Sensation seeking, impulsivity, and aggression moderate sex effects on adolescent laboratory binging

Research output: Contribution to journalResearch articleContributedpeer-review

Contributors

Abstract

Sex, comprising biological and gender-related distinctions, is a known risk factor for alcohol use disorders. Moreover, sensation seeking, impulsivity, and aggression have been found to predict binge drinking and to reflect behavioral disinhibition. We tested effects of these disinhibited traits on binging during intravenous alcohol self-administration (ivASA), a method that eliminates sex differences in the pharmacokinetics of alcohol. Eighty-five German social drinkers (49 men) completed 3 questionnaires assessing sensation seeking, impulsivity, and aggression, as well as an ivASA session at ages 18-19. Sixty-five of them were retested at ages 21-22. Participants reported real-life drinking problems and the number of binge days in the 45 days preceding lab testing. Analyses employed continuous data and median splits to examine associations between disinhibited traits and the portion of women and men in the sample who achieved a breath alcohol concentration of 80 mg% during ivASA ("binge fraction"). At ages 18-19, and only if scoring low on sensation seeking, impulsivity, or aggression, women had significantly lower binge fractions during ivASA than men. Further, low compared to high impulsivity or aggression predicted lower binge fractions in women but not in men. Neither first- nor second-wave disinhibited traits significantly predicted binge fractions at ages 21-22. We perceive that personality traits reflecting behavioral disinhibition might be a strong indicator of drinking problems, specifically among young women. Targeted brief interventions might therefore be used in educational or clinical settings to inform such women about their increased risk and the potential health and behavioral problems associated with binge drinking. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).

Details

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)208-214
Number of pages7
JournalPsychology of addictive behaviors : journal of the Society of Psychologists in Addictive Behaviors
Volume35
Issue number2
Publication statusPublished - Mar 2021
Peer-reviewedYes

External IDs

Scopus 85087210615
ORCID /0000-0002-3188-8431/work/142251763
ORCID /0000-0001-5398-5569/work/150329453

Keywords

Sustainable Development Goals

Keywords

  • Adolescent, Aggression, Alcoholism/psychology, Binge Drinking/psychology, Ethanol/adverse effects, Female, Humans, Impulsive Behavior, Laboratories, Male, Sensation, Sex Characteristics, Surveys and Questionnaires, Young Adult