Addictive Personality Research Articles

1612 – Clinical characteristics and disorder-specific cognitions in treatment-seeking patients with internet addiction and borderline personality organization

Introduction Several epidemiological studies revealed prevalence-rates of Internet Addiction (IA) - which was currently proposed as an independent disorder for DSM-5 - ranging from 0.5 to 1 per cent. Above all, patients with IA show psychopathological patterns (craving, tolerance, withdrawal, mood modification, relapses) comparable to substance-related disorders. Besides, IA is frequently accompanied by various comorbidities, such as anxiety, depression or personality disorders. Objectives The aim of the present study was to assess typical clinical characteristics and disorder-specific cognitive styles in a subgroup of patients with IA and an underlying Borderline Personality Organization (BPO) in a consecutive sample of over 450 treatment-seekers in an Outpatient Clinic for Internet and Computer game Addiction. Methods 20 patients, who fulfilled both: the diagnostic criteria of IA and a Borderline Personality Disorder were compared with a matched control-group of BPO-patients without psychopathological but extensive Internet use. Both groups were assessed with the FGG (Questionnaire on borderline-specific cognitions and feelings, Renneberg et al., 2004) and further psychological features (e.g. global assessment of functioning (GAF), self-efficacy (SWE) and sensation seeking). Results BPO-patients with IA show an increased mean of the total score of the FGG as well as of further clinical measures. The results lead to the assumption, that BPO-patients with IA use more disorder-specific cognitions, show higher mental strains and lower levels of health-related well-being compared to BPO-patients with only an extensive internet use. Conclusions Internet addictive behavior in BPO-patients may serve as avoidance behavior in order to subdue the burden of the primary disease.

The relationship between personality traits and anxiety/depression levels in different drug abusers' groups.

Aim. Since psychosocial characteristics of drug abuse involve mainly specific personality and emotional changes, it is very important to investigate characteristics of addictive personality in relationship with emotional state of the individual. Considering that, the objective of this study was to analyse the relationship between personality structure and emotional state of two different groups: heroin addicts and recreate drug abusers. Methods. The total of 288 (219 males and 69 females; 191 heroin addicts and 97 recreate drug users) clients of Centre for the prevention and treatment of drug abuse in Rijeka completed Eysenck's Personality Questionnaire (EPQ R/A), Beck's Anxiety Inventory (BAI) and Beck's Depression Inventory (BDI). Their average age was 22. Results. In the group of heroin addicts, higher levels of anxiety and depression were significantly correlated with higher levels of psychoticism, neuroticism, criminality and addiction. In the group of recreate drug users, higher extraversion and social conformity were determined. Furthermore, in the first group was found even higher depression. However when the anxiety level was compared between these two groups, there was no significant difference. Conclusion. Overall, the findings implied that the used measurement instruments could serve as the useful diagnostic tools that could ensure advantageous treatment directions.

A Narrative Review of Binge Eating and Addictive Behaviors: Shared Associations with Seasonality and Personality Factors

Binge-eating disorder and seasonal affective disorder were first described as clinically relevant conditions in very close temporal proximity a few decades ago. Both disorders have a higher prevalence rate in woman than in men, are characterized by a high proneness-to-stress and manifest heightened responsiveness to high-calorie, hyper-palatable foods. In recent years, a compelling body of evidence suggests that foods high in sugar and fat have the potential to alter brain reward circuitry in a manner similar to that seen when addictive drugs like alcohol and heroin are consumed in excess. These findings have led to suggestions that some cases of compulsive overeating may be understood as an addiction to sweet, fatty, and salty foods. In this paper, it is proposed that high seasonality is a risk factor for binge eating, especially in those characterized by anxious and impulsive personality traits – associations that could only occur in an environment with a superfluity of, and easy access to, rich and tasty foods. Given the well-established links between binge eating and addiction disorders [Ref. (1–3) for reviews], it is also suggested that seasonality, together with the same high-risk psychological profile, exacerbates the likelihood of engaging in a broad range of addictive behaviors. Data from a community sample (n = 412) of adults tested these models using linear regression procedures. Results confirmed that symptoms of binge eating and other addictive behaviors were significantly inter-correlated, and that seasonality, gender, and addictive personality traits were strong statistical predictors of the variance in binge-eating scores. Seasonality and addictive personality traits also accounted for a significant proportion of the variance in the measure of addictive behaviors. Conclusions are discussed in the context of brain reward mechanisms, motivational alternations in response to chronic over-consumption, and their relevance for the treatment of excessive appetitive behaviors.

