Cited by 80Substance Abuse Treatment and OutcomesAnxiety, Depression, Psychometrics, Treatment, Cognitive ProcessesNeurotransmitter Receptor Influence on Behavior

Affective vulnerability in substance use disorders

Open access
McHugh, R Kathryn, Kneeland, Elizabeth T·2019·Current Opinion in Psychology

Abstract

Substances of abuse are characterized by their rewarding effects and engagement of reward pathways in the brain. However, these substances also provide rapid relief of negative affect, and thus are highly negatively reinforcing. Accordingly, negative affectivity and other affective vulnerabilities (factors related to the experience of affect) are strongly linked to problematic substance use and substance use disorders. In this review, we provide a critical overview of the literature on affective vulnerabilities in substance use disorders. We discuss how both the experience of affect (e.g. negative affectivity, stress reactivity) and the interpretation of affect (e.g. distress intolerance, anxiety sensitivity) are pertinent to the development, maintenance, and treatment of substance use disorders.

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Crossref · 10.1016/j.copsyc.2019.01.011

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  • Low DT is associated with wide-ranging psychopathology, including SUDs, eating disorders, BPD, depressive disorders, anxiety disorders, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and post-traumatic stress disorder.

    “studies have shown low DT (i.e., distress intolerance) to be associated with wide-ranging psychopathology, including SUDs (McHugh and Kneeland, 2019), eating disorders (Lampard et al., 2011a), BPD (Kiselica et al., 2014)”
  • Individuals with low DT would be at increased risk of engaging in the substance use pathway, thus increasing risk towards PSU.

    “It follows that individuals who experience distress as unbearable (i.e., individuals with low DT) would be at increased risk of engaging in this pathway towards substance use, thus increasing risk towards PSU (McHugh and Kneeland, 2019).”

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Research works printed but not linked: 1

  1. [26]Howell AN, Leyro TM, Hogan J Anxiety sensitivity, distress tolerance, and discomfort intolerance in relation to coping and conformity motives for alcohol use and alcohol use problems among young adult drinkers. Addict Behav 2010; 35: 1144– 1147. 20719435 PMC2942953

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Authors
McHugh, R. K., & Kneeland, E. T.
Affiliations
Harvard University (US)
Corresponding author
McHugh, R Kathryn
Venue
Current Opinion in Psychology
Publisher
Elsevier BV
Published
2019-12
Volume
30
Pages
54-58
ISSN
2352-250X (ISSN-L)
OpenAlex
W2947126747
Cited by
80
References
60
Citations by year
2026: 10 · 2025: 13 · 2024: 17 · 2023: 8 · 2022: 11 · 2021: 12 · 2020: 7 · 2019: 2
FWCI
1.17
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • Current Opinion in Psychology (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
Funders
National Institutes of Health (DA035297)
Topics
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Epidemiology › Substance Abuse Treatment and Outcomes
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Anxiety, Depression, Psychometrics, Treatment, Cognitive Processes
  • Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cellular and Molecular Neuroscience › Neurotransmitter Receptor Influence on Behavior
Keywords
emotional vulnerability, substance use disorders, negative affectivity, stress reactivity, distress intolerance, anxiety sensitivity, negative reinforcement, reward pathways, problematic substance use, addiction treatment
MeSH terms
Affect, Anxiety, Humans, Substance-Related Disorders

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