Alcohol stress response dampening: selective reduction of anxiety in the face of uncertain threat
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Abstract
Problematic alcohol use and stress response dampening (SRD) are intimately interconnected. Recent evidence suggests that alcohol produces selective SRD during uncertain but not certain threat. We systematically varied shock probability in a novel task assessing alcohol SRD during low probable/uncertain threat, while holding temporal precision of threat constant. Intoxicated (0.08% target blood alcohol concentration) and placebo participants completed a cued shock threat task in which probability of shock administration at the offset of brief visual cues varied parametrically. High probability (100%) shock cues represented certain threat as used in earlier research, while lower probability (20% and 60%) shock cues provided novel uncertain threat conditions. Startle potentiation during cues and inter-trial intervals (ITIs) served as the measure of affective response. General linear model analysis indicated that alcohol SRD magnitude increased monotonically as threat uncertainty increased. Alcohol SRD was significantly greater during 20% and 60% shock threat relative to 100% shock threat. Alcohol also significantly reduced startle potentiation during distal threat in shock-free ITIs. Alcohol SRD magnitude during distal/uncertain threat was meaningfully moderated by individual differences in negative affectivity and weekly alcohol consumption. This work advances understanding of which properties of uncertainty are relevant to anxiety and anxiolytic effects of alcohol.
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Laboratory studies show that alcohol selectively dampens stress responses to unpredictable threat.
“Laboratory studies show that alcohol selectively dampens stress responses to unpredictable threat (Moberg And Curtin 2009; Hefner And Curtin 2012; Bradford et al. 2013).”
From Decoding the bidirectional links between alcohol misuse and aggression: toward a unified translational framework (2026) · cites this paper as Hefner And Curtin 2012
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- Authors
- Hefner, K. R., & Curtin, J. J.
- Affiliations
- University of Wisconsin–Madison (US)
- Corresponding author
- Curtin, John J
- Venue
- Journal of Psychopharmacology
- Publisher
- SAGE Publications
- Published
- 2011-09-21
- Volume
- 26
- Issue
- 2
- Pages
- 232-244
- ISSN
- 0269-8811 (ISSN-L)
- 1461-7285
- PMC
- PMC3413306
- OpenAlex
- W1989618781
- Cited by
- 74
- References
- 14
- Citations by year
- 2026: 1 · 2025: 3 · 2024: 6 · 2023: 3 · 2022: 6 · 2021: 3 · 2020: 4 · 2019: 3 · 2018: 11 · 2017: 10 · 2016: 8 · 2015: 3 · 2014: 5 · 2013: 7 · 2012: 1
- FWCI
- 1.72
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
- www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
- Locations
- Journal of Psychopharmacology (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (acceptedVersion)
- PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
- OSF Preprints (OSF Preprints) (submittedVersion)
- Funders
- National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (R01AA015384, R01 AA15384)
- Topics
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cellular and Molecular Neuroscience › Neurotransmitter Receptor Influence on Behavior
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Epidemiology › Substance Abuse Treatment and Outcomes
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Anxiety, Depression, Psychometrics, Treatment, Cognitive Processes
- Keywords
- uncertainty, threat probability, anxiety, startle potentiation, poisoning, negative affectivity, weekly alcohol consumption, individual differences
- MeSH terms
- Adult, Alcohol Drinking, Ethanol, Alcoholic Intoxication, Anxiety, Female, Humans, Individuality, Male, Reflex, Startle, Stress, Psychological, Linear Models, Uncertainty, Young Adult
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