Reward dependence

Reward dependence is characterized as a tendency to respond markedly to signals of reward, particularly to verbal signals of social approval, social support, and sentiment. When reward dependence levels deviate from normal we see the rise of several personality and addictive disorders.

In psychology, reward dependence is considered a moderately heritable personality trait which is stable throughout our lives. It is an inherited neurophysiological mechanism that drives our perception of our society and the environment. Even though we are born with these personality traits, their expression during our life span can be modulated throughout our development.

Reward dependence is one of the temperament dimensions from the “tridimensional personality theory”, which was proposed by C. Robert Cloninger as part of his “unified bio-social theory of personality”. His personality theory suggested the hypothesis that specific neurochemical transmitters in our brain determine how we respond to a specific stimulus we may experience.

These innate personality traits can play a significant role not only in an individuals' predisposition to certain disorders, but also in their maintenance of those disorders.

By understanding the specific temperamental traits that are common among individuals with specific disorders, clinicians can form a more targeted, informed approach to treatment and look to newer psychotherapies for guidance. The relationship between temperament and individual clusters of DSM personality disorders is often investigated. According to the DSM-IV, the tridimensional structure allows up to nine major personality disorders to be identified, the theory thereby making a great contribution to the understanding of psychiatric disorders.

Cloninger’s tridimensional personality theory offers three independent “temperament” dimensions which aid in measuring how different individuals feel or behave. Reward Dependence (RD) is one of the three temperament dimensions, the other two being “Harm Avoidance (HA)” and “Novelty Seeking (NS)”. A temperament, according to Cloninger, is the automatic emotional response to experience.

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