Integrating Preclinical and Clinical Models of Negative Urgency

Abstract

Overwhelming evidence suggests that negative urgency is robustly associated with rash, ill-advised behavior, and this trait may hamper attempts to treat patients with substance use disorder. Research applying negative urgency to clinical treatment settings has been limited, in part, due to the absence of an objective, behavioral, and translational model of negative urgency. We suggest that development of such a model will allow for determination of prime neurological and physiological treatment targets, the testing of treatment effectiveness in the preclinical and the clinical laboratory, and, ultimately, improvement in negative-urgency-related treatment response and effectiveness. In the current paper, we review the literature on measurement of negative urgency and discuss limitations of current attempts to assess this trait in human models. Then, we review the limited research on animal models of negative urgency and make suggestions for some promising models that could lead to a translational measurement model. Finally, we discuss the importance of applying objective, behavioral, and translational models of negative urgency, especially those that are easily administered in both animals and humans, to treatment development and testing and make suggestions on necessary future work in this field. Given that negative urgency is a transdiagnostic risk factor that impedes treatment success, the impact of this work could be large in reducing client suffering and societal costs.

Clinical symptoms and personality traits predict subpopulations of treatment-seeking substance users

“…One interesting finding is the significant association of negative urgency with classes reporting more previous treatment attempts. This emotion-related facet of impulsivity has been of increasing interest in research (Halcomb et al, 2019) but is underused in clinical practice. Based on these results, practitioners may want cover this area when performing the treatment entry assessment.…”

Shared Neural Correlates Underlying Addictive Disorders and Negative Urgency

“…Third, in order to test the effectiveness of any newly developed or applied pharmacological or direct stimulation treatment, there is a need to back-translate these findings into an animal model of negative urgency (see a recent review by [114]). There have been a few attempts to do this.…”

Association Between Parental Educational Attainment and Children’s Negative Urgency: Sex Differences

“…Negative urgency reflects a specific facet of impulsivity, 54 and is known to be a risk factor of a wide range of healthrelated risk behaviors, including problematic substance use. [55][56][57] Negative urgency is commonly measured by a scale called the Urgency, Premeditation, Perseverance, Sensation Seeking (UPPS). [58][59][60][61][62] Compared to children and adults with low negative urgency, subjects with high negative urgency respond undesirably to reward omission in tasks that use monetary incentives.…”