Risk behaviours and personality traits in adolescence

Abstract

The objectives of this study were: 1) to establish the prevalence of alcohol, tobacco and cannabis use, as well as unprotected sex and school failure among adolescents according to gender; 2) to determine the personality dimensions: introversion (I), sensation-seeking (SS), impulsivity (Im) and anxiety sensitivity (AS) according to gender; 3) to relate possible personality profiles to these behaviours. The sample included 1.324 adolescents aged between 14-18. 4 groups of adolescents were established based on the assessed personality dimensions. The group of adolescents with high scores in all personality dimensions presented the highest rates of experimentation with consumption. On the contrary, the group of adolescents with low levels of I, SS and Im presented the lowest rates. Preventive interventions should take into account the personality dimensions indicated in order to be applied with greater effectiveness.