There is mounting evidence that adolescents differ from adults in their sensitivity to the appetitive/aversive properties of not only alcohol but other drugs of abuse as well. For instance, adolescent animals have often been found to be more sensitive to the rewarding properties of cocaine than are adults (e.g., Badanich et al., 2006; Brenhouse et al., 2008, Zakharova et al., 2009; although see also Aberg et al., 2007), but less sensitive than mature animals to the aversive properties of another psychomotor stimulant, amphetamine (Infurna & Spear, 1979). Likewise, when compared with their adult counterparts, adolescent animals are characterized by both an enhanced sensitivity to the rewarding properties of low doses of nicotine and a greater resistance to the aversive properties of higher nicotine doses (Vastola et al., 2002; Shram et al., 2006; Torres et al., 2008). Basic science studies have also shown adolescents to be less sensitive to the aversive effects of tetrahydrocannnabinol (THC), one of the major cannabinoids in marijuana (Schramm-Sapyta et al., 2007), while being more sensitive to cannabinoid-induced disruptions in cognitive performance (Cha et al., 2006). A
