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Reinforcement pathology (RP), a framework rooted in behavioral economics, has contributed to advances in the etiology and treatment of substance use. Drug demand and delay discounting (DD) have gained considerable interest, as they inform on the risk for escalation to substance use as well as treatment-specific targets. No prior study conducted in Spain has explored the interplay of demand and DD in adolescents. This study was aimed to: 1) identify whether DD and alcohol demand can yield empirically driven subgroups, and 2) examine differences in substance use involvement. The sample comprised 107 (% females = 54.2) adolescents (M=15.46, SD=1.25) from a high school in Asturias (Spain). Participants filled out an ad-hoc survey on substance use over the prior 30 days and one year. A 20-item alcohol purchase task (APT) was used to assess the reinforcing value of alcohol. The 21-item Monetary Choice Questionnaire evaluated impulsive choice. Two subgroups emerged: Cluster 1 (n = 72) and Cluster 2 (n = 35). Participants in C2 consistently showed higher impulsivity and demand for alcohol, signifying lower responsiveness to alcohol pricing. As compared to C1, those in C2 had a higher prevalence of past-month substance use [C1: 26/72 (36.1%) vs. C2: 33/35 (94.3%), p <.001], and a greater frequency of drunkenness [p <.001] and binge drinking episodes [p <.001]. RP differentiate between subgroups of adolescent substance users with patterns of more versus less substance use involvement. The existence of specific drug use subpopulations should be considered when designing environmental preventive policies., La economía conductual para caracterizar el uso de drogas en adolescentes: análisis de cluster. La patología del refuerzo (PR), basada en la economía conductual, ha contribuido al avance de la etiología y el tratamiento de drogas. La demanda y el descuento por demora (DD) informan sobre el incremento en el consumo y los objetivos de tratamiento. Ningún estudio realizado en España ha examinado la interacción entre ambas variables en adolescentes. Los objetivos fueron: 1) identificar si el DD y la demanda de alcohol pueden identificar distintos subgrupos y, 2) examinar sus diferencias en el consumo de sustancias. La muestra incluyó 107 (% mujeres = 54,2) adolescentes (M =15,46, DT =1,25) de enseñanza obligatoria en Asturias (España). Se evaluó el consumo de drogas en los últimos 30 días y el último año. El poder reforzante del alcohol se evaluó mediante una tarea de compra de 20 ítems (APT). La toma de decisiones impulsiva se evaluó mediante el Cuestionario de Elección Monetaria. Se identificaron dos subgrupos: Grupo 1 (n = 72) y Grupo 2 (n = 35). El Grupo 2 mostró una demanda e impulsividad más elevada, indicando menor sensibilidad a incrementos en el precio. Comparado con el Grupo 1, el 2 obtuvo una prevalencia más elevada de consumo en el último mes [G1: 26/72 (36,1%) vs. G2: 33/35 (94,3%), p <,001], mayor frecuencia de borracheras (p <,001) y episodios de consumo intensivo de alcohol (p <,001). La PR permite caracterizar e identificar grupos con distintos patrones de consumo de sustancias. La existencia de distintos perfiles debería ser considerada a la hora de desarrollar políticas preventivas.

