Altered Neural Reward Representations in Pathological Gamblers Revealed by Delay and Probability Discounting

Miedl, Stephan F.; Peters, Jan; Büchel, Christian

doi:10.1001/archgenpsychiatry.2011.1552

Cited by 221 publications

(194 citation statements)

References 69 publications

(122 reference statements)

Supporting

Mentioning

163

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…The association between the inability to tolerate delay and gambling severity, in contrast with past studies (Madden et al, 2009;Miedl et al, 2012;Petry, 2001a;Petry, 2012;Wilde, Goudriaan, Sabbe, Hulstijn, & Dom, 2013) confirms the pattern observed in Alessi and Petry's study (2003). Even if this study does not permit a comprehensive insight into the nature of this relationship, recent research on problem and non-problem gambling adolescents highlights that delay discounting is one of the strongest predictor of gambling problems (Cosenza & Nigro, 2015).…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 83%

“…Similarly to previous studies (Alessi & Petry, 2003;Dixon, Marley & Jacobs, 2003;Miedl et al, 2012;Kraplin et al, 2014), the steeper discounting rates found in pathological gamblers, compared to controls, indicated that people with a pathological involvement in gambling prefer immediate rewards, even if smaller, than delayed ones, showing the inability to tolerate delay in gratification.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 76%

“…Despite data in support of the higher level of impulsiveness (see MacKillop et al [2014] for a review) and the inability to tolerate delay in gambling, few studies have tested individuals with a diagnosis of gambling disorder according to DSM criteria (see Wiehler & Peters, [2015] for a review) and the main limitation of these studies has been the use of small samples (e.g., Dixon, Marley, & Jacobs, 2003, Dixon, Jacobs, & Sanders, 2006Miedl, Peters, & Büchel, 2012;Miedl, Büchel, & Peters, 2014;Kraplin et al, 2014). Likewise, few studies have dealt with the time perspective (Hodgins & Engel, 2002) and with the propensity of gamblers to take risks (Ladouceur, Mayrand, & Tourigny, 1987).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Moreover, there is no agreement about the association between the inability to tolerate delay in gratification and addiction severity (Alessi & Petry, 2003;Brevers et al, 2012;Kräplin et al, 2014;Madden et al, 2009;Miedl et al, 2012;Petry, 2001aPetry, , 2012.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 3 more Smart Citations

Reward Preferences of Pathological Gamblers Under Conditions of Uncertainty: An Experimental Study

Ciccarelli

Malinconico²,

Griffiths

et al. 2016

J Gambl Stud

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Among many personality traits, impulsivity represents one of the most important traits associated with pathological gambling. Empirical research has highlighted the multidimensional nature of impulsivity, which includes different heterogeneous traits and behavioral tendencies. The present study experimentally examined reward preferences of pathological gamblers under conditions of uncertainty using the Balloon Analogue Risk Task. Furthermore it also examined the relationship between impulsivity, time perspective, inability to tolerate delay in gratification, and risktaking. The present study is the first to simultaneously examine all these variables simultaneously in a sample of pathological gamblers (n=54) and healthy controls (n=54) from Italy. All participants participated in the Balloon Analogue Risk Task (BART) and were also administered Italian versions of the South Oaks Gambling Screen, the Barratt Impulsiveness Scale, the Consideration of Future Consequences, and the Monetary Choice Questionnaire. Analyses revealed that compared to HCs, PGs were more risk prone on the BART, and reported elevated levels of impulsivity, steeper discounting rates and a shorter time perspective. All the measures correlated with the gambling severity and strong correlations between the BIS, CFC-14 and BART were observed. Logistic regression analysis demonstrated that impulsivity and risk-taking were strong predictors of pathological gambling.

show abstract

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 83%

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 76%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Reward Preferences of Pathological Gamblers Under Conditions of Uncertainty: An Experimental Study

Ciccarelli

Malinconico²,

Griffiths

et al. 2016

J Gambl Stud

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Functional imaging studies of pathological gambling have focused largely on abnormalities in appetitive processing, reinforcement learning, and executive functions (14)(15)(16)(17). These studies identify dysregulation across an extended brain network (sometimes termed the brain reward system) that includes the ventromedial prefrontal cortex (vmPFC), striatum, amygdala, and insula.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Damage to insula abolishes cognitive distortions during simulated gambling

