Interaction of the dopaminergic system with mechanisms of associative learning and cognition: implications for drug abuse

The possible function of mechanisms of associative learning in drug abuse and addition was analyzed against psychomotor stimulant drugs. Parallel mechanisms by which stimulant drugs influence the effects of aversive and rewarding stimuli were examined. Critical neuromodulatory influences were then determined. These include the amygdala that mediates the associative procedures by which environmental stimuli come to control drug-seeking behavior.