The previous findings may indicate that individuals with low LRs need greater cognitive effort to recognize relatively subtle differences across stimuli when they are tested with placebo (Paulus et al., 2012). The neurocognitive processes related to the low LR to alcohol might more closely reflect underlying mechanisms that contribute to the low alcohol sensitivity than the potentially less precise measures of the behavioral response to alcohol during a standard alcohol challenge. In addition, the finding of the need for higher levels of neural processing resources during effortful tasks with placebo may suggest that it is possible to identify individuals with low LRs before their first drink. These issues could be addressed by following participants after imaging sessions to determine if the baseline LR and fMRI patterns during placebo and alcohol sessions predicted heavier drinking and alcohol problems.