Long-Term Changes in the Personality and Psychopathological Profile of Opiate Addicts after Nucleus Accumbens Ablative Surgery Are Associated with Treatment Outcome

Objective: To investigate the long-term outcome and changes of the personality and psychopathological profile of opiate addicts after bilateral stereotactic nucleus accumbens (NAc) ablative surgery. Methods: 60 patients were followed up for 5 years and abstinent status and adverse events were evaluated. NAc lesion volumes and locations were obtained by postoperative MRI scans. The Chinese version of the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire (EPQ-RSC), the Symptom Checklist-90-Revised (SCL-90-R), the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), the Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale (Y-BOCS) and the World Health Organization’s Quality of Life Questionnaire – Brief Version (WHOQOL-BREF) were administered to the patients before and 5 years after the stereotactic surgery. Results: The total abstinence rate of all patients in their 5th postoperative year was 47.4%. The abstinent patients had a significantly larger lesion volume than the relapsed ones, but a larger lesion volume also increased the risk of adverse events. 5 years after surgery, the abstinent patients showed significant decreases on the Psychoticism (EPQ-P) and Neuroticism (EPQ-N) scores by EPQ-RSC, a significant decline on the Global Severity Index and the subscores in all 10 dimensions by SCL-90-R, significant decreases on the BDI and Y-BOCS scores, and significant improvements on the scores of all domains by WHOQOL-BREF, while for the relapsed patients, only the subscores of obsessive-compulsive by SCL-90-R and the Y-BOCS scores significantly decreased. Postoperative analysis revealed that the abstinent patients had a significantly better score than the relapsed ones by various instruments, and NAc lesion volumes and locations did not correlate with the outcome of any of these instruments. Conclusion: The bilateral ablation of NAc by stereotactic neurosurgery was a feasible method for alleviating psychological dependence on opiate drugs and preventing a relapse. Long-term follow-up suggested that surgery can improve the personality and psychopathological profile of opiate addicts with a trend towards normal levels, provided persistent abstinence can be maintained; relapse, on the other hand, may ruin this effect.

Can Your Genes “Make You Do It”?

A friend used to say “I don’t gamble because I have an addictive personality.” She felt that she was somehow predisposed to lose volitional control over her gambling. Indeed, curiosity about a putative genetic predisposition to addiction has not been restricted to a few would-be gambling addicts. It is estimated that 40–60% of the “addiction” trait is controlled by gene products (Uhl, 2004). For example, the risk of becoming an alcoholic is elevated five- to eightfold if a primary relative is an alcoholic (Merikangas et al., 1998). For twins, genetically identical pairs show more sharing of alcoholism than fraternal twin pairs (Prescott & Kendler, 1999). But what are the genes implicated in addiction? The thirst for understanding of, and potentially treatment for, addiction has pressured many to jump hastily to the conclusion that “THE” addiction gene has been identified. But it is clear that addiction, like any complex behavioral trait, is influenced by MANY genes …

What Predicts Retention on an In-Prison Drug Treatment Program?

The effectiveness of treatments for substance use disorders is strongly related to retention, since early dropout from treatment is associated with greater likelihood of relapse. The purpose of this prospective, ex post facto study is to analyze the effect of individual variables on retention in a treatment program carried out in a prison drug-free unit. The Addiction Severity Index, motivation and personality profile of fifty inmates were assessed on entry to the prison. Inmates were monitored for a year to identify length of stay. Motivation variables at intake play a vital role in the prediction of retention in a prison drug-free unit; scores on the Aggressive-Sadistic and Narcissistic scales are also strong predictors of treatment retention.

Addiction neuroethics: the promises and perils of neuroscience research on addiction

Addiction neuroethics: the promises and perils of neuroscience research on addiction

What Is the Link between Eating, Reproducing, & Addiction?

