Thesis ( M.A. ( Clinical Psychology )) -- University of Limpopo, 2013 / The aim of the study is to investigate the perceptions of alcohol use and its behavioral impact upon learners at Makgofe Area in the Limpopo Province. Quantitative, descriptive research was conducted to determine if there were any differences between the perceptions and the behavioural impact of alcohol use. Data was collected using a semi-structured questionnaire. A total number of 100 participants, divided into two groups, took part in the study. Fifty (50) learners, who drink alcohol, formed the experimental group, while another fifty (50) learners, who do not drink alcohol, formed the control group. Data was analysed using SPSS. The study has highlighted the perceptions held by learners and the behavioural impact it has on behaviour. The findings revealed that learners using alcohol perceive its usage positively. It was also found that leaners using alcohol perceive alcohol as having a positive impact on their behaviour. The study concludes by advocating psycho education regarding the use and effects of alcohol at schools around Limpopo Province.

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Evidence linking the development of chronic alcoholism with endogenous opioid peptides is reviewed. Particular emphasis is placed on enkephalin metabolism with respect to its involvement in the development of addiction and stress-related psychophysiological changes. The study was concerned with enkephalin hydrolysing activity (EHA) in chronic alcoholism as well as the mood changes that reportedly accompany alcoholism. Also of interest was the relationship of enkephalin degradation to voluntary relaxation.

This dissertation aims at determining the possible effects of alcoholic hangover on human behaviour by examining the effects of acute alcohol consumption (> 1g/kg) 14-16 hours following alcohol ingestion on simple and choice reaction times, divided attention tasks and driving skills. The hypotheses are that cognitive and behavioural functioning is impaired even after the blood alcohol concentration level has returned to zero The California Computerised Assessment Package (CALCAP) together with selected driving skills tasks, repeated breath analysis measures, a biographical questionnaire, a subjective hangover rating scale, and blood glucose tests were administered to a group of 63 mixed gender student volunteers. The experimental group and was tested prior to, and during hangover. The control group was pre- and post-tested in order to determif.le the impact of practice effects. Results indicate that hangover individuals performed less well than control subjects on measures of reaction time and driving precision. Further more, the findings show that subjective experience of hangover is not a good predictor of reaction time or driving performance, and that the absence of hangover symptoms does not guarantee full mental recovery. Statistical analysis of the data showed that post-test findings could not be attributed to a gender effect. / Thesis (M.A.)-University of Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2000.

Nous proposons que c’est le manque d’individualisation qui fait défaut aux méthodes actuelles destinées à traiter l’alcoolo-dépendance qui ne s’avèrent que modérément efficaces, si l’on en juge par la proportion importante de rechutes sous traitement. Les théories contemporaines dominantes postulent que les addictions et leur maintien pourraient être expliqués par le déséquilibre entre deux grands systèmes neuraux et les mécanismes cognitifs qui y sont associés: un système impulsif, dépendant des régions méso-cortico-limbiques, à la base des mécanismes de récompense, de renforcement et de la formation d’habitudes, et un système réflexif, dépendant du cortex préfrontal, indispensable aux comportements de prise de décision, à l’anticipation des conséquences des comportements et au contrôle inhibiteur. Nous avons dans ce travail développé des outils électrophysiologiques de diagnostic de deux troubles cognitifs clés associés au dysfonctionnement de ces deux systèmes :les biais attentionnels et les troubles de l’inhibition. Nous avons pré-testé ces tâches combinées à l’enregistrement des potentiels évoqués dans des populations d’étudiants binge drinkers et de gros consommateurs d’alcool. Nous avons ensuite testé leur valeur prédictive de la rechute dans une population de patients dépendants en fin de cure de désintoxication. Nous pensons avoir dégagé l’existence de deux marqueurs neurophysiologiques pouvant prédire à trois mois la rechute ou l’abstinence du patient alcoolo-dépendant :il s’agit (1) d’un facteur de rechute, indexé par une P3d plus ample suggérant un besoin accru de ressources neurales pour inhiber correctement un comportement, et (2) d’un facteur de protection, indexé par une composante P3 moins ample en réponses aux stimulations liées à l’alcool, suggérant qu’un investissement motivationnel moindre des stimuli « alcool » peut protéger d’une rechute. La réplication et la confirmation de nos résultats ainsi que l’amélioration de nos outils pourraient mener à l’utilisation des marqueurs mis en évidence en pratique clinique afin d’orienter de façon personnalisée la prise en charge des patients.<p><p> / Doctorat en Sciences Psychologiques et de l'éducation / info:eu-repo/semantics/nonPublished

