The Brief Addiction Science Information Source (BASIS)

ASHES, Vol. 10(11) – Express yourself: The role of social identity in teen smoking

Most adults who smoke started smoking as teenagers (SAMHSA, 2006). As a result, it is important to try to reduce rates of teen smoking. For many teenagers, the decision to begin smoking stems, in part, from a desire to express a particular social identity. That is, if they identify strongly with a peer group that smokes, they might be more likely to smoke. This week’s ASHES reviews an experiment (Moran & Sussman, 2014) designed to explore whether this trend can be reversed for positive use: if adolescents view an anti-smoking ad that is linked to their own peer group, will... Read more →

The DRAM, Vol. 10(11) - Of mice and teens: Peer-influenced drinking behavior among adolescent mice

Adolescence is a time of many changes, including some that set the stage for risky behavior. At the same time that youth have more opportunity to engage in risky behaviors, they are particularly sensitive to the actions and approval of their peers. Some research suggests that both risk-taking and sensitivity to peer influence are rooted in changes in the brain that occur during adolescence (Albert, Chein, & Steinberg, 2013). In relation to substance use and addiction, exposure to peers might increase risk for excessive substance use by enhancing adolescents’ sensitivity to reward and disinhibition. This week, the DRAM reviews a... Read more →

GAMBLING AND THE LAW®: Nevada Tips First Domino

“Domino Effect: A cumulative effect produced when one event sets off a chain of similar events.” Answers.com The state of Nevada has legalized, again, Internet gambling. Only this time, people are paying attention. The first few times the Nevada State Legislature passed laws permitting online gaming, nothing much happened. It has been 17 years since Governor Bob Miller signed SB 318 into law, making Nevada technically the first state to expressly prohibit -- and permit -- Internet betting. That law is still on the books. An Internet operator, anywhere in the world, who accepts a wager from a person who... Read more →

The WAGER, Vol. 19(11) - Pa-pa-pa-poker face: Looking for tells in all the wrong places

For all but nine participants, the 2014 World Series of Poker (WSOP) has been over for three months. As they have done during the past few fall seasons, ESPN has been airing its highlight reel episodes showing action from the $10,000 Main Event. Even though ESPN has inserted the hole cards into the footage, viewers at home still can watch the players’ facial expressions and betting motions, and think about what kinds of reads they would make if they were at the table. “Would I have thought that he had a strong hand or a weak one?” “Would I have... Read more →

National Depression Screening Day

Today is National Depression Screening Day. Free screenings are taking place in workplaces, malls, colleges, libraries, senior centers, and other locations nationwide. Clinicians are volunteering their time as part of a larger program started in 1991 by Screening for Mental Health, Inc. (SMH), a non-profit organization. The Patient Health Questionnaire-2 is one of the most common ways to screen for depression. Here are the questions: People who have a total score of 3 or above are considered to screen positive. It’s important to remember that this tool does not establish a diagnosis of depression; rather, it is a first step... Read more →

STASH, Vol. 10(11) - Stopping marijuana: Adolescent reports of marijuana-related withdrawal

In many jurisdictions around the world, drug laws are changing in favor of legalizing medical and non-medical personal use of marijuana. Although it is premature to say with certainty if or how these changes are affecting the public’s health, researchers continue to examine marijuana use for potential harmful consequences. Such examinations are essential to the successful treatment of Cannabis Use Disorder. This week, STASH reviews recent research related to marijuana withdrawal’s impact on adolescent treatment seekers (Greene & Kelly, in press). Method Participants included 127 adolescent outpatient substance use disorder (SUD) treatment seekers (71% of those who presented for treatment).... Read more →

Opposing Viewpoints on the Legalization of Medical Marijuana

Next month, voters in Florida will decide whether to make that state the 24th in the nation to legalize marijuana for medical use. The heated debate in Florida – which pits some medical and law enforcement associations in opposition to the initiative against supporters who argue that it will offer patients compassion and relief—is reverberating around the nation. Today, the BASIS focuses attention on this debate by offering two opposing, but informed, viewpoints. First, we present the views of Lester Grinspoon, MD, Associate Professor Emeritus of Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School. Dr. Grinspoon is a well-known proponent of the legalization... Read more →

ASHES, Vol. 10(10) - Under your skin: Smokers’ brain region activation to positive and negative smoking-related stimuli.

Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) studies have been critical to understanding the neurological mechanisms of addictive behaviors. Previous smoking research has identified brain regions involved in the processing of positive smoking-related cues that induce craving (e.g. a picture of a lit cigarette; Engelmann et al., 2012). Other imaging studies have examined smokers’ responses to negative smoking-related cues (e.g. picture of a chronic smoker’s diseased lungs), in efforts to understand how smokers think about cues that discourage smoking (Jasinska et al., 2012). These studies have been limited because of their narrow focus on predefined brain regions. Today, the ASHES reviews a... Read more →