Dados do Trabalho

Título

Self-reported versus Computer task: Impulsivity in young men and women

Introdução

Data from previous research indicate that men and women differ in impulsivity instruments. Nevertheless, experimental and correlational studies reveal that self-report and behavioral measures do not correlate and that sex differences might depend on the instrument used.

Objetivo

In order to understand how men and women perform on distinct measures of impulsivity, we compared men and women regarding two methods of impulsivity assessment. Furthermore, we also verified how self-reported chronic stress and aggression relate to both methods of assessment in both sexes.

Método

One hundred young university students (aged 18 to 24 years old; M = 21.0; SD = 1.9), whom 65% were women, participated in this study. We used the Barratt Impulsivity Scale (BIS), a self-report questionnaire, and the Balloon Analogue Risk Task (BART), a behavioral task to compare the differences between sexes.

Resultados

Correlation analysis showed that BIS-11 motor impulsivity subscale correlated with BART performance on the second and third blocks of the task (r(94)= .214, p = .038) and with reaction time after failure (r(94)= -.247, p = .016). This data suggest an association between self-reported and behavioral impulsivity only within the task performance. We found no group differences regarding BIS-11 subscales. However, results revealed that men had higher impulsive action than women when performance on BART was compared and this result was present even when controlling for BIS-11 scores (F(, 89) = 6.061, p = .016).

Conclusão

Some instruments are more sensitive than others to identify impulsivity differences in men and women. Sex differences regarding impulsivity might depend on the instrument used and the construct evaluated even when these measures are correlated.

Palavras-chave

impulsiveness, self-report, behavioral task