Evidence suggests that alcohol dependent (AD) individuals represent a heterogenous population with diverse etiological pathways and maintaining factors. Altered affect regulation, defined as dysfunctional physiological reactivity to environmental cues and manifested as maladaptive appetitive- approach or defensive withdrawal behaviors, has been implicated as a possible factor influencing the onset and maintenance of AD. A more complete understanding of altered affect would, a) advance our knowledge of how altered emotional functioning may differentially influence alcohol dependence among individuals with the disorder, and b) inform the development of more efficacious treatments. The proposed project will examine altered affect regulation through the assessment of psychophysiological reactivity to external, affectively valenced cues, using emotion-modulated startle methodology and a behavioral inhibition task. Specifically, this study will compare three groups: 1) AD individuals, 2) AD individuals with antisocial personality disorder (ASPD), and 3) non-AD, non-ASPD individuals. This investigation allows for systematic delineation of a subgroup of AD individuals with ASPD, who are marked by highly disinhibited behaviors (e.g., impulsivity), suggestive of altered affect regulation. Expanding our knowledge of emotional dysregulation among this subgroup is of particular importance given their resistance to current modes of treatment.
