Deficits in general and smoking‐specific response inhibition in the Go/No‐Go task in individuals who smoke: A cross‐sectional analysis

Motka, Franziska ; Kühn, Simone und Wittekind, Charlotte E. (Februar 2025): Deficits in general and smoking‐specific response inhibition in the Go/No‐Go task in individuals who smoke: A cross‐sectional analysis. In: Addiction [Forthcoming]

Abstract

Background and aims: Previous studies on response inhibition deficits in smoking have often been conducted in small, young, age-homogeneous samples, without controlling for covariates or testing moderating effects. The primary research question compared response inhibition between a large, age-diverse smoking sample and non-smoking controls, and examined whether deficits were exacerbated toward smoking-related stimuli. By accounting for key covariates and moderators, this study aimed to extend understanding of individual differences in response inhibition deficits in smoking.

Design and setting: Cross-sectional study conducted at a university laboratory in Munich, Germany.

Participants: The large (n = 122, 57% female), age-diverse (Mage = 41.4, range: 21–70 years) smoking group comprised individuals with moderate to severe tobacco dependence participating in a smoking reduction intervention study. Controls comprised n = 69 healthy individuals with no smoking history.

Measurements: Primary outcomes were commission error (CE) rates and mean reaction times in Go trials (Go-RT) in general and smoking-specific Go/No-Go tasks (GNGTs). Covariates included age, sex and IQ. Smoking-related variables were cigarettes per day (CPD), tobacco dependence severity and craving.

Findings: General GNGT: The smoking group exhibited significantly higher CE rates (P-value < 0.001, medium effect, BF10 = 9.06) than the control group. Higher craving was associated with faster Go-RTs (β = −1.487, P-value = 0.041). Smoking-specific GNGT: CE rates were significantly higher in the smoking group only when controlling for covariates (β = 1.272, P-value = 0.040). Higher craving was associated with higher CE rates during smoking-related trials (β = 0.108, P-value = 0.010). The smoking group showed significantly faster Go-RTs in response to smoking-related compared with neutral stimuli, relative to the control group (β = −3.326, P-value = 0.027). Preliminary evidence indicated that greater deficits were associated with higher scores in smoking-related variables, but only in older individuals.

Conclusions: Individuals who smoke appear to exhibit response inhibition deficits, although these are not uniform and seem to be exacerbated during higher reported craving or in response to smoking-related stimuli. Age may moderate the relationship between deficits and smoking-related variables.

• Dokumententyp: Zeitschriftenartikel
• EU Funded Grant Agreement Number: 677804; 101086188
• EU-Projekte: Horizon 2020 > ERC Grants
• Fakultät: Psychologie und Pädagogik > Department Psychologie > Klinische Psychologie und Psychotherapie
• Themengebiete: 100 Philosophie und Psychologie > 150 Psychologie
• ISSN: 0965-2140
• Bemerkung: Early View
• Sprache: Englisch