Motivation, Working Memory, and Decision Making: A Cognitive-Motivational Theory of Personality Vulnerability to Alcoholism

Abstract

This article presents a cognitive-motivational theory (CMT) of the mechanisms associated with three basic dimensions of personality vulnerability to alcoholism, impulsivity/novelty seeking, harm avoidance, and excitement seeking. CMT describes the interrelationships between activity in basic motivational systems and attentional, decision-making and working memory processes as the mechanisms associated with variation in each personality trait. Impulsivity/novelty seeking reflects activity in both appetitive and inhibitory motivational systems, greater attention to reward cues, and increased emotional reactivity to reward and frustration. Harm avoidance reflects individual differences in fearfulness and activity in specific inhibitory systems. Excitement seeking reflects the need to engage in appetitive behaviors in less predictable environments to experience positive affect. CMT also describes the impact of working memory and the specific motivational processes underlying each trait dimension on the dynamics of decision making from the perspective of decision field theory.

Stress and Alcohol Cues Exert Conjoint Effects on Go and Stop Signal Responding in Male Problem Drinkers

“…This is consistent with the Incentive Sensitization model of addiction (Robinson and Berridge, 2001), which asserts that as dependence progresses, so does the salience of addiction-related cues and associated drug 'wanting'. ADS also correlated with trait Impulsivity, which is consistent with the well-established relationship between alcohol dependence and impulsivity (Finn, 2002;Limosin et al, 2003;Schuckit, 2009;von Diemen et al, 2008), and thus strengthens the external validity of the present data. The relatively stronger (inverse) correlation between SSRT to Alcohol words and ADS suggests that the severity of the dependence syndromeFa dynamic variableFbetter predicts the debilitating effect of salient stimuli on inhibitory control than does a stable trait like Impulsivity, although alcohol dependence per se may also involve global inhibitory deficits on the SST (Lawrence et al, 2009).…”

Effects of d-amphetamine in human models of information processing and inhibitory control

“…Some researchers argue that response inhibition operates in a bottom-up fashion to affect working memory (e.g., Barkley, 1997), and others propose that working memory operates in a topdown manner to affect response inhibition (Finn, 2002). Regardless of the direction of causal influence, there is general agreement that increased working memory capacity should be associated with greater inhibitory control of behavior.…”

Role of Working Memory Updating and Working Memory Capacity in Moderating the Relationship between Impulsivity with Propensity of Risk Taking Behaviors and Decision Making in Boy Adolescents

“…Recent theoretical and empirical studies suggest that the correlation between impulsivity and risky behaviors might be moderated through working memory capacity (Ellingson et al, 2014). According to cognitive-motivational theory of Finn (2002), position of working memory capacity as a moderator elaborates the relationship between personality vulnerability and risky behavior. According to Cognitive-motivational theory of vulnerability, it is assumed that working memory capacity puts a main effects on decision making, served as a moderator of risky behaviors (Finn, 2002).…”

“…According to cognitive-motivational theory of Finn (2002), position of working memory capacity as a moderator elaborates the relationship between personality vulnerability and risky behavior. According to Cognitive-motivational theory of vulnerability, it is assumed that working memory capacity puts a main effects on decision making, served as a moderator of risky behaviors (Finn, 2002). According to Cognitive-motivational theory of vulnerability, working memory capacity as a short-term storage activation capacity, Capacity to resist distraction, Capacity to maintain the activation of items and Engage in Dual tasking (Finn, 2002).…”

“…According to Cognitive-motivational theory of vulnerability, it is assumed that working memory capacity puts a main effects on decision making, served as a moderator of risky behaviors (Finn, 2002). According to Cognitive-motivational theory of vulnerability, working memory capacity as a short-term storage activation capacity, Capacity to resist distraction, Capacity to maintain the activation of items and Engage in Dual tasking (Finn, 2002). Some studies have provided supports for cognitive-motivational theory.…”