Dataset Information

Lower Cortisol Activity is Associated with First-Time Driving while Impaired.

ABSTRACT: Driving while impaired (DWI) is a grave and persistent high-risk behavior. Previous work demonstrated that DWI recidivists had attenuated cortisol reactivity compared to non-DWI drivers. This suggests that cortisol is a neurobiological marker of high-risk driving. The present study tested the hypothesis that this initial finding would extend to first-time DWI (fDWI) offenders compared to non-DWI drivers. Male fDWI offenders (n = 139) and non-DWI drivers (n = 31) were exposed to a stress task, and their salivary cortisol activity (total output and reactivity) was measured. Participants also completed questionnaires on sensation seeking, impulsivity, substance use, and engagement in risky and criminal behaviors. As hypothesized, fDWI offenders, compared to non-DWI drivers, had lower cortisol reactivity; fDWI offenders also showed lower total output. In addition, cortisol activity was the most important predictor of group membership, after accounting for alcohol misuse patterns and consequences and other personality and problem behavior characteristics. The findings indicate that attenuated cortisol activity is an independent factor associated with DWI offending risk at an earlier stage in the DWI trajectory than previously detected.

SUBMITTER: Couture S

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4384759 | biostudies-literature | 2015

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Lower Cortisol Activity is Associated with First-Time Driving while Impaired.

Couture Sophie S Ouimet Marie Claude MC Gianoulakis Christina C Tremblay Jacques J Ng Ying Kin Nmk N Brochu Serge S Pruessner Jens J Dedovic Katarina K Brown Thomas G TG

Substance abuse : research and treatment 20150401

Driving while impaired (DWI) is a grave and persistent high-risk behavior. Previous work demonstrated that DWI recidivists had attenuated cortisol reactivity compared to non-DWI drivers. This suggests that cortisol is a neurobiological marker of high-risk driving. The present study tested the hypothesis that this initial finding would extend to first-time DWI (fDWI) offenders compared to non-DWI drivers. Male fDWI offenders (n = 139) and non-DWI drivers (n = 31) were exposed to a stress task, an ...[more]

PMID: 25922575

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Project description:ObjectiveAlcohol-impaired driving is a significant public safety concern and is highly prevalent among young adults. Considerable research has examined between-person predictors of alcohol-impaired driving, but there has been little research on factors that predict alcohol-impaired driving at the event level. This pilot/feasibility study was designed to identify within-person, event-level predictors of alcohol-impaired driving intentions in the natural environment using an ecological momentary assessment (EMA) design.MethodThirty-six young adult, moderate drinkers (M age = 22.9 years; 72.2% female; M drinks per occasion = 3.2) were recruited from a university area to complete 2 weeks of EMA. They reported on their subjective levels of intoxication, perceived dangerousness of driving, and driving intentions during real-world drinking episodes. Breath alcohol concentrations were collected with a portable breath alcohol analyzer.ResultsEvent-level perceived danger and subjective intoxication most strongly predicted intentions to drive after drinking, such that higher perceived danger and intoxication predicted lower willingness to drive, after adjusting for baseline alcohol-impaired driving attitudes (ps < .001). When we accounted for perceived danger during drinking episodes at the event and person level, baseline attitudes were no longer predictive of willingness to drive. Higher event-level breath alcohol concentration also predicted lower willingness to drive (p = .003).ConclusionsThis study is the first to demonstrate that event-level risks of alcohol-impaired driving can be collected during drinking episodes in the natural environment. Findings indicate that subjective perceptions of intoxication and risk more strongly predict alcohol-impaired driving intentions than objective intoxication. Findings also suggest that event-level perceptions of intoxication and driving risk may be fruitful targets for interventions to reduce alcohol-impaired driving.

Project description:BackgroundDuring pregnancy, physiological, psychological, and social changes affect pregnant women's childcare anxiety and childrearing behavior. However, there are scarce reports on hormonal evaluation related to such anxiety and behavior. Herein, we evaluated changes in salivary cortisol (primary outcome) and oxytocin (secondary outcome) levels of first-time pregnant women when interacting with an infant and discussed the relation of these changes to the women's stress level.MethodsThis was a two-arm randomized controlled trial. Participants were randomly assigned using a web-based randomization system. The experimental group involved interaction with an infant for 30 min. The control group involved watching a DVD movie of an infant for 30 min. Saliva samples were collected at preintervention and postintervention. Saliva samples were assayed, and all data were compared between and within the groups using independent t-test and paired t-test with a two-sided 5% significance level. This study was approved by the Research Ethics Committee of St. Luke's International University.ResultsA total of 102 women were randomly assigned to the experimental (n = 51) and control (n = 51) groups. Finally, 38 women in the experimental group and 42 women in the control group were analyzed. The salivary cortisol level significantly decreased after the interventions in both groups (t = 4.57, p = 0.00; t = 5.01, p = 0.00). However, there were no significant differences in the salivary cortisol (t = 0.349, p = 0.73) and oxytocin (t = - 1.945, p = 0.58) levels between the two groups.ConclusionsThe salivary cortisol level of first-time pregnant women significantly decreased in the experimental and control groups postintervention, although no significant difference was found between the two groups. Such decrease indicates stress reduction and release among these women. The absence of a significant increase in salivary oxytocin level in both groups may be related to the limitations of an insufficient number of samples that could be analyzed owing to the small saliva volume in some samples and the lack of adequate tactile stimulation of the intervention protocol. These results and procedural limitations provide useful insights into approaching subsequent studies aiming at continuously optimizing detection procedures.Trial registrationUMIN000028471 (Clinical Trials Registry of University Hospital Information Network. July 31, 2017- Retrospectively registered.

Dataset Information

Lower Cortisol Activity is Associated with First-Time Driving while Impaired.

Publications

Lower Cortisol Activity is Associated with First-Time Driving while Impaired.

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