The current findings concerning ALDH2 can be interpreted in the context of an extensive literature linking ALDH2 to alcohol sensitivity and the risk for alcohol dependence. Due to elevated blood acetaldehyde during alcohol consumption, individuals with the ALDH2*2 allele show heightened physiological responses to alcohol and lower rates of drinking (Peng & Yin, 2009; Wall, 2005). In the current study, a positive association between implicit drinking motives and alcohol use was found for individuals with the ALDH2*1/*1 genotype, but not for individuals with the ALDH2*2 variant. A parsimonious interpretation of this finding is that, due to the anticipation of aversive responses to alcohol, individuals with ALDH2*2 are less likely to drink in response to reflexive cognitive processes and/or more likely to recruit controlled executive processes in the context of drinking opportunities. Consistent with these ideas, ALDH2*2 has been related to weaker self-reported drinking motives and higher self-efficacy for abstaining from alcohol (Hendershot et al., 2010).
