We recruited English- and Afrikaans-speaking adolescents (13–18 years) of low socioeconomic status and mixed ancestry from the Cape Town region in South Africa. The total sample (N = 117) consisted of 52 (34 females) treatment-naïve alcohol-dependent (TNAD) adolescents, and 65 (39 females) non-substance-abusing controls (NSAC). None of the participants had ever been treated for an AUD or SUD. We applied eligibility criteria rigorously to ensure that our samples were free of SUDs and psychiatric comorbidities. Exclusion criteria for study participation were: mental retardation, lifetime DSM-IV Axis I diagnoses other than AUD (including depressive, anxiety, psychotic, post-traumatic stress, elimination, eating, tic, attention-deficit/hyperactivity, oppositional defiant, and conduct disorders); lifetime dosages exceeding 30 cannabis or 4 methamphetamine doses; current use of sedative or psychotropic medication; signs or history of fetal alcohol syndrome or malnutrition; sensory impairment; history of traumatic brain injury with loss of consciousness exceeding 10 minutes; presence of diseases that may affect the CNS (e.g., meningitis, epilepsy, HIV); less than 6 years of formal education; and lack of proficiency in English or Afrikaans.
