Premium
Amnesic effects of diazepam: “Drug dependence” explained by state‐dependent learning
Author(s) -
JENSEN HANS HENRIK,
POULSEN JENS CHRISTIAN
Publication year - 1982
Publication title -
scandinavian journal of psychology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.743
H-Index - 72
eISSN - 1467-9450
pISSN - 0036-5564
DOI - 10.1111/j.1467-9450.1982.tb00420.x
Subject(s) - diazepam , psychology , drug , state dependent , therapeutic effect , pharmacology , psychiatry , medicine , mathematics , mathematical economics
An experimental study on 12 healthy volunteers showed that an amnesic effect of a therapeutic dose of diazepam (10 mg 3 times a day) may be explained by a theory of state‐dependent learning. Asymmetric state‐dependence was demonstrated by visually as well as verbally learned material, but in the latter case there was also evidence of an anticonsolidating effect upon learning. The findings are related to drug dependence, and it is suggested that therapeutic gains obtained during long‐term diazepam treatment may not transfer to the no‐drug state.