Clark

Studer

Bruss³

et al. 2014

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

109

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Gambling is a naturalistic example of risky decision-making. During gambling, players typically display an array of cognitive biases that create a distorted expectancy of winning. This study investigated brain regions underpinning gambling-related cognitive distortions, contrasting patients with focal brain lesions to the ventromedial prefrontal cortex (vmPFC), insula, or amygdala ("target patients") against healthy comparison participants and lesion comparison patients (i.e., with lesions that spare the target regions). A slot machine task was used to deliver near-miss outcomes (i.e., nonwins that fall spatially close to a jackpot), and a roulette game was used to examine the gambler's fallacy (color decisions following outcome runs). Comparison groups displayed a heightened motivation to play following near misses (compared with full misses), and manifested a classic gambler's fallacy effect. Both effects were also observed in patients with vmPFC and amygdala damage, but were absent in patients with insula damage. Our findings indicate that the distorted cognitive processing of near-miss outcomes and event sequences may be ordinarily supported by the recruitment of the insula. Interventions to reduce insula reactivity could show promise in the treatment of disordered gambling.G ambling is a widespread activity with a lifetime prevalence of 78% in the United States (1) and a past-year prevalence of 73% in the United Kingdom (2). The widespread recognition that "the house always wins," reflecting the negative expected value of gambling, makes gambling an enduring puzzle for psychological and economic models of choice behavior. Cognitive approaches to gambling explain this nonnormative behavior with reference to a number of cognitive distortions and irrational beliefs that occur during gambling play, which cause the gambler to overestimate his likelihood of winning (3, 4). The illusion of control refers to how superficial features of a game, such as a choice or instrumental response, promote erroneous perceptions of skill over outcomes that are determined only by chance (5). Near-miss outcomes (nonwins that fall close to the jackpot) increase motivations to play, plausibly by fueling beliefs about skill acquisition (6). The gambler's fallacy is a bias in the processing of randomness, whereby recent consecutive outcomes are considered less likely to repeat, and conversely, outcomes that have not occurred in the recent history are perceived as "due" (7).These distortions are reliably observed in field studies, e.g., casino environments (8), and are not confined to gambling; illusory control and the gambler's fallacy are observed in stock traders (9), and near misses influence decision-making in occupational settings (10). In the laboratory, these distortions can be elicited with gambling games, allowing the comparison of these biases between different clinical groups. The overall level of distorted thinking is elevated in people with gambling problems (11,12), and these cognitions can be targeted effectively in psy...

show abstract

Increased functional coupling between the left fronto‐parietal network and anterior insula predicts steeper delay discounting in smokers

Clewett

Luo

Hsu

et al. 2014

Human Brain Mapping

105

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

In previous work, smokers showed steeper devaluation of delayed rewards than non-smokers. While the neural correlates of this link between nicotine dependence and delay of discounting are not established, altered activity in executive networks may relate to impaired delayed gratification. The goal of this study was to examine neural correlates of discounting and their relation to nicotine dependence. Thirty-nine smokers and 33 non-smokers completed a functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) intertemporal choice task in which they made individualized Hard (similarly valued), easy (dissimilarly valued), and control monetary choices. FMRI data were analyzed using a group independent component analysis and dual regression. Smokers discounted more steeply than non-smokers, although this difference was only significant among severely dependent smokers. Intertemporal choices recruited distinct left- and right-lateralized fronto-parietal networks. A group-by-difficulty interaction indicated that smokers, relative to non-smokers, exhibited less difficulty-sensitivity in the right fronto-parietal network. In contrast, smokers showed greater functional connectivity between the left fronto-parietal network and the left fronto-insular cortex. Moreover, the degree of functional connectivity between the left fronto-parietal network and left fronto-insular cortex was significantly correlated with individual differences in discounting. Thus, greater functional coupling between the anterior insula and left fronto-parietal network is a candidate neural substrate linking smoking and impulsivity. Given the anterior insula's role in interfacing cognitive and interoceptive processing, this altered functional connectivity may relate to an addiction-related bias towards immediate rewards.

show abstract

Altered Neural Reward Representations in Pathological Gamblers Revealed by Delay and Probability Discounting

Cited by 221 publications

References 69 publications

Reward Preferences of Pathological Gamblers Under Conditions of Uncertainty: An Experimental Study

Reward Preferences of Pathological Gamblers Under Conditions of Uncertainty: An Experimental Study

Damage to insula abolishes cognitive distortions during simulated gambling

Increased functional coupling between the left fronto‐parietal network and anterior insula predicts steeper delay discounting in smokers

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About