Do Pleasure Deficiencies Foster Smoking?

University Of Illinois At Chicago, Chicago IL

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Abstract

The proposed research will investigate the hypothesis that smoking enables trait-anhedonic people to experience pleasure in situations that commonly invoke positive moods among those without trait-anhedonia. This premise will be tested by evaluating changes in positive moods in trait-anhedonic people vs. non trait-anhedonic people after exposure to the following conditions: a positive mood induction while smoking, a positive mood induction while not smoking, and a neutral mood induction while smoking. It is hypothesized that trait-anhedonic people will only be responsive to a positive mood induction if they are allowed to smoke. In other words, it is expected that trait-anhedonic smokers will require the pharmacologic effect of nicotine in combination with a pleasurable psychological stimulus to experience a degree of positive mood elevation that nonanhedonics experience without smoking. Positive mood will be measured via self-report. This study will be the first to examine the effect of smoking on a trait-anhedonic person's ability to experience pleasure. Results will enhance understanding of mechanisms that promote smoking among those with pleasure deficits, and may contribute to the development of smoking cessation treatments and other substance control interventions for people with chronic difficulties experiencing pleasure.