Author ORCID Identifier
Date Available
4-17-2019
Year of Publication
2019
Degree Name
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
Document Type
Doctoral Dissertation
College
Arts and Sciences
Department/School/Program
Psychology
First Advisor
Dr. C. Nathan DeWall
Abstract
tDCS brain stimulation does not always work in the intended direction. It has been found to sometimes worsen behavior rather than improve it. A preliminary study shows that people high on sensation-seeking and lack of premeditation were prone to reverse effects of tDCS on performance on a Stop Signal Task. Both of these constructs are related to dopamine levels. Study 2 seeks to intentionally cause a reverse effect of tDCS by increasing participants’ dopamine levels via caffeine. There was not a significant interaction between tDCS and caffeine on errors on the Stop Signal Task in this study. However, other factors interacted with tDCS and caffeine including lack of premeditation. This two study package suggests the effects of tDCS are variable across individuals, with personality and neurochemistry both affecting behavioral outcomes of tDCS.
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
https://doi.org/10.13023/etd.2019.193
Recommended Citation
Bell, Sarah Beth, "WHEN BRAIN STIMULATION BACKFIRES" (2019). Theses and Dissertations--Psychology. 159.
https://uknowledge.uky.edu/psychology_etds/159
