Skip to main content
. Author manuscript; available in PMC: 2022 Feb 1.
Published in final edited form as: Drug Alcohol Depend. 2020 Dec 21;219:108479. doi: 10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2020.108479

Table 2.

Summary of Neuroimaging Research on Social Cognitive and Affective Constructs Relationship with Substance Use Disorder Risk in Adolescence (k = 4).

Study Sample Key methods Summary of key results Association Social
Construct		 Results
Imaging Studies
Callous-Unemotional (CU) Traits
Sakai, Dalwania (1) N= 66 male adolescents in a treatment program with conduct problems. Age=15-18. 100% male. Group compare study. Task-based fMRI, Prosocial giving game “altruistic antisocial game” (AlAn’s), self-report of CU traits, empathy, as well as substance abuse or dependence across several substances. The high CU traits group had higher prevalence of substance use. During the prosocial game, the LPE group (that has higher substance use) had a negative activation in the R-AI in comparison to both CD and controls. Severity of CU associated negatively with the L-IPL and positively with the L-PCC. Concurrent Affective deficits Brain region cluster Differences in insula Cluster (R-AI, IFG, and STG) between groups (high CU, conduct only, controls)
 F= 9.5; p< 0.001
 LPE was negative
With severity ot CU traits (whole brain):
 L-IPL t= −3.61
 L- PCC t= −3.31
Social Cognition
Cservenka, Fair (2) N=36 adolescents with a FHP (n=19 high SUD risk) and FHN (controls n=17, 51% male). Age= 12-16. 49% male. Group compare study. Seed-based resting state fMRI and task-based fMRI with emotional go-no-go task. Emotional go-no-go task: FHP group had less activity to happy faces in the L. STG, I. insula, L. postcentral gyrus. (Implicated in affective social processing during a social processing task). Resting state: reduced bilateral amygdala connectivity in FHP. Reduced connectivity b/t superior frontal gyrus and amygdala associated with poor response inhibition during emotional task. Concurrent Cognitive & affective HR vs. LR on facial task
L-STG: t= −3.20*
L-STG, I.-AI, L-POG: t= −3.05*
HR vs. LR connectivity
L. amygdala
 L-SFG: t= −3.98*
 L-precuneus: t=
−3.44*
 L-SFG: t= −3.44*
 L-cerebellum: t= −3.11*
 R-cerebellum: t= −3.57*
 R-MFG: t= −3.81*
 R-precentral gyrl: t= −4.04*
R-amygdala
 R-cerebellum: t= −3.27*
 R-MFG: t= −3.65*
 R-MTG; t= −3.37*
Hulvershorn, Finn (3) N= 37 non-substance using early adolescents at high risk for SUD or controls (19 HR, 18 controls). Age= 12-14. 67% male. Group compare study. Task-based fMRI using an emotional face matching task. HR youth had increase mPFC, precuneus, and occipital cortex activation relative to controls during the face matching condition relative to the control shape condition. Concurrent Cognitive & affective Face vs. Shape contrast
High risk = higher activation
R-mPFC: t= 3.88***
L-Precuneus: t= 4.02***
L-MOG: t= 4.34***
R-MOG: t= 4.73***
O'Brien and Hill (4) N= 78 third generation offspring of alcoholic families at high risk for SUD (n= 40) and controls (n= 38). Mean age= 11.78. 54% males. Group comparison fMRI study. Clinical interviews for substance use and clinical conditions. Structural MRI and cox survival analysis. The ratio of OFC to amygdala volume significantly predicted SUD survival time across the sample; reduction in survival time was seen in those with smaller ratios for both high-risk and low-risk groups. Morphology of prefrontal relative to limbic regions in adolescence prospectively predicts age of onset for substance use disorders. Concurrent Cognitive & affective Survival analysis for onset of substance use disorder
OFC/amygdala: OR= .389*
Family risk: OR= .418*
Age: OR= .786**
Sex: ns

CU = callous-unemotional, CD = conduct disorder, FHP = family history positive for substance use disorder, HR = high risk, LR = low risk, LPE = low prosocial emotions.

AI = anterior insula, PCC = posterior cingulate cortex, mPFC = medial prefrontal cortex, MFG = medial frontal gyrus, STG = superior temporal gyrus, MTG = middle temporal gyrus, IFG = inferior frontal gyrus, SFG = superior frontal gyrus, OFC = orbital frontal cortex, MOG = mid occipital gyrus, PCG = postcentral gyrus.

R- = right, L- = left, fMRI = functional magnetic resonance imaging.

ns = not significant

*

= p < .05

**

= p < .01

***

= <.001.