Larner College of Medicine News & Media

Higgins Comments on Rewards to Help Addiction Recovery in Associated Press Article

September 7, 2022 by Lucy Gardner Carson

(SEPTEMBER 7, 2022) Stephen Higgins, Ph.D., professor of psychiatry, explained in an Associated Press story that the same dopamine reward system that’s the basis for addictions can be used to promote healthy behavior change.

Stephen Higgins, Ph.D.

(SEPTEMBER 7, 2022) While medication can help people quit abusing opioids, rewards programs are widely recognized as the most effective treatment for people addicted to stimulants, according to psychologist Stephen Higgins, Ph.D., professor of psychiatry, who pioneered the method in 1991. In an Associated Press story, Higgins explained how the same dopamine reward system that’s the basis for addictions can be used to promote healthy behavior change.