Abstract
Rationale
The reinforcing effects of stimulant drugs such as d-amphetamine, caffeine, and cocaine are modulated by behavioral demands following drug administration.
Objective
The objective of this study was to assess the reinforcing effects of methylphenidate under different behavioral demands using a modified progressive-ratio procedure.
Methods
The reinforcing effects of oral methylphenidate (0, 10, 20, and 40 mg) were assessed in seven healthy adult volunteers under both performance and relaxation conditions. Performance sessions required volunteers to complete simple arithmetic problems for three 50-min blocks. Relaxation sessions required volunteers to sit quietly in a semi-reclined position in a darkened room for three 50-min blocks. Two sampling sessions (one performance and one relaxation session) always preceded two self-administration sessions (one performance and one relaxation session) and the order of relaxation and performance sessions was constant within a dose condition.
Results
Methylphenidate significantly increased break point and number of capsules earned on the modified progressive-ratio procedure as an increasing function of dose under the performance, but not the relaxation, condition. Methylphenidate produced comparable stimulant-like subject ratings under both the performance and relaxation conditions.
Conclusion
The findings of the present experiment suggest that the reinforcing effects of methylphenidate, like d-amphetamine and cocaine, are influenced by behavioral demands following drug administration.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Abreu ME, Griffiths RR (1996) Drug tasting may confound human drug discrimination studies. Psychopharmacology 125:255–257
Babcock Q, Byrne T (2000) Student perceptions of methylphenidate abuse at a public liberal arts college. J Am Coll Health 49:143–145
Comer SD, Collins ED, Fischman MW (1997) Choice between money and intranasal heroin in morphine maintained humans. Behav Pharmacol 8:677–690
Comer SD, Collins ED, Wilson ST, Donovan MR, Foltin RW, Fischman MW (1998) Effects of an alternative reinforcer on intravenous heroin self-administration by humans. Eur J Pharmacol 345:13–26
Dews PB (1955) The effects of pentobarbital, methamphetamine, and scopolamine on performances in pigeons involving discriminations. J Pharmacol Exp Ther 115:73–82
Griffiths RR, Bigelow GE, Henningfield JE (1980) Similarities in animal and human drug-taking behavior. In: Mello NK (ed) Advances in substance abuse: behavioral and biological research. JAI, Greenwich, pp 1–90
Higgins ST, Bickel WK, Hughes JR, Lynn M, Capeless MA, Fenwick JW (1990) Effects of intranasal cocaine on human learning, performance and physiology. Psychopharmacology 102:451–458
Jones HE, Garrett BE, Griffiths RR (2001) Reinforcing effects of oral cocaine: contextual determinants. Psychopharmacology 154:143–152
Kapner DA (2003) Recreational use of ritalin on college campuses. Infofacts resources. The Higher Education Center for Alcohol and Other Drug Prevention, Newton
Klein-Schwartz W (2002) Abuse and toxicity of methylphenidate. Curr Opin Pediatr 14:219–223
Klein-Schwartz W, McGrath J (2003) Poison centers’ experience with methylphenidate abuse in pre-teens and adolescents. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry 42:288–294
Kollins SH, MacDonald EK, Rush CR (2001) Assessing the abuse potential of methylphenidate in nonhuman and human subjects: a review. Pharmacol Biochem Behav 68:611–627
Lamb RJ, Preston KL, Schindler CW, Meisch RA, Davis F, Katz JL, Henningfield JE, Goldberg SR (1991) The reinforcing and subjective effects of morphine in post-addicts: a dose–response study. J Pharmacol Exp Ther 259:1165–1173
Oliveto AH, Bickel WK, Hughes JR, Shea PJ, Higgins ST, Fenwick JW (1992) Caffeine drug discrimination in humans: acquisition, specificity and correlation with self-reports. J Pharmacol Exp Ther 261:885–889
Roehrs T, Papineau K, Rosenthal L, Roth T (1999) Sleepiness and the reinforcing and subjective effects of methylphenidate. Exp Clin Psychopharmacol 7:145–150
Rush CR, Kollins SH, Pazzaglia PJ (1998) Discriminative-stimulus and participant-rated effects of methylphenidate, bupropion and triazolam in d-amphetamine trained humans. Exp Clin Psychopharmacol 6:32–44
Rush CR, Essman WD, Simpson CA, Baker RW (2001) Reinforcing and subject-rated effects of methylphenidate and d-amphetamine in non-drug-abusing volunteers. J Clin Psychopharmacol 21:273–286
Rush CR, Stoops WW, Hays LR, Glaser PEA, Hays LS (2003) Risperidone attenuates the discriminative-stimulus and subject-rated effects of d-amphetamine. J Pharmacol Exp Ther 306:195–204
Selzer ML (1971) The Michigan alcoholism screening test: the quest for a new diagnostic instrument. Am J Psychiatry 127:1653–1658
Silverman K, Kirby KC, Griffiths RR (1994a) Modulation of drug reinforcement by behavioral requirements following drug ingestion. Psychopharmacology 114:243–247
Silverman K, Mumford GK, Griffiths RR (1994b) Enhancing caffeine reinforcement by behavioral requirements following drug ingestion. Psychopharmacology 114:424–432
Skinner HA (1982) The drug abuse screening test. Addict Behav 7:363–371
Stoops WW, Glaser PEA, Rush CR (2003) Reinforcing, subject-rated, and physiological effects of intranasal methylphenidate: a dose–response analysis. Drug Alcohol Depend 71:179–186
Stoops WW, Glaser PEA, Fillmore MT, Rush CR (2004) Reinforcing, subject-rated, performance, and physiological effects of methylphenidate and d-amphetamine in stimulant abusing humans. J Psychopharmacol (in press)
Teter CJ, McCabe SE, Boyd CJ, Guthrie SK (2003) Illicit methylphenidate use in an undergraduate student sample: prevalence and risk factors. Pharmacotherapy 23:609–617
Thompson T (1984) Behavioral mechanisms of drug dependence. In: Thompson T, Dews PB (eds) Advances in behavioral pharmacology, vol 4. Academic, New York, pp 1–45
Wagner JC (1991) Enhancement of athletic performance with drugs. An overview. Sports Med 12:250–265
Weiss B, Laties VG (1962) Enhancement of human performance by caffeine and the amphetamines. Pharmacol Rev 14:1–36
Acknowledgments
This research was supported by Grant DA12665 from the National Institute on Drug Abuse (CRR). The authors wish to thank Frances P. Wagner, RN, Michelle D. Gray, Jamie L. Haga and Allison L. Weber for their expert medical and technical assistance. The present experiment complied with all current laws in the United States of America.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Stoops, W.W., Lile, J.A., Fillmore, M.T. et al. Reinforcing effects of methylphenidate: influence of dose and behavioral demands following drug administration. Psychopharmacology 177, 349–355 (2005). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00213-004-1946-z
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00213-004-1946-z