and cortisol in other at-risk drinkers(81). However, heavy drinkers have also shown reduced alcohol-related stimulation and ventral striatal brain activation relative to social drinkers(82). Significant methodological differences across studies, i.e., sample size, subject characteristics, alcohol dose, route of administration, and degree of naturalism to usual contexts(16, 83), hamper direct comparisons to discern the source of this discrepancy. Thus, while the present study includes one of the largest samples to date and the only investigation of alcohol responses over time, replication will be a necessary next step to assure confidence in the main findings.
