Determinants of Addiction

Dr. Yates received his PhD in Experimental Psychology from the University of Kentucky in 2014. He is currently a Professor in Psychological Science at Northern Kentucky University. His research interests include elucidating the neurobehavioral mechanisms underlying drug addiction and studying the neural mechanisms of impulsive and risky decision-making. Dr. Yates’ research has been recognized at a national level, as he has received the American Psychological Association (APA) Division 25 B.F. Skinner Foundation New Researcher Award, the APA Division 28 Young Psychopharmacologist Award (both in 2018), and the APA Division 6 Early Career Award (2021). He has also received awards from Northern Kentucky University, including the 2019 Excellence in Undergraduate Research Mentoring Award and the 2020 Excellence in Research, Scholarship, and Creative Activity Award.

• I: Prologue1. Introduction to addiction: Substance use disordersII: Neurobiological mechanisms of addiction2. Pharmacological actions of commonly used drugs3. Neuroanatomical and neurochemical substrates of addiction4. Molecular and cellular mechanisms of addictionIII: Behavioral and cognitive mechanisms of addiction5. Learning mechanisms of addiction: operant conditioning6. Learning mechanisms of addiction: Pavlovian conditioning7. Attentional and memory processes underlying addiction8. Maladaptive decision making and addictionIV: Individual and sociocultural factors linked to addiction9. Individual differences in addiction: focus on personality traits10. Social and sociocultural factors associated with addiction11. Stress and addiction12. Gender and sex differences in addictionV: Epilogue13. Beyond substance use disorders:Behavioral addictions

"The textbook by Yates presents a nice arrangement and presentation of the different levels of analysis used to define the important field of addiction, including biological, psychological and sociological views.　 Each chapter is a self-contained contribution on a different topic, each with an introductory thought, learning objectives and a self-test of progress. Students will like this organization. In addition, faculty will like the scholarly coverage of each topic that contains an extraordinary number of classic and recent citations. This is excellent contribution that will meet the need of courses offered in psychology, neuroscience and health science." -- Dr. Michael T. Bardo, Department of Psychology, University of Kentucky"One of the most comprehensive textbooks available for understanding drug-seeking, drug-taking, and substance use disorders. What we know at several levels – molecular, neural, behavioral, sociocultural – is concisely summarized in ways that students will find approachable and compelling.In Yates’ text, students will find answers to their common questions (e.g., why are some people more likely to misuse drugs than others) and will find new questions to motivate their continued search for the determinants of human addiction." -- Gregory J. Madden, Ph.D., Department of Psychology, Utah State University