contradictory findings may be due to varying psychological comorbidity, previous drug and alcohol use, gender distribution, and personality traits all of which that have been shown to influence HPA functioning. Interestingly, conduct disorder symptoms in children may contribute to the diminished cortisol secretion in response to an anticipated stressor suggesting that neuroendocrine response in offspring of AUD individuals is complex and often appears in a multitude of forms (Moss et al. 1995).
