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Dissertation Defense: Cumulative Vulnerabilities: Substance Use in Adolescence and in Recovery

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Devin Tomlinson

Dissertation Defense: Cumulative Vulnerabilities: Substance Use in Adolescence and in Recovery

Devin Tomlinson

Graduate Student, Translational Biology, Medicine, and Health
Graduate Research Assistant, Bickel Lab, Fralin Biomedical Research Institute at VTC
March 27, 2023 at 1 p.m.,  Room R3012, 2 Riverside Circle
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About this Dissertation

Substance use and substance use disorders pose a significant health and economic concern in the United States. Conditions and comorbidities exist that are associated with substance use onset, continuation, and outcomes. In the theory of Reinforcer Pathology, we can categorize these conditions into vulnerabilities, or factors that may be associated with susceptibility to substance use onset and poorer outcomes in substance use recovery. The theory of vulnerabilities and reinforcer pathology is tested through three investigations. The first investigation sought to establish the relationship between cumulative vulnerabilities and adolescent substance use in a cross-sectional analysis. The second investigation evaluates the temporal relationship of cumulative vulnerabilities and substance use among adolescents. The final investigation establishes the relationship of cumulative vulnerabilities and substance use among individuals in recovery from Opioid Use Disorder. Collectively, these reports suggest that the intersection and cumulation of vulnerabilities to substance use and substance use disorders are directly related to substance use outcomes. Future research and reports in the substance use domain should consider these constructs, their accumulation, and their co-occurrence patterns.

More About the Candidate and Project

Education

Virginia Tech, Translational Biology, Medicine, and Health, Ph.D. Candidate

Oakland University, B.S., Biochemistry

Training

Graduate Research Assistant, Bickel Lab

 

Mentor

Warren Bickel, Ph.D., Virginia Tech Carilion Behavioral Health Research Professor; Director, Addiction Recovery Research Center; Director, Center for Health Behaviors Research

Committee Members

  • College for Problems on Drug Dependence Travel Award for Early Career Investigators, 2021
  • College for Problems on Drug Dependence Travel Award for Early Career Investigators, 2022

Peer-reviewed publications

Craft, W. H., Dwyer, C. L., Tomlinson, D. C., Yeh, Y., Tegge, A. N., & Bickel, W. K. (2023). Rate‐dependent effects of narrative interventions in a longitudinal study of individuals who use alcohol. Alcohol: Clinical and Experimental Research. https://doi.org/10.1111/acer.15020

Bickel, W. K., Tomlinson, D. C., Craft, W. H., Ma, M., Dwyer, C. L., Yeh, Y.-H., Tegge, A. N., Freitas-Lemos, R., & Athamneh, L. N. (2023). Predictors of smoking cessation outcomes identified by machine learning: A systematic review. Addiction Neuroscience, 6, 100068.

Athamneh, L. N., King, M. J., Craft, W. H., Freitas-Lemos, R., Tomlinson, D. C., Yeh, Y.-H., & Bickel, W. K. (2023). The Associations between Remission Status, Discounting Rates, and Recovery from Substance Use Disorders. Substance Use & Misuse, 58(2), 275–282.

Freitas-Lemos, R., Tegge, A. N., Craft, W. H., Tomlinson, D. C., Stein, J. S., & Bickel, W. K. (2022). Understanding data quality: Instructional comprehension as a practical metric in crowdsourced investigations of behavioral economic cigarette demand. Experimental and Clinical Psychopharmacology, 30(4), 415–423.

Keith, D. R., Tegge, A. N., Athamneh, L. N., Freitas-Lemos, R., Tomlinson, D. C., Craft, W. H., & Bickel, W. K. (2022). The phenotype of recovery VIII: Association among delay discounting, recovery capital, and length of abstinence among individuals in recovery from substance use disorders. In Journal of Substance Abuse Treatment (Vol. 139, p. 108783).

