Impulsivity and risk taking: prospective effect on alcohol consumption in Argentine adolescents

Abstract

Impulsivity and risk taking are personality traits associated to alcohol use. However, there is a scarcity of longitudinal studies evaluating how these factors affect alcohol use in Latin-American adolescents. The present study aimed at identifying, separately by sex, the prospective role of trait-like impulsivity (Positive Urgency, Negative Urgency, Lack of Premeditation, Lack of Perseverance and Sensation Seeking) and risk taking on drinking patterns in Argentinian adolescents. High school students (n= 953, M age= 13.31 ± 0.96; range= 11-16 years old; 55.2% woman) from Cordoba (Argentina) participated in the study. There were two data collections, separated by a period of, approximately, 12 months. In the first data collection, the participants reported their alcohol consumption during the last twelve months and completed the Balloon Analogue Risk Task. They also completed a psychometric measure of impulsivity-like trait trait (UPPS-P Impulsivity Scale). In the second data collection, they reported their alcohol consumption during the last year. Participants were categorized, based on their alcohol use across waves, as Abstainers, New Drinkers, Regular Drinkers or Former Drinkers. The results indicate that trait-like impulsivity (particularly Sensation Seeking), in both sexes, and risk taking, in women, distinguished between the drinking categories and the Abstainers category. This information could be relevant for the development of sex-specific interventions targeting adolescents with high levels of impulsivity and risk taking.