Place Conditioning: Age‐Related Changes in the Rewarding and Aversive Effects of Alcohol

Abstract

The data show that the developmental processes of adolescence influence general responsiveness to alcohol. Specifically, late-adolescent animals (PND 45) seem to prefer doses of alcohol that are either not reinforcing (0.5 g/kg) or are aversive (1.0 g/kg) at other ages. These processes need to be examined thoroughly to understand the development of addiction in adolescence. This is especially important given that alcohol abuse in adolescence may interfere with the usual pattern of brain development as it relates to alcohol reinforcement.