Individuals who abused alcohol at an early age show decisionmaking impairments. However, the question of whether maladaptive choice constitutes a predisposing factor to, or a consequence resulting from, alcohol exposure remains open. To examine whether a causal link exists between voluntary alcohol consumption during adolescence and adult decision making the present studies used a rodent model. High levels of voluntary alcohol intake were promoted by providing adolescent rats with access to alcohol in a palatable gel matrix under nondeprivation conditions. A probability-discounting instrumental response task offered a choice between large but uncertain rewards and small but certain rewards to assess risk-based choice in adulthood either 3 weeks or 3 months following alcohol exposure. While control animals' performance on this task closely conformed to a predictive model of risk-neutral value matching, rats that consumed high levels of alcohol during adolescence violated this model, demonstrating greater risk preference. Evidence of significant risk bias was still present when choice was assessed 3 months following discontinuation of alcohol access. These findings provide evidence that adolescent alcohol exposure may lead to altered decision making during adulthood and this model offers a promising approach to the investigation of the neurobiological underpinnings of this link.adolescence ͉ probability discounting A dolescent alcohol use is a serious public health problem and is associated with an increased risk for development of chronic alcohol use disorders in adulthood (1). Furthermore, an association between a history of alcohol abuse and deficits in decision making has been documented (2-5). However, the question of whether maladaptive choices constitute a predisposing factor to, or a consequence resulting from, alcohol use remains open. Animal models allow for direct testing of causality and for examination of potential neural substrates underlying an association between alcohol use and risky decision making.Developing rodent models of alcohol abuse has been challenged by the fact that most rat strains do not freely consume significant amounts of ethanol in solution. A method for overcoming the reluctance of nondeprived rats to drink high levels of ethanol in solution was developed by Rowland et al. (6). It utilizes a palatable gel matrix containing ethanol and when made available to rats it stimulates robust and reliable selfadministration, without the need for fluid or food deprivation or any training period. Intake of these alcohol ''Jello Shots'' resulted in significant elevations of blood alcohol concentrations (6) in the range of 5 to 45 mg % with a linear relationship to amount consumed (r ϭ 0.94). Furthermore, alterations in brain chemistry in association with this administration protocol have also been documented (7-8). Since this delivery method does not require training to promote intake, it is particularly appropriate for developmental studies, such as those focused on adolescence, since, in ro...