Gender and activation level in smokers.

Studies on the enhancing effects of nicotine on performance are usually pharmacological challenges using deprived male smokers. However, gender may be a factor that influences nicotine/smoking effects upon information processing. We investigated gender differences in contingent negative variation (CNV) amplitude in non-deprived dependent smokers performing a go-no go reaction time paradigm. Female smokers did not differ from female non-smokers in both early and late CNV, whereas male smokers presented greater early and late CNV compared to male non-smokers and an alteration in inhibiting processes responsible for CNV development in the no go condition. Consistent with the evidence of gender differences in nicotine/smoking sensitivity, these preliminary results emphasize the need for taking into account gender in psychophysiological research of nicotine/smoking effects.