Abstract
The amplitude of the contingent negative variation (CNV) was studied in twelve male subjects given oral doses of methamphetamine (10 mg), secobarbital (50 mg), and placebo on the three testing days separated by one week. Orders were balanced across subjects and testing conditions were double-blind. The mean amplitudes of the CNV elicited with methamphetamine were significantly greater than those obtained with secobarbital and placebo. Comparing secobarbital with placebo yielded no significant results, possibly due to the low secobarbital dosage. The sensitivity of the CNV amplitude to methamphetamine suggests that the CNV may be a sensitive measure of arousal and attention and could provide a reliable index for assessing the relative arousal effects of complex drugs on humans.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Arduini, A.: Enduring potential changes evoked in the cerebral cortex by stimulation of brain stem reticular formation. In: Reticular formation of the brain. H. Jasper, L. Proctor, R. Knighton, W. Noshoy and R. Costello, Eds., pp. 333–351. Boston: Little, Brown & Co. 1958
Blum, B., Stern, M. H., Melville, K. I.: A comparative evaluation of the action of depressant and stimulant drugs on human performance. Psychopharmacologia (Berl.) 6, 173–177 (1964)
Bradley, P. B.: The central action of certain drugs in relation to the reticular formation of the brain. In: Reticular formation of the brain. H. Jasper, L. Proctor, R. Knighton, W. Noshoy and R. Costello, Eds., pp. 123–149. Boston: Little, Brown & Co. 1958
Cant, B. R., Bickford, R. G.: The effect of motivation on the contingent negative variation (CNV). Electroenceph. clin. Neurophysiol. 23, 594 (1967)
Corby, J. C., Kopell, B. S.: Differential contributions of blinks and vertical eye movements as artifacts in EEG recording. Psychophysiology 9, 640–644 (1972)
Day, H., Thomas, E. L.: Effects of amphetamine on selective attention. Percept. Motor Skills 24, 1119–1125 (1967)
Hollister, L. E.: Marihuana in man: three years later. Science 172, 21–28 (1971)
Irwin, D. A., Knott, J. R., McAdam, D. W., Rebert, C. S.: Motivational determinants of the “contingent negative variation.” Electroenceph. clin. Neurophysiol. 21, 538–543 (1966)
Isbell, H.: A comparison of LSD-25 with (−)-δ9-Trans-Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and attempted cross tolerance between LSD and THC. Psychopharmacologia (Berl.) 14, 115–123 (1969)
Kopell, B. S., Tinklenberg, J. R., Hollister, L. E.: Contingent negative variation amplitudes: Marihuana and ethanol. Arch. gen. Psychiat. 27, 809–811 (1972)
Low, M. D., Borda, R. P., Frost, J. D., Jr., Kellaway, P.: Surface-negative, slowpotential shift associated with conditioning in man. Neurology (Minneap.) 16, 771–782 (1966)
McAdam, D. W., Inwin, D. A., Rebert, C. S., Knott, J. R.: Conative control of the contingent negative variation. Electroenceph. clin. Neurophysiol. 21, 194–195 (1966)
McCallum, W. C., Walter, W. G.: The effects of attention and distraction on the contingent negative variation in normal and neurotic subjects. Electroenceph. clin. Neurophysiol. 25, 319–329 (1968)
Macpherson, L., Kopell, B. S.: A zero setter and voltage reference unit for EEG potential changes. Psychophysiology 9, 262–265 (1972)
Miller, Rupert G., Jr.: Simultaneous statistical inference. New York: McGraw-Hill 1966
Mirsky, A. F., Kornetsky, C.: The effect of centrally-acting drugs on attention. In: Psychopharmacology: A review of progress, 1957–1967. D. H. Efron et al., Eds. Public Health Service Publication No. 1836, Government Printing Office 1967
Norton, S., Jewett, R. E.: Effect of drugs on spontaneous slow potential oscillations of the cerebral cortex. J. Pharmacol. exp. Ther. 149, 301–310 (1965)
Quarton, C. Q., Talland, G. A.: The effects of methamphetamine and pentobarbital on two measures of attention. Psychopharmacologia (Berl.) 3, 66–71 (1962)
Roth, W., Galanter, M., Weingartner, H., Vaughan, T., Wyatt, R.: Marijuana and synthetic δ 9-THC: Some effects on the auditory evoked response and background EEG in humans. Biol. Psychiat. 6, 221–233 (1973)
Talland, G. A., Quarton, C. Q.: The effects of drugs and familiarity on performance in continuous visual search. J. nerv. ment. Dis. 143, 266–274 (1966)
Tecce, J. J., Scheff, N. M.: Attention reduction and suppressed direct-current potentials in the human brain. Science 164, 331–333 (1969)
Tecce, J. J.: Attention and evoked potentials in man. In: Attention: Contemporary theory and analysis. D. I. Mostofsky, Ed., pp. 331–365. New York: Appleton-Century Crofts 1970
Tecce, J. J.: Contingent negative variation and individual differences: A new approach to brain research. Arch. gen. Psychiat. 24, 1–16 (1971)
Tecce, J. J.: Contingent negative variation (CNV) and psychological processes in man. Psychol. Bull. 77, 73–108 (1972)
Walter, W. G., Cooper, R., Aldrige, V. J., McCallum, W. C., Winter, A. L.: Contingent negative variation: An electric sign of sensorimotor association and expectancy in the human brain. Nature (Lond.) 203, 380–384 (1964)
Walter, W. G.: Slow potential waves in the human brain associated with expectancy attention and decision. Arch. Psychiat. Nervenkr. 206, 309–322 (1964)
Winer, B. J.: Statistical principles in experimental design. New York: McGraw-Hill 1962
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Kopell, B.S., Wittner, W.K., Lunde, D.T. et al. The effects of methamphetamine and secobarbital on the contingent negative variation amplitude. Psychopharmacologia 34, 55–62 (1974). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00421220
Received:
Revised:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00421220