We are wired with the drive to stay alive – with a system that makes it pleasurable for us to eat, to seek shelter, and to reproduce. The problem is that addictive substances can subvert these same processes that were intended to keep us alive and to ensure species survival. This column is the first in a series that will explore the neuroscientific bases of addiction. As a basis for understanding addiction, this article focuses on the brain’s reward system, also known as the pleasure center or motivation system, which is the foundation for life-maintaining but also addictive behaviors. Subsequent articles will explore the influence of genetics, learning, risk and protective factors, stress, and specific neurotransmitters, such as glutamate.As we know, the “reward system” includes key areas or centers, connecting tracts, and several key neurotransmitters. The main areas are the ventral tegmental area (VTA) located in the mid-brain just above the hippocampus and in front of the substantia nigra; the nucleus accumbens (NAc) in the striatum just below the front end of the corpus callosum; and the prefrontal cortex, located just behind the forehead and just in front of the motor areas of the cortex. Some of the other areas involved include the locus coeruleus, the amygdala, the hippocampus, and the insula. The main nerve bundles or tracts that connect these areas are the mesolimbic, mesocortical, and mesostriatal pathways. The main neurotransmitters include dopamine, endogenous opioids, endocannabinoids, serotonin, and glutamate, although it is likely that other neurotransmitters as well as neuropeptides are also involved (Figure 1).The power of the reward system has been revealed in experiments in which experimental animals were found to vigorously continue self-stimulation when electrodes were placed in various locations within the reward-system structures (Olds & Milner, 1954). Esch and Stefano (2004) reviewed the important role of this system both in maintaining health and in addiction. More recently, brain-imaging techniques such as positron emission tomography (PET) scanning have helped us appreciate how addiction itself modifies the function of the brain’s reward system. In research by Volkow and colleagues (2009, 2011), cocaine use in nonaddicted persons resulted in a significant increase in dopamine release in the vicinity of the nucleus accumbens. Both the speed of drug administration, which is a function of the route of administration, and the amount of dopamine subsequently released, were directly related to the “high” experienced by the drug recipient. In cocaine-addicted individuals, however, this response was altered so that the dopamine released in response to cocaine intake was markedly diminished. Instead, there was a marked increase in dopamine in response to conditioning cues – such as seeing a video of another person buying or smoking cocaine. When the stimulus for dopamine release occurred in response to these conditioned cues, the addicted person experienced “craving” for the drug. There was a direct relationship between addiction severity and dopamine release during the viewing of these videos (Volkow et al., 2011).Another recent finding related to addiction is the modulating influence of a variety of stress-related neuropeptides, particularly a corticotropin-releasing factor that has been shown to increase dopamine release in the nucleus accumbens during the development of addictive behaviors (Sinha, 2008). Neuropeptides are brain signaling molecules of fewer than 40 amino acids that can modulate neuronal function in ways that are similar, but not identical, to the actions of neurotransmitters (Burbach, 2011; Logrip et al., 2011). The use of addictive drugs and the associated stress are known to activate the hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal (HPA) axis, an action that probably has a role in addiction but may have an even greater effect during drug abstinence in addicted persons. Research has shown that the increases in corticotropin-releasing factor that occur during withdrawal are related to the signs and symptoms associated with withdrawal, particularly the anxiety that may contribute to relapse (Shalev et al., 2009; Logrip et al., 2011).Given that we all have brain reward systems, why is it that some of us when exposed to potentially addictive substances develop addictions and others do not? The next column in this series will discuss the relationship between genetics and addiction. Exploring this relationship contributes another piece to understanding the complex puzzle of addiction.This project was funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse, National Institutes of Health, Award Number R25DA028796. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health.