Technological development has enabled the use of sophisticated methods for assessing multiple human behaviors. Despite the advantages of these new technologies, concerns exist regarding their equivalence with paper-based measures in epidemiological and health-related surveys. To date, literature on this topic in relation to adolescents is virtually nonexistent. This study compares respondents’ performance on the same survey using both paper- and electronic tablet-based assessment methods. A final sample of 135 adolescents (mean age 17.30 years, SD = 0.59; 56.3% males) consecutively completed two versions of the same survey on gambling behaviors and two questionnaires: The Gambling Motives Questionnaire (GMQ) and the South Oaks Gambling Screening-Revised for Adolescents (SOGS-RA). An ad-hoc questionnaire assessing participants’ satisfaction levels with each method was also used. The digital survey yielded a lifetime, past year, and past month gambling prevalence of 54.1%, 45.2%, and 27.4%, respectively. Paper-based prevalence rates were 3.7-5.2% lower (all p < .092) and there were discrepancies in gambling activities. Although the reliability of the questionnaires was high in both formats, total scores were consistently higher in the paper-based format. GMQ and SOGS-RA intraclass correlations between versions ranged from .856-.884. Unexpectedly, students preferred the paper-based survey to the e-assessment (51.5% vs. 48.5%) and also enjoyed it more (31.3% vs 26.1%). Paper- and tablet-based surveys yield different, albeit non-statistically significant, estimations of gambling behaviors even when the same participants were surveyed at one time. We recommend that consistency be routinely checked across assessment formats when adapting paper-and-pencil measures to digital formats, ¿La evaluación electrónica siempre se adapta a los nativos digitales? Una comparación intra-sujeto de la evaluación del juego de azar entre papel y tabletas electrónicas en adolescentes. El desarrollo tecnológico ha permitido el uso de métodos sofisticados de evaluación de múltiples comportamientos humanos. A pesar de los avances de estas nuevas tecnologías, existen preocupaciones sobre su equivalencia con las medidas de papel y lápiz en encuestas epidemiológicas y de salud. Hasta la fecha, la literatura en el tema en relación con los adolescentes es prácticamente inexistente. Este estudio compara el desempeño de los participantes sobre la misma encuesta utilizando métodos de evaluación de papel y lápiz y electrónicos. Una muestra de 135 adolescentes (edad media 17.30 años, DT = 0.59; 56.3% hombres) completaron consecutivamente os versiones de la misma encuesta sobre conductas de juego y dos cuestionarios: el Cuestionario de Motivos de Juego (GMQ) y el Cribado de Juego de South Oaks en su versión revisada para adolescentes (SOGS-RA). También se utilizó un cuestionario ad-hoc para evaluar el nivel de satisfacción de los participantes en cada método. La encuesta digital arrojó una prevalencia de juego vida, año y mes de 54,1%, 45,2%, y 27,4%, respectivamente. Las prevalencias en papel fueron 3,7-5,2% menores (todas p < ,092) y se mostraron discrepancias en las actividades de apuestas. A pesar de que la fiabilidad de los cuestionarios fue alta en ambos formatos, las puntuaciones totales fueron consistentemente más altas en el formato en papel. Las correlaciones intraclase en el GMQ y SOGS-RA oscilaban entre ,856 - ,884. Inesperadamente, los estudiantes preferían la encuesta en papel sobre el formato digital (51,5% vs. 48,5%) y también lo disfrutaron más (31,3% vs 26,1%). La encuesta en papel y en tableta electrónica mostraron estimaciones diferentes, aunque no estadísticamente significativas, en las conductas de juego, incluso a pesar de haber sido encuestados en el mi

[EN] Obesity is a major health problem associated with disease burden and mortality. In this context, analyzing food as a powerful reinforcer from a behavioral economics framework could be relevant for the treatment and prevention of obesity. The purposes of this study were to validate a food purchase task (FPT) in a clinical sample of Spanish smokers with overweight and obesity and to assess the internal structure of the FPT. We also analyzed the clinical utility of single-item breakpoint (i.e., commodity price that suppresses demand). A total of 120 smokers [% females: 54.2; Mage = 52.54; SD = 10.34] with overweight and obesity completed the FPT and weight/eating-related variables. Principal component analysis was used to examine the FPT structure, and a set of correlations were used to examine the relationship between the FPT, eating and weight-related variables. The FPT demonstrated robust convergent validity with other measures of eating. Higher food demand was related to higher food craving (r = .33), more binge eating problems (r = .39), more weight gain concerns (r = .35), higher frequency of both controlled (r = .37) and uncontrolled (r = .30) grazing, as well as to an eating style in response to emotions (r = .34) and external eating (r = .34). Of the demand indices, Intensity and Omax showed the highest magnitudes of effects. The FPT factors, persistence and amplitude, do not improve individual FPT indices; and the single-item breakpoint was not related to any eating or weight variable. The FPT is a valid measure of food reinforcement with potential clinical utility in smokers with obesity/overweight.