Individual differences in electrodermal responsivity to predictable aversive stimuli and substance dependence

To determine if the inability to take advantage of the predictability of an aversive stimulus to diminish its psychological impact reflects a deficit in inhibitory control related to the development of substance dependence, w e recorded skin conductance responses (SCRs), heart rate (HR), and anticipa tory electrodermal nonspecific fluctuations (NSFs) from 17516-18-year-old b oys when a white noise blast was either unpredictable or temporally predict able. Compared with boys who had moderately reduced or augmented SCRs to pr edictable blasts (moderate and poor modulators, respectively), boys whose S CRs were greatly reduced (good modulators) had fewer symptoms of alcohol an d nicotine dependence and more anticipatory NSFs. HR appeared to index an a ctive coping response for good and moderate modulators. The autonomic respo nse pattern evident for good modulators may index an inhibitory control mec hanism protecting them from developing substance dependence.