title: Alcohol craving in adolescents: bridging the laboratory and natural environment.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Initial lab studies suggest that adolescent drinkers crave alcohol when presented with alcohol cues. Whether this effect generalizes to the natural environment, however, remains unknown, and studies have not examined whether craving predicts drinking among youths.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  This study builds on existing research by pairing controlled lab-based cue reactivity assessments (CRAs) with data collected in the natural environment using ecological momentary assessment (EMA) methods. We examined whether alcohol cues evoke craving among adolescent drinkers in the lab and natural environment, and tested the clinical relevance of craving during adolescence by examining the prospective association between craving and alcohol use.
  
  
  METHODS
  Non-treatment-seeking adolescent drinkers (N = 42; ages 15 to 20 years) completed a lab-based CRA followed by a 1-week EMA monitoring period. During the EMA period, youth were prompted randomly throughout the day to record momentary data on craving and contextual factors (e.g., alcohol cues, peers present).
  
  
  RESULTS
  Alcohol cues elicited craving in the lab, and this effect generalized to the natural environment, especially among adolescents with more alcohol problems. In addition, craving predicted subsequent drinking levels in the natural environment.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This study demonstrates the utility of pairing lab paradigms with EMA methods to better characterize adolescents' reactivity to alcohol cues. Results implicate craving as a clinically meaningful motivator for drinking among adolescents and highlight a potentially important target of pharmacological or behavioral intervention.
authors.affiliation: Center for Alcohol and Addiction Studies, Brown University, Box S121-5, Providence, RI, 02912, USA.
authors.forename: Jason
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Ramirez
authors.forename: Robert
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Miranda
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000428:Alcohol Drinking / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000523:psychology*; D001794:Blood Pressure / Q000187:drug effects; D002492:Central Nervous System Depressants / Q000008:administration & dosage; D066249:Craving / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology; D003463:Cues; D004777:Environment; D000431:Ethanol / Q000008:administration & dosage; D005260:Female; D006339:Heart Rate / Q000187:drug effects; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009812:Odorants; D010379:Peer Group; D010507:Periodicity; D010775:Photic Stimulation; D012107:Research Design; D059015:Wireless Technology; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D002492:Central Nervous System Depressants; D000431:Ethanol