Table 1.
Sex Differences in Behaviors Associated With the Three Stages of Addiction
| Binge/Intoxication | |
|---|---|
| Risk factors that promote early-onset drinking | Impulsivity, a risk factor for adolescent drinking, is higher in adolescent boys compared to girls.19 |
| Drinking to alleviate psychological distress is higher in adolescent girls compared to boys.23 | |
| Alcohol drinking behavior | Prevalence of binge drinking is higher in adolescent boys compared to girls.15 |
| Appetitive approach in response to a dipper presentation is greater in female rats than male rats.39 | |
| Acute alcohol injection increases preference to a large/uncertain reward (a measure of risk-taking behavior) in males, with no preference shown in females.21 | |
| Withdrawal/Negative Affect | |
| Alcohol drinking behavior | Restraint stress increases drinking in adolescent female rats, but decreases drinking in adolescent male rats.92 |
| A prior history of adolescent binge drinking augments drinking levels later in adulthood in female mice, but not in male mice.81 | |
| Female mice drink more alcohol under baseline conditions in adulthood, but a history of binge drinking and chronic unpredictable stress or predator odor can elevate drinking in male mice to the level of females.81 | |
| Effects of alcohol withdrawal on negative affect | Adolescent girls report more negative mood states following recent heavy episodic drinking than do adolescent boys.23 |
| A history of adolescent binge drinking elicits active coping responses to stress in female mice vs. passive coping responses to stress in male mice (indexed by less time vs. more time immobile in the forced swim test).95,96 | |
| Frequency of ultrasonic vocalizations, a measure of anxiety-like behavior, is increased following withdrawal from chronic intermittent alcohol vapors in male rats, but not females.69–71 | |
| Preoccupation/Anticipation | |
| Alcohol drinking behavior | Men exhibit higher levels of alcohol craving in response to cues than women do.106 |
| Women increased work effort in a progressive ratio trial following resumption after 2 weeks of abstinence. Men showed a decrease in effort.113 | |
| Relapse-like behavior in response to alcohol availability is higher in male rats compared to female rats.108 | |
| Female mice have a higher degree of aversion-resistant drinking than male mice.115 | |