Thesis (MPA. and Management)) -- University of Limpopo, 2020 / Alcoholism among teenagers has become a major public health issue worldwide. South Africa is amongst the countries that are experiencing this problem. Abuse of alcohol has caused many social ills, namely road crashes, intentional and unintentional injuries, raping, and petty and high end crime in the community. Drinking amongst teenagers could be linked to personal and environmental factors including dysfunctional family structures and alcohol perception of elders in a particular community, which may view it as socially acceptable to drink, among other factors. The purpose of the study is to explore the perception of the community towards alcohol abuse among teenagers in Shayandima Township, Limpopo Province. The current study adopted a convergent mixed research design (both qualitative and quantitative) as well as a self administered questionnaire and semi-structured interview for data collection. A one-on-one interview was also conducted with 12 key informants in order to gather detailed qualitative data on the perception of the community regarding teenage alcohol abuse. In addition, a total of 50 respondents were involved in the quantitative study. They include social workers, ward councillors, members of Shayandima victim empowerment and community police forum members. The findings of this study revealed that there are policies put in place by government to address alcohol abuse by teenagers; however, the liquor sellers and the community members did not adhere to the rules and regulations. Liquor sellers violate the rules by selling liquor to teenagers, while the parents allow teenagers to go and buy liquor and enjoy the very same liquor with them. It was also found that that there was more violence in the community because of alcohol abuse. Parents tend to protect their children rather than supporting local authorities. Teenagers have access to alcohol at any time and any day because parents give them more money to spend, which makes it cheaper for them to buy alcohol. The findings further highlighted that the community was not well informed about the support rendered by those organizations that deal with teenage alcohol abuse. The study recommends that drastic measures should be taken against the liquor sellers who sell alcohol to teenagers. Their liquor licence should be revoked permanently. Government should strengthen their monitoring system regarding the liquor outlets. Only a business area must have liquor outlets, not the township residential areas and near public schools. Community-based organisations should be promoted to enhance community awareness and act against teenage alcohol abuse. Key words: Alcohol, Teenage, Alcohol Abuse, Community Perception, Shayandima Township

Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) / Stress has been shown to contribute to alcohol drinking; however, inconsistencies in both the clinical and pre-clinical literature speak to the need for better paradigms to study this interaction. The present experiments compared animal models of the propensity to consume ethanol, the selectively bred alcohol-preferring (P) and high-alcohol-drinking (HAD) rat lines, in their response to yohimbine on ethanol seeking and self-administration and anxiety-like behavior. The P and HAD lines consume similar amounts of ethanol, yet differ in apparent motivation to drink ethanol, in anxiety-like behavior, and response to stress in alcohol drinking. Therefore, it was of interest to determine whether stress may differentially affect ethanol-motivated behaviors between the P and HAD lines. Acute administration of yohimbine, an α-2 adrenoreceptor antagonist that increases anxiety and activate stress systems, increased operant ethanol self-administration and reinstatement of ethanol seeking in P rats, and free-choice ethanol drinking in both P and HAD rats. However, acute yohimbine administration decreased ethanol drinking when given limited access in the home cage, an effect that was diminished by extending the pre-treatment interval or increasing the number of ethanol exposure sessions. Yohimbine did not alter appetitive responding during a non-reinforced trial, nor did yohimbine alter the acquisition of free-choice ethanol drinking. Exposure to alcohol deprivation resulted in modest increases in ethanol intake, but yohimbine did not potentiate this effect. While acute yohimbine administration increased anxiety-like behavior, prior experience with repeated yohimbine exposures or with repeated deprivation periods did not. P rats were shown to be more active and less anxious and to display greater responding during a non-reinforced trial than HAD rats. Taken together, the results of these experiments demonstrate that the timing of yohimbine exposure relative to ethanol access is a critical component to determining its effects on ethanol seeking and self-administration and anxiety-like behavior. Further investigation into the parameters under which stress alters the motivation to seek and consume ethanol between these selectively bred lines is warranted, and future work that incorporates therapeutic agents aimed at reducing stress reactivity and alcohol drinking could elucidate effective strategies in the treatment of alcoholism.

Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) / Background: Previous studies show that prazosin, an α1-adrenergic receptor antagonist, decreases alcohol drinking in animal models of alcohol use and dependence and in alcohol-dependent men. These studies extended previous findings by using a paradigm that allows for separate assessment of prazosin on motivation to seek versus consume ethanol or sucrose in selectively bred rats given acute or chronic prazosin treatment. Methods: Alcohol-preferring P rats were trained to complete an operant response that resulted in access to either 2% (Exp. 1) or 1% (Exp.2) sucrose or 10% ethanol. In Experiment 1, a 4-week consummatory testing phase consisted of rats bar-pressing to “pay” a specified amount up front to gain access to unlimited ethanol (or sucrose) for a 20-minute period. A 4-week appetitive testing phase examined how much the rats would bar-press for ethanol in an extinction session when no reinforcer could be obtained. In Experiment 2, during testing, the response requirement was dropped to a 1 and daily session cycles of drug (3 weeks/ 14 sessions from Tues to Fri) or vehicle (2 weeks/ 9 sessions from Tues to Fri) treatment were alternated per drug dose for a total of 3 drug doses (3 cycles) per rat. After each drug cycle, a single non-reinforced extinction session was conducted with no drug ‘on board’ and no reinforcer access. On test days, rats were given IP injections of either vehicle or one of three doses of prazosin (Exp 1: 0.5, 1.0, 1.5 mg/kg; Exp 2: 0.25, 0.5, 1.0 mg/kg; balanced design; -30 min). Results: In Experiment 1, prazosin significantly decreased ethanol-seeking at all doses tested. The highest dose decreased ethanol intake and increased the latency to first lever-press and first lick. Sucrose-seeking and intake were decreased by the same doses of prazosin. In Experiment 2, prazosin significantly decreased reinforcer-seeking at the lowest and highest doses while ethanol intake was not decreased by prazosin. Conversely, sucrose-seeking was decreased at the highest dose of prazosin tested while sucrose consumption was decreased by all doses. Latency to lever-press for sucrose was increased by the lowest dose of prazosin compared to vehicle. Conclusions: These findings extend previous research and indicate that prazosin decreases motivation to seek ethanol and sucrose. The specificity of prazosin on different behaviors and over different reinforcers suggests that these findings are not due to prazosin-induced motor-impairment or malaise. These data suggest that prazosin may work by decreasing the reinforcing properties of reinforcers in general.