item View Item
References
Tools
CORE (COnnecting REpositories)

Menu