Personality Pathways to Impulsive Behavior and Their Relations to Deviance: Results from Three Samples

The importance of the relation between impulsivity and deviance is well-acknowledged among criminologists. However, differences in the representations of impulsivity, some merely titular and others substantive, may cloud our understanding of these relations. The current study examines the argument, offered by Whiteside and Lynam Pers. Individuals Diff. (2000) 30: 669–689, that there may be four distinct personality pathways through which impulsive behavior may be manifested. Across three samples (two undergraduate, one community), we examine the validity of a four-factor structure of impulsivity, test whether these four pathways manifest divergent relations with various forms of deviant behavior such as crime and substance use, as well as laboratory manifestations of aggressive and impulsive behavior, and examine the invariance of these results across gender. The results support the existence of a four-factor model of impulsivity, the importance of two specific personality pathways in relation to self-reports of deviance (lack of premeditation and sensation seeking), as well as actual behavior, and suggest that these pathways are important for both men and women.     

Evaluating the Dimensionality and Invariance of ”Low Self-Control”

According to Gottfredson and Hirschi's (1990) A General Theory ofCrime, all illegal activity is the manifestation of a single underlyingcause. The authors argue that inadequate child-rearing causes individualsto develop a similar type of propensity for criminal and analogousbehavior. Gottfredson and Hirschi label this characteristiclow self-control. Six dimensions, which can be identified intheir theory, are suggested to comprise a final low self-controltrait. Further, low self-control is proposed to be an invariantcharacteristic (i.e., its form does not change with the age of theindividual or context in which the person resides). In this research, weevaluate these two propositions. First, the six dimensions are measured andused to determine if a multidimensional model can explain another commonfactor—low self-control—in two samples of individuals (fromdifferent locales) with dissimilar mean ages. Second, low self-control inboth samples is tested for invariance. We test the proposed invariance oflow self-control by examining if the parameter values in a model, which isreflective of Gottfredson and Hirschi's conceptualization of thecharacteristic, differ across the two samples of individuals. The resultssupport both of Gottfredson and Hirschi's propositions. Lowself-control does appear to be a multidimensional characteristic whosedimensions represent another common factor. Low self-control also appears tobe an invariant latent trait that members of these two samplespossess. These tests help to clarify Gottfredson and Hirschi'sconceptualization of low self-control.     

Testing a Theoretical Model of the Relationship Between Impulsivity,Mediating Variables,and Husband Violence

The present study involved a multimethod assessment of impulsivity among 86 men. Using two questionnaires and four performance-based measures of impulsivity, the factor structure of the impulsivity data was examined. Four constructs that theoretically mediate the relationship between impulsivity and husband violence (i.e., substance abuse, anger/hostility, marital dissatisfaction, and psychological abuse) were assessed to examine a mediational model predictive of husband violence. Substance abuse and marital dissatisfaction mediated the relationship between impulsivity and psychological abuse. Psychological abuse mediated the relationship between substance abuse and marital dissatisfaction and husband violence. Although anger/hostility was not a mediator, there were bivariate associations between anger/hostility and impulsivity, psychological abuse, and husband violence. The results of the regression analyses were virtually identical when controlling for the effect of intelligence on the model variables. The implications of the findings for the assessment of impulsivity and for future husband violence research are discussed.     

Associations between different motivations for animal cruelty,methods of animal cruelty and facets of impulsivity

ABSTRACT

Associations between specific motivations for animal cruelty, particular methods of animal cruelty and different facets of impulsivity were explored among 130 undergraduate students. Participants completed an adapted version of the Boat Inventory on Animal-Related Experiences (BIARE) which asked participants to state whether they had intentionally harmed or killed an animal, the species of animal(s) involved, their motivations for harming or killing the animal(s) and the method(s) used. Participants also completed the Impulsive Behavior scale (UPPS-P) which assesses five facets of impulsivity. Over half of the sample (55%) reported committing at least one act of animal cruelty, and dogs were the most commonly abused species of animal. The most frequently reported motivations were Prejudice, Amusement, Control (of an animal), and Retaliation (against an animal), and the most frequently reported methods were Beating/Kicking, Squashing, Throwing an object at an animal, Shooting, Drowning and Burning. Significant associations were found between particular motivations and methods, as well as between particular methods of animal cruelty and facets of impulsivity. Findings have implications for theoretical models of animal cruelty perpetration as well as offender assessment and treatment.     

