Impulsive Personality and Alcohol Use: Bidirectional Relations Over One Year

Abstract

ABSTRACT. Objective: 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. (J. Stud. Alcohol Drugs, 77, 473-482, 2016)

Integrating affect and impulsivity: The role of positive and negative urgency in substance use risk

“…Research on urgency since the publication of Cyders and Smith’s (2008a) urgency theory has provided clear support for many aspects of the theory. Urgency predicts the subsequent onset of, and increases in, multiple addictive behaviors including drinking, smoking, drug use, gambling, binge eating, and risky sex (Cyders et al, 2009; Cyders and Smith, 2008b; Doran et al, 2013; Kaiser et al, 2015; Pearson et al, 2012; Settles et al, 2014; Zapolski et al, 2009). Negative urgency appears to increase with pubertal onset and predict subsequent increases in drinking behavior.…”

“…There appear to be two separate risk pathways to increases in drinking quantity during the first year of college: one precipitated by positive urgency and one by negative urgency (Settles et al, 2010). Additionally, negative urgency and sensation seeking predict smoking initiation early in college (Doran, et al, 2013) and increased drinking over a one-year college period (Kaiser et al, 2015). …”

Turning the UPPS down: Urgency predicts treatment outcome in a partial hospitalization program

“…Given that daily change in urgency has not been previously assessed in this way, it is not clear if such linear decreases are attributable to the intensity and frequency of partial hospital treatment, or if such decreases would also observed in less intensive treatment settings such as outpatient clinics. Although interpretation of this finding is limited by the lack of a no-treatment control condition and the lack of follow-up assessment to probe the durability of these changes, it is notable that urgency is conceptualized as a personality trait [2] and has been identified as a stable construct over much longer periods of time than the duration of this study [17, 46]. …”

A path model of different forms of impulsivity with externalizing and internalizing psychopathology: Towards greater specificity

“…Despite the importance of testing generalizability across samples, however, it is worth noting that recent work suggests that prevalence of psychopathology in undergraduate samples approximates that in the general population (Burt & Donnellan, ; Hunt & Eisenberg, ; Ibrahim, Kelly, Adams, & Glazebrook, ). Finally, the cross‐sectional design limits ability to comment on whether impulsivity operates as a vulnerability factor (see Doran et al, ; Kaiser, Bonsu, Charnigo, Milich, & Lynam, ; Riley, Rukavina, & Smith, for longitudinal findings).…”