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4 - Neuropsychological and Biological Influences on Drinking Behavior Change

from Part I - Micro Level

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  23 December 2021

By
Marsha E. Bates ,
Julianne L. Price  and
Jennifer F. Buckman
Edited by
Jalie A. Tucker  and
Katie Witkiewitz
Jalie A. Tucker
Affiliation:
University of Florida
Katie Witkiewitz
Affiliation:
University of New Mexico
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Summary

An individual’s recovery from alcohol use disorder (AUD) occurs within the context of changes in drinking behavior as well as changes in physical and mental health. This chapter considers how drinking behavior change can arise from, and be supported by, functional improvements in the brain and in peripheral organ systems. The chapter proposes that arousal serves as a common process that can either support or hinder recovery through its link to executive control, negative emotionality, and cue salience; arousal is measurable through overt human behavior, physiological reactivity, and neural activation; and arousal modulation may serve as a holistic intervention target to help sustain recovery. The chapter considers how the arousal construct may be used to identify more homogeneous subgroups of persons in recovery, such as those who may benefit from arousal-modulation adjuvants to bolster executive cognitive control, affect regulation, and flexible responses to contextual cues.

Keywords

alcohol use disorderarousalautonomic nervous systembaroreflexbehavioral interventionbraincardiovascularphysiologyrecoveryResearch Domain Criteria
Type
Chapter
Information
Dynamic Pathways to Recovery from Alcohol Use Disorder
Meaning and Methods
 , pp. 60 - 76
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2022

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