Freitas-Lemos, R., Tegge, A. N., Athamneh, L. N., Tomlinson, D. C., Stein, J. S., & Bickel, W. K. (2023). Narrative theory v: Narratives about penalties resulting from illegal tobacco purchases increase psychological distress. Experimental and Clinical Psychopharmacology, 31(1), 29–36.

Craft, W. H., Tegge, A. N., Freitas-Lemos, R., Tomlinson, D. C., & Bickel, W. K. (2022). Are poor quality data just random responses?: A crowdsourced study of delay discounting in alcohol use disorder. Experimental and Clinical Psychopharmacology, 30(4), 409–414.

Bickel, W. K., Freitas-Lemos, R., Tegge, A. N., Tomlinson, D. C., & Epstein, L. H. (2021). Behavioral economic cigarette demand among individuals who smoke with and without obesity. Health Psychology: Official Journal of the Division of Health Psychology, American Psychological Association, 40(10), 666–673.

Craft, W. H., Tegge, A. N., Athamneh, L. N., Tomlinson, D. C., Freitas-Lemos, R., & Bickel, W. K. (2022). The phenotype of recovery VII: Delay discounting mediates the relationship between time in recovery and recovery progress. Journal of Substance Abuse Treatment, 136, 108665.

Tomlinson, D. C., Eschker, E., Callan, J., & Hew-Butler, T. (2021). Depression in Collegiate Runners and Soccer Players: Relationships with Serum 25-Hydroxyvitamin D, Ferritin, and Fractures. International Journal of Exercise Science, 14(5), 1099–1111.

Bickel, W. K., Freitas-Lemos, R., Tomlinson, D. C., Craft, W. H., Keith, D. R., Athamneh, L. N., Basso, J. C., & Epstein, L. H. (2021). Temporal discounting as a candidate behavioral marker of obesity. Neuroscience and Biobehavioral Reviews, 129, 307–329.

Tomlinson, D. C., Tegge, A. N., Athamneh, L. N., & Bickel, W. K. (2020). The phenotype of recovery IV: Delay discounting predicts perceived stress and a chance locus of control in individuals in recovery from substance use disorders. Addictive Behaviors Reports, 12, 100320.

Athamneh, L. N., Freitas Lemos, R., Basso, J. C., Tomlinson, D. C., Craft, W. H., Stein, M. D., & Bickel, W. K. (2020). The phenotype of recovery II: The association between delay discounting, self-reported quality of life, and remission status among individuals in recovery from substance use disorders. Experimental and Clinical  Psychopharmacology. Rogers, C. M., Palmerton, H., Saway, B., Tomlinson, D., & Simonds, G. (2019). Effect of Various OR Noise on Fine Motor Skills, Cognition, and Mood. Surgery Research and Practice, 2019, 5372174.    https://doi.org/10.1037/pha0000389

Presentations

Tomlinson, D. C., Tegge, A. N., Freitas-Lemos, R., Athamneh, L. N., Bickel, W. K. (January 18, 2023). Reinforcer Pathology’s Anhedonia Hypothesis: an examination among those in recovery from substance use disorders. [Poster] presented at Translational Biology, Medicine, and Health Graduate Program 2023 Winter Symposium. Roanoke, Virginia, United States.

Quddos, F., Tomlinson, D. C., Gatchalian, K. M., Tegge, A. N., Bickel, W. K. (January 18, 2023). Classical and Adaptive Form of Cocaine Purchase Task: Is there a Better Format? [Poster Presentation]. Translational Biology, Medicine, and Health Graduate Program 2023 Winter Symposium., Roanoke, Virginia, United States.

Tomlinson, D. C., Tegge, A. N., Freitas-Lemos, R., Athamneh, L. N., Bickel, W. K. (June 2022). Reinforcer Pathology’s Anhedonia Hypothesis: an examination among those in recovery from substance use disorders. [Poster Presentation]. College on Problems of Drug Dependence Annual Meeting. Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States.

