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PMRF PROGRESS

Project Title: Event-Related Potentials and Cognitive Mechanisms in Specific Health Risk Behaviors

Timeline

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Objective 1

Heterogeneity among alcohol users

  • Identified heterogeneity within alcohol-using populations by classifying individuals into approach vs. avoidance groups based on behavioral and ERP data.
  • Found significant differences in neural responses (e.g., P3, FN400) between the two groups, highlighting the need for individualized intervention strategies.


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Objective 2

Influence of approach tendencies on instrumental behavior

  • Used the Pavlovian-to-Instrumental Transfer (PIT) paradigm to assess how alcohol cues affect adaptive reward-seeking behavior.
  • ERP findings revealed that neural impairments during PIT were more prominent in the approach group, despite comparable behavioral performance.
  • Demonstrated that automatic tendencies modulate underlying neural processes during goal-directed tasks.


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Objective 3

Effectiveness of CC and rTMS in reducing alcohol approach tendencies

  • Implemented counterconditioning (CC) by pairing alcohol cues with negative outcomes (e.g., token loss), which significantly reduced both behavioral and neural indicators of approach bias.
  • Planned and initiated a neurostimulation intervention using excitatory rTMS targeted at the right dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC), based on observed attenuated activity in this region among approach-biased individuals.
  • Currently collecting pilot data for the rTMS phase, with the goal of enhancing top-down control and reducing automatic cue-driven responses.