A flicker paradigm for inducing change blindness reveals alcohol and cannabis information processing biases in social users

Abstract

Alcohol and cannabis processing biases are found at levels of social use, have the potential to influence future consumption and for this reason merit further research.

Alcohol cues increase cognitive impulsivity in individuals with alcoholism

“…In this framework where alcohol has acquired strong motivational properties, alcohol-related stimuli may be seen as 'hijacking' the attention of heavy drinkers and alcoholics (e.g., Johnsen et al 1994;Townshend and Duka 2001;Waters and Green 2003;Noël et al 2005Noël et al , 2006Jones et al 2003). For instance, when performing the alcohol Stroop task, sober alcoholics are slower than non-alcoholic controls in naming the color of alcohol-related words (e.g., Johnsen et al 1994;Stetter et al 1995).…”

A working memory bias for alcohol-related stimuli depends on drinking score.

“…Jones et al (2003) proposed that for alcohol users attention to alcohol-related stimuli is augmented. As a result, the more people drink the more likely it is that alcohol-related stimuli capture their attention automatically, resulting in the AMB presently observed.…”

“…Cycling presentations continued until the participant spotted "the change" (it was implied that there was only one change) and it was found that those who spotted the alcohol-related change had higher consumptions than those who spotted the neutral change. In a subsequent flicker paradigm experiment Jones et al (2003) showed that when only one change was given to be detected, heavier social drinkers spotted the change quicker when it was alcohol-related than did a lighter social drinking control group and this was not the case with the neutral change. This was replicated with problem drinkers in treatment and using slightly modified stimuli by Jones et al (2006).…”

“…The robustness of AAB is reflected in the different experimental paradigms through which it has been demonstrated and across the spectrum of excessive consumption, that is, in those with alcohol dependence (Lusher, Chandler, & Ball, 2004;Stormark, Laberg, Nordby, & Hugdahl, 2000), in problem drinkers who had been diagnosed with alcohol use disorder and were in treatment (B. T. Jones, Bruce, Livingstone, & Reed, 2006;Sharma, Albery, & Cook, 2001), as well as in heavier social drinkers who were neither diagnosed nor in treatment but who scored high on alcohol consumption questionnaires (B. C. Jones, Jones, Blundell, & Bruce, 2002;B. T. Jones, Jones, Smith, & Copley, 2003;Sharma et al, 2001;Townshend & Duka, 2001).…”

“…There is a suggestion that pictorial stimuli might elicit a stronger AAB in the dot probe paradigm than textual stimuli (Townshend & Duka, 2001). Jones et al (2003) used a novel version of the so-called "flicker paradigm" (see Rensink, Oregan, & Clark, 1997) to investigate whether alcohol-related stimuli really "grab" attention in people with higher levels of alcohol consumption (Sobell & Sobell, 1992). Their experiment involved two complex visual scenes both with identical content, presented in continuously cycling succession, only separated by a mask.…”