Understanding the role of impulsivity and externalizing psychopathology in alcohol abuse: Application of the UPPS Impulsive Behavior Scale (original) (raw)
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Impulsive Personality and Alcohol Use: Bidirectional Relations Over One Year
Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs, 2016
Impulsive personality traits have been found to be robust predictors of substance use and problems in both cross-sectional and longitudinal research. Studies examining the relations of substance use and impulsive personality over time indicate a bidirectional relation, where substance use is also predictive of increases in later impulsive personality. The present study sought to build on these findings by examining the bidirectional relations among the different impulsive personality traits assessed by the UPPS-P Impulsive Behavior Scale, with an interest in urgency (the tendency to act rashly when experiencing strong affect). Method: Participants were 525 first-year college students (48.0% male, 81.1% White), who completed self-report measures assessing personality traits and a structured interview assessing past and current substance use. Data collection took place at two different time points: the first occurred during the participants' first year of college, and the second occurred approximately 1 year later. Bidirectional relations were examined using structural equation modeling. Results: Time 1 (T1) positive urgency predicted higher levels of alcohol use at Time 2 (T2), whereas T1 lack of perseverance predicted lower levels of alcohol use at T2. T1 alcohol use predicted higher levels of positive urgency, negative urgency, sensation seeking, and lack of premeditation at T2. Conclusions: Findings provide greater resolution in characterizing the bidirectional relation between impulsive personality traits and substance use.
Validation of the UPPS impulsive behaviour scale: a four‐factor model of impulsivity
European Journal of Personality, 2005
The current study attempts to clarify the multi‐faceted nature of impulsivity through the use of the four‐factor UPPS Impulsive Behaviour scale. In order to build the nomological network surrounding this scale, the UPPS was administered to individuals with borderline personality disorder (BPD), pathological gamblers (PG), alcohol abusers (divided into two groups based on the presence of antisocial features), and a control group. Several of the UPPS scales (e.g. Urgency, lack of Premeditation, and Sensation Seeking) differentiated the BPD, PG, and alcohol abusers with antisocial features from a group of non‐antisocial alcohol abusers and a control group. Overall, the UPPS scales accounted for between 7% (pathological gambling) and 64% (borderline personality disorder features) of the overall variance in the psychopathology measures. Individual UPPS scales also made unique contributions to several of these disorders, which may provide insight into which of these personality traits may...
Personality and alcohol use: The role of impulsivity
Addictive Behaviors, 2012
Research has shown that personality traits associated with impulsivity influence alcohol use during emerging adulthood, yet relatively few studies have examined how distinct facets of impulsivity are associated with alcohol use and abuse. We examine the influence of impulsivity traits on four patterns of alcohol use including frequency of alcohol use, alcohol-related problems, binge drinking, and alcohol use disorders (AUDs) in a community sample of young individuals (N = 190). In multivariate regression analyses that controlled for peer and parental alcohol use, psychological distress, and developmental correlates (i.e., college, marriage, employment) in emerging adulthood, we found that urgency and sensation seeking were consistently related to all four constructs of alcohol use. The present study suggests that distinct impulsivity traits may play different roles in escalation of alcohol use and development of AUDs during emerging adulthood.►We examined the relationships between impulsivity and alcohol use. ►Urgency and sensation seeking were positively related to alcohol use. ►Distinct impulsivity traits may play different roles in alcohol use.
Impulsiveness and compulsiveness in alcoholics and nonalcoholics
Addictive Behaviors, 2000
Impulsiveness and compulsiveness questionnaires were completed by recovering alcoholics (n ϭ 54) and by a community sample (n ϭ 351). No relationship was found, indicating these traits are independent, distinct constructs. Alcoholics scored significantly higher on impulsiveness than nonalcoholics, and impulsiveness was negatively associated with age for both groups. Interestingly, the significant difference between the two groups on impulsiveness was maintained across age groups. Alcoholic and nonalcoholic compulsiveness scores showed no difference; however, compulsiveness was negatively related to age in nonalcoholics, but not alcoholics.
Psychosocial predictors of impulsivity in alcohol-dependent patients
The Journal of nervous and mental disease, 2013
Impulsivity is an important risk factor of severe course of alcohol dependence. However, the significance of environmental determinants of impulsivity has been underestimated. The aim of this study was to identify psychosocial factors increasing the level of impulsivity in alcoholics. Levels of impulsivity were measured in 304 alcohol-dependent patients. The stop-signal task was used to assess behavioral impulsivity, and the Barratt Impulsiveness Scale, to measure global and cognitive impulsivity. Correlations between impulsivity and psychosocial variables were examined. A significant association between level of impulsivity and severity of psychopathological symptoms was observed. Patients who reported childhood sexual or physical abuse, lower social support, and more severe course of alcohol dependence were more impulsive, especially in the cognitive domain. When entered into a linear regression analysis model, severity of alcohol dependence, psychopathology, and childhood physica...
Addiction, 1988
Lacey & Evans (1986) suggest the presence of a subgroup of substance abusers characterized by disorders of impulse control. Utilising S. B. G. Eysenck et al.s' Impulsivity Questionnaire (1-7) members of a self-help group with a history of multiple serial addictions were tested for the trait of impulsivity. It was predicted that impulsivity scores would be higher for this group than for similar individuals in the same self-help group with histories of addiction to single substances. These results were found, suggesting support for Lacey & Evans' theory of a clinical core of impulsive persons being at high risk for multiple addictions.
