Adherence
Attentional bias for food and drug stimuli is driven by momentary motivational evaluations (appetitive, aversive, or ambivalent) rather than solely by appetitive desire.
If you avoid food or drug cues, it may not mean you lack desire; it may mean you are actively regulating your behavior (aversive motivation). This 'approach-avoidance' pattern is common in people trying to change their habits. Recognizing this ambivalence helps explain why AB tests might show avoidance rather than fixation.
AB for food- and drug-related stimuli arises from momentary changes in evaluations of those stimuli that can be either positive (when the incentive value of the food or drug is high), negative (when individuals have a goal to change their behavior, and those stimuli are perceived as aversive), or both (when individuals experience motivational conflict, or ambivalence).
Why this rating
Supported by multiple studies showing attentional avoidance in treated/abstinent populations and Stroop interference reflecting aversive evaluations.
Source
The role of attentional bias in obesity and addiction.
Matt Field et al. · Health Psychology · 2016
DOI 10.1037/hea0000405
More from this paper
- Attentional bias (AB) for food and drug stimuli is not a consistent, robust trait characteristic of obesity or addiction, nor does it reliably predict distal consummatory behavior or relapse.Good
- Attentional bias modification (ABM) training can causally influence subjective craving and consummatory behavior, particularly when delivered in multiple sessions and in naturalistic settings.Moderate
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