Inducing craving for alcohol in the laboratory

Research on the mechanisms of craving often involves inducing craving in su bjects in controlled settings. This article describes techniques that have been used to induce craving for alcohol, including (I) exposing subjects to actual alcoholic beverages, (2) exposing subjects to visual representation s of alcoholic beverages, (3) manipulating the subjects' mood states, and ( 4) controlling environmental settings. The intensity of craving can be rate d by the subjects themselves or can be assessed by clinicians through behav ioral observations or the measurement of certain physiological responses. S uccess in inducing craving in the laboratory, however, has been inconsisten t. Ultimately, researchers may need to monitor subjects' craving responses in actual environmental settings.