The brain activities of individuals with or without motivation to change: a preliminary study among cigarette smokers

Aim: Cigarette smoking is an addictive behavior that requires high motivation to change, a phenotype related to the functional activity of the brain. The study aims to examine motivation to change among cigarette smokers and to study the association between functional brain activity and motivation to change smoking behaviors. Methods: Motivation to change smoking behaviors of 107 current smokers receiving services in a university hospital was obtained using the Stages of Change Readiness and Treatment Eagerness Scale (SOCRATES). Brain activities related to motivation to change were also explored in a subgroup using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). Results: The results showed that most of the current smokers (n = 68, 63.6%) were low motivated to change despite receiving health-related services. Brain activities in the left of the temporal, frontal gyrus, and superior medial gyrus of smokers with motivation were greater activated than those without. In contrast, the brain activities in the left precentral gyrus and bilateral paracentral lobules of smokers without motivation were greater activated. Conclusions: These preliminary results show the differences in brain activities between smokers with and without motivation to change and warrant further research to see if motivated smokers can quit smoking using a series of strategies based on their functional activities of the brain.