Personality traits relating to childhood experiences may create addictive personality

Personality traits relating to childhood experiences may create addictive personality

청소년 중독행동의 다차원적 척도 개발

본 연구는 청소년이 접근할 수 있는 중독행동을 포괄적으로 측정할 수 있는 다차원적 중독행동 측정도구를 개발하고 신뢰도와 타당도를 검정함으로써, 청소년 중독행동에 대한 포괄적인 사정과 다차원적 접근을 위한 기초자료를 제시하고자 시행되었다. 본 연구는 개념적 기틀형성, 초기문항 작성, 내용타당도 검정, 2차 문항 작성 및 최종문항 확정의 과정으로 진행되었다. 대상자는 636명의 중고등학생인 청소년이었고, 자료는 자가보고 질문지로 수집되었다. 자료분석은 SPSS 19.0 프로그램을 이용하였다. 청소년의 중독행동은 총 70문항이 최종문항으로 선정되었으며, 게임 중독행동, 쇼핑 중독행동, 휴대폰 중독행동, 니코틴 중독행동, 텔레비전 중독행동, 도박 중독행동, 인터넷 중독행동, 알코올 중독행동의 8개의 하부요인이 분류되었고, 이에 대한 설명변량은 56.6%이었다. 청소년 중독행동은 중독성과 자기통제와 유의한 순상관이 있었으며, 신뢰도인 Cronbach's alpha가 .94이었다. 또한 중동행동의 선별기준이 일반군, 중독행동 위험군, 중독행동군으로 분류되었다. 청소년의 중독행동을 정확하게 파악하여 효과적인 교육 및 지도를 위한 방안을 마련하고, 청소년의 중독을 조기에 발견하여 적절한 관리를 시작하게 함으로써 청소년의 신체적 정신적 건강증진을 위한 교육과 연구 및 실무에 기여할 것이다. Purpose: This study was done to develop the multidimensional scale of addictive behavior for adolescents. Methods: The process involved construction of a conceptual framework, initial items, verification of content validity, selection of secondary items, and extraction of final items. The participants were 636 adolescents in six middle schools and four high schools. Results: Seventy items were selected for the final scale, and categorized 8 factors explaining 56.5% of total variance. The factors were labeled as game addictive behavior, shopping addictive behavior, mobile phone addictive behavior, nicotine addictive behavior, television addictive behavior, gambling addictive behavior, alcohol addictive behavior, and internet addictive behavior. The scores for the scale were significantly correlated with addictive personality and self-control. Cronbach's alpha coefficient for the 70 items was .94. Scale scores identified adolescents as addictive behavior group, risk group, and average group. Conclusion: The above findings indicate that the multidimensional scale of addictive behavior for adolescents has good validity and reliability when used with adolescents. More importantly, it provides the first step toward developing a addiction prevention program. Additionally the scales provide an education or guideline, and proper physical and mental health management of youth in research and practice for the promotion of education.

Focusing on abuse, not use: A proposed new direction for US drug policy

How professionals and societies deal with drugs and drug consumption is premised on how abuse is defined. The “War on Drugs” approach promotes the belief that “any use is abuse” where the currently illicit drugs are concerned. Regrettably, any distinction between use and abuse has been notably absent from most public policy decisions on drug issues. Even a cursory review of both supply and demand reduction policies of the past century reveals a startling lack of awareness of this distinction. The failure of differentiation undermines prevention, treatment, and the criminal justice system. Treatment, thus, tends to show a bias toward ineffective models such as “boot camps” and “tough love”. It has contributed to controversy over maintenance treatments, such as methadone, buprenorphine, and heroin, which have proven to be highly effective for some addicted persons. It leads to treatment options for the addictions being far more limited and constrained than is typical in other areas of health care. Admittedly, studying non-problematic drug use has been a challenge, but clearly the use of illegal drugs is often not harmful, any more than is moderate alcohol use. Addiction is a fatal disease for some and that disease should be the focus of our policies.

Empowering Your Sober Self: The LifeRing Approach to Addiction Recovery

Addicted persons are torn between the urge to consume addictive substances and the drive to break with the substances and get free of them. The LifeRing approach anchors itself in the addicted person's drive to get free of the substances and works to empower that urge and to enthrone it permanently in the addicted person's character. Positive peer support focusing on small decisions made in everyday life is the primary psychodynamic engine for recovery in the LifeRing context. Working through nine principal domains, each participant constructs a personal recovery program founded on complete abstinence from all drugs of addiction.

