alcohol-dependent state. The thesis argued in the present synthesis is that alcoholism, similar to drug addiction, is a reward deficit disorder, and the “emergence of a negative emotional state” plays an important role in defining and perpetuating alcoholism. Alcoholism also involves substantial neuroadaptations that persist beyond acute withdrawal and trigger relapse and deficits in cognitive function that can also fuel compulsive drinking. However, the argument here is that the core deficit that sets up vulnerability to relapse in alcoholism, and possibly even deficits in cognitive function, is in fact decreased reward function.
