Sex-dependent effects of acute stress in adolescence or adulthood on appetitive motivation.

Acute stress in adolescence or adulthood altered instrumental motivation and stimulus-triggered Pavlovian motivation in a sex and developmentally specific manner. These findings suggest that the persistent effects of acute stress on Pavlovian and instrumental motivational processes differ in females and males, and that males may be less vulnerable to the deleterious effects of intense stress during adolescence on appetitive motivation.