Views: Active Drug Users as Social Change Agents A Straw for the Pilgrim: Beyond Specialization

A straw for the pilgrim. During his last conferences and private talks, the sociologist and philosopher Ivan Illich, whose research had long beenmarkedwith harsh criticism of the organizational systems of contemporary society, explained his ideas about how the early Christian organizations had the effect of removing the complex functions of individuals, which since the beginnings were considered as centered in serving your neighbor and loving your God with your whole person. According to this view, at the very beginning of Christianity (I. Illich, personal communication, October 2, 2002), keeping a mattress and a piece of bread ready in one’s own house to welcome any pilgrim who asked for hospitality was the concrete manifestation of an attitude to assist our neighbors. Since then, with the rise of charitable hospices that specialized in offering hospitality, the practice of such humane attitude by individuals has withered. Paradoxically, this changing attitude led the organizations to weaken their bond with the pilgrims, while devoting part of their attention and energy to their own economic self-maintenance. In other words, loving and helping others are at their fullest as free attitudes and human activities, not reduced to or diminished by the economic considerations typical of organizations. Something like this same process can also occur in the treatment of persons addicted to alcohol or of drug users when the freely-given spontaneous support exchanged among addicted persons in their therapeutic and support networks becomes reduced by becoming an organizational function, organized and controlled by an external institution, such as the official Health System. Issues THAT need to be considered. The need to consider ways to enable an active drug user with the necessary resources-–knowledge, skills, abilities, experience—and/or a sufficient degree of educability to become a social change agent have become more relevant given the relatively recent emergence of consumers forming part of social support networks. More specifically,

Does Alexithymia Explain Variation in Cue‐Elicited Craving Reported by Methamphetamine‐Dependent Individuals?

Drug craving is an important motivational phenomenon among addicted individuals, and successful management of craving is essential to both the initiation and maintenance of abstinence. Although craving in response to drug cues is common in drug-dependent individuals, it is not universal. At the present time, it is not known why approximately 20-30% of all addicted persons fail to report appreciable craving in laboratory-based cue reactivity studies. This study examined the possibility that alexithymia, a personality attribute characterized by a difficulty identifying and describing emotions, may contribute to the impoverished cue-elicited craving experienced by some addicts. Specifically, we tested the hypothesis that alexithymia, as measured by the Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS), would be inversely related to the magnitude of cue-elicited craving obtained in a cue reactivity protocol. Forty methamphetamine-dependent individuals completed the TAS and provided craving ratings for methamphetamine after presentation of methamphetamine-associated cues. Thirteen participants (32%) reported no methamphetamine cue-elicited craving. Contrary to expectation, TAS factor 1 (a measure of difficulty identifying feelings) scores were positively associated with cue-elicited craving. Thus, the results suggest that increasing difficulty-identifying feelings may be associated with higher cue-elicited craving. Clinical implications for this finding are discussed.

Addictive Personality and Cell Phone Usage

Since the invention of the World Wide Web, game boxes, computers, cell phones, numeric pagers and blackberry, loads of information gathering, sharing and high-tech communication have evolved into new social structures known as (ICT) information and communication technology. This technology has been so outstanding that over 3.3 billion people use cell phone and subscribe to (SN) social networks such as MySpace, Twitter, and FaceBook rather than “face-to-face” (Massimini & Peterson, 2009) interaction as a source of control. Research of online “social networks” (Massimini & Peterson, 2009) show a correlation between excessive ICT use and unhealthy lifestyles with addictive personality disorder from “media overload.”

The Study on Predictors of Addictive Personality in Adolescents

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to identify the predictors of addictive personality in adolescents. Methods: The participants were 521 adolescents. Data were collected through self-report questionnaires, which were constructed to include personal-familial variables and psychosocial variables. Data were analyzed with the PASW 18.0 programs. Results: The significant predictors of addictive personality in adolescents were school type, parental violent behavior, gender, self-control, impulsivity, and sensation seeking behavior. These personalfamilial variables and psychological variables explained 64.1% of the variance in addictive personality. Conclusion: These results suggest that addictive personality in adolescents can be changed positively by reducing impulsivity and sensation seeking behavior and increasing self-control.

Family functioning of addicted and non-addicted individuals: a comparative study.

