The Affective Properties of Synthetic Cathinones: Role of Reward and Aversion in Their Abuse

Chapter
First Online:
Part of the Current Topics in Behavioral Neurosciences book series (CTBN, volume 32)

Abstract

The drug class known as synthetic cathinones has gained significant attention in the last few years as a result of increased use and abuse. These compounds have been shown to possess reinforcing efficacy in that they are abused in human populations and are self-administered in animal models. The present chapter outlines the affective properties of synthetic cathinones that are thought to impact drug self-administration in general and presents research confirming that these drugs have both rewarding and aversive effects in standalone and concurrent assessments. The implications of these affective properties for the overall abuse potential of these compounds are discussed along with directions for future research.

Keywords

Affective properties Avoidance Cathinones Reward 
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Copyright information

© Springer International Publishing Switzerland 2016

Authors and Affiliations

  1. 1.Psychopharmacology Laboratory, Department of PsychologyAmerican UniversityWashington, DCUSA

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