Adolescent Impulsivity: Findings From a Community Sample

Impulsivity is central to several psychopathological states in adolescence. However, there is little consensus concerning the definition of impulsivity and its core dimensions. In response to this lack of consensus, Whiteside and Lynam (2001, Pers. Individ. Differ. 30, 669–689) have developed the UPPS Impulsive Behavior Scale, which is able to distinguish 4 dimensions of impulsivity in adults: Urgency, lack of Premeditation, lack of Perseverance, and Sensation seeking. The question arises of whether these 4 dimensions also exist in adolescents and also of whether gender differences can be observed. A sample of teenagers (314 girls and 314 boys) completed a French version of the scale (Van der Linden et al., Eur. J. Psychol. Assess., 2005). Based on exploratory and confirmatory analyses, the 4-factor model is replicated in girls, boys, and the whole sample. Concerning gender differences, girls have a higher score for Urgency and boys a higher score for Sensation seeking. Overall, this study suggests that the UPPS is a promising tool for studying impulsivity in adolescence. Assistant, Child and Adolescent Psychology Unit, University of Geneva, Switzerland, PhD in preparation: Impulsivity, cognitive biases, cognitive deficits, and antisocial behavior in adolescence. Received PhD in 1988 from the University of Liège, Belgium. Major research topics are cognitive biases and cognitive deficits in psychopathology, impulsivity and executive functions, memory deficits in amnesia and Alzheimer's disease, and cognitive rehabilitation in schizophrenia and Alzheimer's disease.     

Development of impulsivity and risk‐seeking: Implications for the dimensionality and stability of self‐control*

In Gottfredson and Hirschi's self‐control theory, introduced in 1990, they contend that self‐control is a unidimensional construct that develops early in childhood and remains stable throughout the life span. According to findings reported in recent research, however, these arguments are now being challenged, with scholars pointing to ways in which self‐control may be multidimensional in nature and may change beyond the period of alleged stabilization. In this study, we draw on Steinberg's dual systems model, introduced in 2008, to consider this issue further. We examine that model's two key elements of low self‐control—risk‐seeking and impulsivity—to determine whether they are empirically distinguishable from one another and have differing developmental trajectories from childhood to early adulthood. We also consider the consequences of changes in risk‐seeking and impulsivity for within‐individual changes in crime. We examine these issues with data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1979 (NLSY79) for individuals from 10 to 30 years old. The results of our analyses show support for a multidimensional and dynamic conception of self‐control—from age 10 to age 30, risk‐seeking and impulsivity are empirically distinct and develop in divergent ways that are consistent with the dual systems model. Changes in risk‐seeking and impulsivity also affect changes in crime, but their effects vary with age and changes in the other element. We discuss these findings and their implications for self‐control and the development of life‐course criminology.     

An electrocortical correlate of a history of alcohol abuse in criminal offenders

Abstract

This study tested the hypothesis that a history of chronic alcohol abuse is the key variable underlying the previously reported association between criminal recidivism, impulsivity and differentiation of the Go/NoGo contingent negative variation (CNV). Forty male Singaporean prison inmates were assessed for presence of antisocial personality disorder (APD), a history of alcohol and other substance abuse, and psychopathy. CNV was recorded in the Go/NoGo paradigm in groups comprising inmates with (ALC+: N = 29) and without (ALC?: N = 11) a history of alcohol abuse. As predicted, the ALC+ group showed significantly degraded Go/NoGo CNVs (poor differentiation). This suggests that the “high risk” group of mentally disordered found to recidivate in studies by Howard and Lumsden (1996; 1997) may have shared a history of alcohol abuse. Results are discussed in the context of a developmental biopsychosocial model of risk for engaging in criminal behaviour.     

Psychometric properties of the Barratt Impulsiveness Scale version 11 among a Portuguese sample of incarcerated juvenile offenders

The aim of the present study was to examine the psychometric properties of the Barratt Impulsiveness Scale version 11 (BIS-11) among a forensic sample of incarcerated male juvenile offenders (N?=?221). Principal Component Analysis with Promax rotation revealed the expected 6-factor structure, but Confirmatory Factor Analysis of the 6-factor first-order and the 3-factor second-order factorial structures did not present sufficiently good fits. Despite that, the Portuguese adaptation of the BIS-11 demonstrated generally acceptable psychometric properties in terms of internal consistency, mean inter-item correlation, convergent validity, discriminant validity, and concurrent validity that justifies its use among the youth forensic population. Statistically significant associations were found with age of crime onset, conduct disorder, crime seriousness, alcohol use and drug use.     

Peer Victimization,Antisocial Cognition,and Delinquency in Early Adolescent Schoolchildren: A Test of the Person–Situation Interface

ABSTRACT

Interactive and mediating effects have the ability to elucidate variable relationships. The goal of the current study was to explore how these two effects potentially clarify the victimization–offending relationship. Examining three waves of longitudinal data, it was predicted that Wave 1 victimization would enhance Wave 2 cognitive impulsivity, Wave 2 victimization would interact with Wave 2 cognitive impulsivity, and Wave 2 cognitive impulsivity and the victimization x cognitive impulsivity interaction would both fuel a rise in Wave 3 delinquency. All predicted relationships were observed when evaluated in a group of 960 early adolescents (457 boys, 503 girls) from the Illinois Study of Bullying and Sexual Violence (ISBSV). When cognitive insensitivity replaced cognitive impulsivity as the mediator, the mediating and moderating effects were no longer significant. These results suggest that victimization stimulates reckless thinking, which, when aided by subsequent victimization, encourages future delinquency.