BackgroundFamily functioning is considered to have a significant impact on the beginnings and maintenance of substance use.ObjectivesThe main purpose of this study was to examine and compare the dimensions of family functioning among addicted and non-addicted individuals.Patients and MethodsIn this cross-sectional study, the study sample consisted of 228 individuals, including 118 addicted and 110 non-addicted subjects. The addicted persons were recruited from patients who attended the Baharan Psychiatric Outpatient Clinic for treatment of substance dependence disorders and 110 non-addicted (normal) individuals who were selected from normal populations (students, staff of the hospital and people accompanying patients without a history of substance use) through convenience sampling. The Family Assessment Device (FAD) was used to assess six dimensions of family functioning. The data were analyzed using descriptive indexes (ie, frequency, mean and standard deviation) and t test.ResultsThe results showed significant differences in the mean scores of family functioning dimensions including; problem solving, communication, roles, affective responsiveness, affective involvement, behavioral control and overall family performance (P < 0.01).ConclusionsResults of this study confirmed the lower functioning levels of substance dependent clients’ families on all subscales of the FAD, than in families of non-addicted individuals. It is therefore concluded, that providing interventional strategies for the prevention and treatment of substance use that focus on and involve families in the delivery of health care services is a necessity.

Development of a Gambling Addictive Behavior Scale for Adolescents in Korea

This study was conducted to develop a gambling addictive behavior scale for adolescents. The process involved construction of a conceptual framework, initial item search, verification of content validity, selection of secondary items, and extraction of final items. The participants were 299 adolescents from two middle schools and four high schools. Item analysis, factor analysis, criterion validity, internal consistency, and ROC curve were used to analyze the data. For the final scale, 25 items were selected, and categorized into 4 factors which accounted for 54.9% of the total variance. The factors were labeled as loss of control, life dysfunction from gambling addiction, gambling experience, and social dysfunction from problem gambling. The scores for the scale were significantly correlated with addictive personality, irrational gambling belief, and adolescent's gambling addictive behavior. Cronbach's alpha coefficient for the 25 items was .94. Scale scores identified adolescents as being in a problem gambling group, a non-problem gambling group, and a non-gambling group by the ROC curve. The above findings indicate that the gambling addictive behavior scale has good validity and reliability and can be used with adolescents in Korea.

P-681 - How different are the needs for care between forensic and civil psychiatric services users?

Mentally disordered prisoners (MDPs) have an increased vulnerability to victimization and suicide. In the last years, there is a trend to assign their treatment to the civil psychiatric services. To compare forensic with civil psychiatric services users (FPSUs vs CPSUs) regarding clinical and care needs. A cross-sectional study of FPSUs and CPSUs from 2 prisons, 1 prison-hospital and 1 general hospital, all located in the Lisbon region, was conducted. The forensic sample was constituted by all users during one year period (2009–2010), and the civil sample was matched for age and gender. The data was collected from users and staff interviews. The instruments included a specific questionnaire, MINI, BPRS and CANFOR. The samples comprised 114 prisoners and 121 civil patients. FPSUs had better family inclusion and employment status but poorer academic achievement than CPSUs. The FPSUs presented significantly higher prevalence for major depression, suicide risk, anxiety disorders, drugs addiction and anti-social personality disorder than CPSUs. Comparatively, FPSUs had more prescriptions for hypnotics and CPSU had more prescriptions for antidepressants and anxiolytics. The FPSUs rated significantly more needs and unmet needs than CPSUs. However, the staff rated no differences between the two groups. The FPSUs presented a higher prevalence of non-psychotic pathology than CPSUs. However, it seems that medication is insufficient regarding the clinical severity. The unmet needs of FPSUs were significantly higher than CPSUs, and cover multiple domains. The displacement of MDPs to civil psychiatric facilities should consider their specificities and needs.

Transsexualism, 1 Personality Disorders, and Spinal Cord Injury

The case of a 62-year-old transsexual female admitted to the trauma service after a car accident is presented. The patient developed new onset of paralysis and pain three days after admission, just as the hospital was preparing to discharge her. Physicians on the trauma, neurology, physical therapy, and psychiatry services initially diagnosed a conversion disorder and nearly missed a spinal cord injury. The literature on transgenderism, conversion disorder, and personality disorders is reviewed. Discussion raises issues of countertransference related to transgender patients as well as patients with histories of addiction and histrionic personality traits.