Associative learning in ADHD improved expression under methylphenidate英文文献资料.docVIP

Open Journal of Psychiatry, 2011, 1, 20-29 OJPsych doi:10.4236/ojpsych.2011.12004 Published Online July 2011 (http://www.SciRP.org/journal/OJPsych/). Associative learning in ADHD: improved expression under methylphenidate Ebrahim Kantini , Helen Joan Cassaday , Martin Joseph Batty , Chris Hollis , Georgina Margaret 1 1* 2 2 Jackson 2 1 2 School of Psychology, University of Nottingham University, Nottingham, UK; Division of Psychiatry, University of Nottingham, Nottingham, UK. E-mail: *helen.cassaday@nottingham.ac.uk Received 12 May 2011; revised 7 June 2011; accepted 15 June 2011. ABSTRACT tic effects in improving cognitive function in ADHD. Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is characterised by developmentally inappropriate le- vels of inattention, impulsivity and hyperactivity. As might be expected of a disorder in which inhibitory deficits form part of the diagnostic criteria, deficits in response inhibition in ADHD have been evidenced in a number of studies. To date, the tasks used in such studies have required participants to inhibit the learned stimulus-response associations that result in unwanted behavior. However, no research has ex- amined the inhibition of stimulus-stimulus associa- tions, formally ‘conditioned inhibition’. The present study used video game style conditioned inhibition procedures, developed for children and adolescents with a clinical diagnosis of ADHD and suitable for typically developing matched controls. Two comput- er-based tasks (‘Mission to Mars’ and ‘Weapon-X’) required participants to predict the occurrence of an outcome based on the stimuli presented. We selected 12 male participants with ADHD on medication (me- thylphenidate), but without comorbid Tourette Syn- drome, pe