Dwyer, C. L., Tegge, A. N., Athamneh, L. N., Tomlinson, D. C., Bickel, W. K. (June 2022). Delay Discounting Predicts Remission Mediated by Regulatory Flexibility in Substance Use Disorder Recovery. [Poster Presentation]. College on Problems of Drug Dependence Annual Meeting. June 2022, Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States.

Yeh, Y., Tomlinson, D. C., Freitas-Lemos, R., Craft, W. H., Bickel, W. K. (June 2022). The Relationship Between Nonsystematic Delay Discounting and Low-Quality Survey Responses in a Sample of Smokers: ROC Curve Analysis. [Poster Presentation]. College on Problems of Drug Dependence Annual Meeting. June 2022, Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States.

Goslow, A., Tegge, A. N., Freitas-Lemos, R., Tomlinson, D. C., Craft, W. H., DeVeaugh-Geiss, A., Chilcoat, H. D., Bickel, W. K. (June 2022). Buprenorphine misuse in opioid use disorders: subgroups, motivations, and opioid demand. [Poster Presentation]. College on Problems of Drug Dependence Annual Meeting. June 2022, Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States.
Tomlinson, D. C., Tegge, A. N., Bickel, W. K. (June 2021). Phenotype of Recovery: Delay Discounting Predicts Styles of Coping Among Individuals in Recovery From Substance Use Disorders. [Poster Presentation]. College on Problems of Drug Dependence Annual Meeting. Virtual Conference.

Tomlinson, D. C., Myslowski, J., Tegge, A. N., Lisinski, J., MacKillop, J., Koffarnus, M. N., Kablinger, A. S., McClure, S., LaConte, S. M., Bickel, W. K. (June 2021). ALCOHOL REINFORCER PATHOLOGY: NARRATIVES OF COVID-19-ASSOCIATED LOSS INCREASE DELAY DISCOUNTING AND PERCEIVED STRESS IN SOCIAL DRINKERS AND INDIVIDUALS WITH AUD. [Poster Presentation]. Research Society on Alcoholism / International Society for Biomedical Research on Alcoholism Congress Annual Meeting. Virtual Conference.

Tomlinson, D. C., Bickel, W K. (December 15, 2020). Temporal Window and Alcohol Self-Administration. [Oral Presentation]. Cultural Selection and Behavioral Economics Lab & Experimental Analysis of Behavior – Translational and Conceptual Research at OsloMet – Oslo Metropolitan University. 

Tomlinson, D. C., Bickel, W. K. (June 2020). Phenotype of Recovery: Delay Discounting Predicts Perceived Stress and a Chance Locus of Control in Individuals in Recovery from Substance Use Disorders [Poster Presentation]. College on Problems of Drug Dependence Annual Meeting. Virtual Conference.

Tomlinson, D. C., Snider, S. E., Bickel, W. K. (October 4, 2019). Effects of Episodic Future Thinking on Valuation of Health Behaviors [Poster Presentation]. Translational Biology, Medicine, and Health Graduate Program 2019 Annual Research Symposium. Blacksburg, Virginia, United States. 

Tomlinson, D. C., Hew-Butler, T. (March 30, 2018). Depression and Vitamin-D Levels in Student-Athletes [Poster Presentation]. Oakland University Honors College Research and Scholarship Day 2018, Rochester, Michigan, United States.

Tomlinson, D. C., Hew-Butler, T. (February 1, 2018). Vitamin D and Depression in NCAA D1 Soccer and Cross-Country Athletes. [Oral Presentation]. Michigan American College of Sports Medicine Conference, Gaylord, Michigan.

  • Peer Mentor for Translational Biology, Medicine, and Health
  • Roanoke Graduate Student Association
  • Science Policy Education and Advocacy Club
  • Virginia Tech Big Event
  • Virginia Tech Carilion Student Outreach Program