Alcohol, 2004
Extensive literature has linked behavior control problems in childhood to risk for alcoholism, but impulsivity in alcohol-dependent adults has not been well characterized. Using a variety of laboratory measures of impulsivity, we assessed whether detoxified alcohol-dependent patients [(ADP); n ϭ 130] were more impulsive than control subjects [(CS); n ϭ 41]. In comparison with CS, ADP demonstrated (1) increased rates of commission errors, but not omission errors, in a continuous performance test, (2) a more severe devaluation of delayed reward, (3) increased rates of risky responses in a new risk-taking paradigm, and (4) higher psychometric scores of impulsivity and aggression. Across all subjects, aggressiveness correlated significantly with severity of delay discounting. A post hoc analysis of data obtained for male ADP indicated that, in comparison with patients with late onset of problem drinking and no problem-drinking parent, those ADP with earlier age of problem drinking and who reported a problem-drinking father (type 2-like alcohol dependence) demonstrated faster response latencies and more responses to non-target stimuli (commission errors) in the continuous performance test, as well as higher psychometric aggression. In contrast, these subtypes of male ADP did not differ in delay discounting and risk taking. These findings collectively indicate that, in comparison with CS, ADP are more impulsive in several dimensions, with elevated impulsivity in a working memory task as well as aggressivity characteristic of alcohol-dependent men with type 2-like features. Ć 2005 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Relationships of impulsiveness and depressive symptoms in alcohol dependence
Journal of Affective Disorders
Background: Depressive symptoms as well as high levels of impulsivity are subjects of special interest in alcohol dependence, as these factors are considered to influence the course of this disorder. However, until now mutual relationships between impulsivity and depression have not been investigated thoroughly in alcohol-dependent patients. Methods: By means of the Barratt Impulsiveness Scale (BIS-11) and stop-signal task, levels of impulsivity among 304 alcohol-dependent patients were measured. The stop-signal task was used as a manipulation-free method of estimating the level of behavioral impulsiveness, and the BIS-11 is a self report measure of global as well as cognitive impulsivity. Patients were also asked to complete the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) and Hopelessness Scale (BHS). The results were analyzed in order to examine relationships between impulsiveness and depressive symptoms. Results: Statistical analyses revealed significant associations between impulsiveness and severity of depressive symptoms. Individuals with higher scores on the BDI were more impulsive on the BIS-11, whereas patients with higher scores on the BHS were more impulsive on both the stop-signal task and BIS-11. The strongest correlations were found with the attention impulsivity subscale of BIS-11. Adjusting for other variables, a linear regression analysis revealed that cognitive impulsivity was the strongest predictor of depression severity. Limitations: The main limitation of the study is a not fully representative sample, with exclusion of patients with active mood disorders Conclusions: The results indicate a strong association between depressive symptoms and impulsivity in alcohol-dependent patients, and suggest an important distinction between hopelessness and other depressive symptoms.
2018
Background: While the role of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) as a risk factor for developing alcohol use disorder (AUD) has been established, the underlying pathways connecting the two are still not fully understood. Overlapping constructs such as impulsivity may explain the increased risk for developing AUD in individuals with ADHD. Methods: In this study, we assessed whether adult ADHD symptoms increase the odds of having a diagnosis of AUD. Furthermore, we tested whether facets of impulsivity explained the relationship between ADHD symptoms and alcohol dependence (AD) severity. Results: In a logistic regression of 749 participants (464 = AD, 285 = controls), overall adult ADHD symptoms, and more specifically, symptoms of hyperactivity/restlessness and problems with self-concept, increased the odds of having a diagnosis of AD. Within the AD sample, we found that impulsivity mediated the relationship between adult ADHD symptoms and AD severity. In particular, negative and positive urgency meditated the relationship of overall adult ADHD symptoms, and symptoms of hyperactivity/restlessness and problems with self-concept with AD severity. Conclusions: These results highlight the importance of looking at cohorts of ADHD symptoms and facets of impulsivity to assess the risk of developing AUD. They also suggest potential avenues for intervention strategies in individuals with preexisting adult ADHD symptoms who are seeking treatment for AUD.
Neuropsychological assessment of impulsive behavior in abstinent alcohol-dependent subjects
Revista Brasileira de Psiquiatria, 2009
OBJECTIVE: Poor impulse control is thought to be one of the characteristics of alcohol addiction. The capacity to remain abstinent may be linked to cognitive bias related to three dimensions of impulsivity: motor, non-planning, and attentional impulsivity. The aim of this study was to evaluate the neuropsychological profile related to these impulsivity dimensions in alcohol-dependent patients within 15 -120 days of abstinence. METHOD: We compared 31 alcohol-dependent patients to 30 matched healthy controls regarding their performances on the Continuous Performance Task, the Iowa Gambling Test, and the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test, each of which is thought to tax primarily one of the three dimensions of impulsivity just outlined. RESULTS: When compared to controls, alcohol-dependent patients presented more commission errors on the Continuous Performance Task; made more disadvantageous choices on the Iowa Gambling Test; and made more perseverative errors on the Wisconsin Card Sorting T...