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Background: Alcohol and cannabis are commonly used together by young adults. With frequent pairings, use of one substance may become a conditioned cue for use of a second, commonly co‐used substance. Although this has been examined for alcohol and cannabis in laboratory conditions and with remote monitoring, no research has examined whether pharmacologically induced cross‐substance craving occurs in naturalistic conditions. Methods: In a sample of 63 frequent cannabis‐using young adults (54% female) who completed 2 weeks of ecological momentary assessment, we tested whether alcohol use was associated with stronger in‐the‐moment cannabis craving. We also examined whether sex moderated this association and whether cannabis craving was stronger at higher levels of alcohol consumption. Results: Although alcohol use and cannabis craving were not significantly associated at the momentary level, there was evidence that this relation significantly differed by sex. Among female participants, there was a negative association between alcohol use since the last prompt and momentary cannabis craving (b = −0.33, SE = 0.14, p = 0.02), while the association among male participants was positive (b = 0.32, SE = 0.13, p = 0.01). Similarly, alcohol quantity was negatively associated with cannabis craving at the momentary level for female participants (b = −0.10, SE = 0.04, p = 0.009) but was not significantly associated for male participants (b = 0.05, SE = 0.04, p = 0.18). Conclusions: Alcohol may enhance cannabis craving among male individuals but reduce desire for cannabis among female individuals. This may point to differing functions of co‐use by sex, highlighting a need for research to elucidate the mechanisms underlying this increasingly common pattern of substance use. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Increased intraindividual variability in response time (RTSD) has been observed reliably in attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and has often been used as a measure of inattention. RTSD is assumed to reflect attentional lapses and distractibility, though evidence for the validity of this connection is lacking. We assessed whether RTSD is an indicator of inattention by comparing RTSD on the stop-signal task (SST) with performance on the delayed oculomotor response (DOR) task, a measure of distractibility. Participants included 30 adults with ADHD and 28 controls. Participants completed the SST and the DOR task, which measured subjects' ability to maintain attention and avoid distraction by inhibiting reflexive saccades toward distractors. On the SST, the ADHD group was slower to inhibit than were controls, indicating poorer inhibitory control in ADHD. The ADHD group also displayed slower reaction times (RTs), greater RTSD, and more omission errors. On the DOR task, the ADHD group displayed more premature saccades (i.e., greater distractibility) than did controls. Greater variability in RT was associated with increased distraction on the DOR task, but only in ADHD participants. Results suggest that RTSD is linked to distractibility among adults with ADHD and support the use of RTSD as a valid measure of inattention in ADHD. (Contains 4 tables.)

The terror attacks on the United States of September 11, 2001, and the anthrax terror campaign that followed had profound implications not only in the political world but also in the realm of professional school counseling. School counselors nationwide were thrust in the position of responding to a traumatic situation on a scale previously unimaginable within this country. This article highlights the responses provided by school counselors and related helping professionals in schools in a Midwestern state concerning K-12 student and school staff reactions to the September 11 events. The responses were obtained from a research questionnaire administered at a workshop developed in the wake of the terror attacks on the topic of child, adolescent, and family responses to traumatic events. Eighty-nine school counselors and related helping professionals were surveyed regarding the impact on students and staff in K-12 schools regarding the September 11 terrorist attacks. High levels of student distress were found immediately following September 11, with substantially less distress evident 6 weeks later. Schools responded to the events by taking a variety of actions to meet student mental health needs but were much less likely to have acted to meet staff mental health needs. The events of September 11 are etched in the memories of the children, adolescents, and adults worldwide. Learning what we can about the impact of these terrible events on children and schools will better prepare school counselors to respond effectively to both this tragedy and to the inevitable traumas that are yet to occur.

Introduction Tobacco smoking is a major public health burden. The mesocortical dopamine system—including the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (dlPFC)—plays an important role in cognitive function. Dysregulated dopamine signaling in dlPFC is associated with cognitive deficits such as impairments in attention, learning, working memory, and inhibitory control. We recently showed that dlPFC dopamine D2/3-type receptor (D2R) availability was significantly lower in people who smoke than in healthy-controls and that dlPFC amphetamine-induced dopamine release was lower in females who smoke relative to males who smoke and female healthy-controls. However, we did not examine whether the smoking-related dopamine deficits were related to cognitive deficits. Aims and Methods The goal of this study was to relate dopamine metrics to cognitive performance in people who smoke and healthy-controls. In total 24 (12 female) people who smoke cigarettes and 25 sex- and age-matched healthy-controls participated in two same-day [11C]FLB457 positron emission tomography (PET) scans before and after amphetamine administration. Two outcome measures were calculated—D2R availability (non-displaceable binding potential; BP ND ) and amphetamine-induced dopamine release (%Δ BP ND ). Cognition (verbal learning and memory) was assessed with a computerized test from the CogState battery (International Shopping List). Results People who smoke had significantly worse immediate (p =.04) and delayed (p =.03) recall than healthy-controls. Multiple linear regression revealed that for people who smoke only, lower D2R availability was associated with worse immediate (p =.04) and delayed (p <.001) recall. %Δ BP ND was not significantly related to task performance. Conclusion This study demonstrated that lower dlPFC D2R availability in people who smoke is associated with disruptions in cognitive function that may underlie difficulty with resisting smoking. Implications This is the first study to directly relate dopamine metrics in the prefrontal cortex to cognitive function in people who smoke cigarettes compared to healthy-controls. The current work included a well-characterized subject sample with regards to demographic and smoking variables, as well as a validated neurocognitive test of verbal learning and memory. The findings of this study extend previous literature by relating dopamine metrics to cognition in people who smoke, providing a better understanding of brain-behavior relationships. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Examines public relations misperceptions that may affect the future employment of school counselors in one state. Focuses on actions that address negative opinions of school counselors and which might impede their employability. Reports on characteristics of the school district and respondents and gives administrators' perceptions of the professional school counselor. (RJM)