Me. Carroll, THE ECONOMIC CONTEXT OF DRUG AND NONDRUG REINFORCERS AFFECTS ACQUISITION AND MAINTENANCE OF DRUG-REINFORCED BEHAVIOR AND WITHDRAWAL EFFECTS, Drug and alcohol dependence, 33(2), 1993, pp. 201-210
The focus of this review is to examine the effect of non-drug alternat
ive reinforcers on drug-reinforced behavior. An increasing number of a
nimal laboratory as well as human clinical studies have demonstrated t
he effectiveness of non-drug reinforcers in reducing steady-state leve
ls of drug self-administration. One goal of this review was to determi
ne what behavioral economic conditions are optimal for reducing drug-r
einforced behavior. Variables such as price of the drug and non-drug r
einforcer have been manipulated by changing fixed-ratio (FR) value of
these commodities. Income has been changed by limiting the amount of a
ccess to the commodities or by changing session length. Substitution w
as evaluated by determining whether decreased demand for a drug (due t
o increased price) was related to increased demand for a non-drug rein
forcer. A second goal of this review was to investigate transition sta
tes in the drug addiction process with respect to the role of alternat
ive non-drug reinforcers. Animal models of acquisition and withdrawal
were examined to identify behavioral economic conditions under which a
cquisition may be prevented or withdrawal effects (and potential for r
elapse) may be alleviated.