Exploring the Reward System: A Dual Investigation into Substance Use and Overeating

When the reward systems are dysregulated, some individuals may
turn to the excessive use of natural rewards, such as eating, while
others may resort to artificially rewarding activities, such as
substance use (Barson et al, 2012). While substance use and
overeating have been both identified as maladaptive coping
mechanisms employed to alleviate negative emotional states, the
role of positive emotions remains an understudied domain. This
project aimed to investigate:
<ol>
<li>the role of positive urgency - higher impulsivity in response
to positive emotions - and sensation-seeking in the degree
of substance use in university students, employing heart
rate variability as a reward sensitivity biomarker;
<li>the role of the positive emotion of joy in food intake in
university students, using skin conductance as the potential
underlying mechanism.
</ol>