Impulsivity, Sensation Seeking, and Risk-Taking Behaviors among HIV-Positive and HIV-Negative Heroin Dependent Persons

Objective.

The aim of this study was to compare impulsivity and risky decision making among HIV-positive and negative heroin dependent persons.

Methods.

We compared different dimensions of impulsivity and risky decision making in two groups of 60 HIV-positive and 60 HIV-negative male heroin dependent persons. Each group was comprised of equal numbers of current (treatment seeker) and former (abstinent) heroin addicts. Data collection tools included Balloon Analogue Risk Task (BART), Iowa Gambling Task (IGT), Barratt Impulsiveness Scale (BIS), and Zuckerman Sensation Seeking Scale (SSS).

Results.

In SSS, comprised of four subscales including thrill and adventure seeking (TAS), experience seeking (ES), disinhibition (DIS), and boredom susceptibility (BS), there was a borderline difference in DIS (P = 0.08) as HIV-positive group scored higher than HIV-negative group. Also, ES and total score were significantly higher among HIV-positive patients. In BART, HIV-positive subjects scored higher in risk taking than HIV-negative subjects as reflected in higher Average Number of puffs in Successful Balloons (ANSB). In BIS, HIV-positive group scored significantly higher in cognitive impulsivity (CI) (P = 0.03) and nonplanning impulsivity (NPI) (P = 0.05) in comparison to HIV-negative group. Also, current heroin addicts scored significantly higher in NPI compared to former addict HIV-negative participants (P = 0.015). IGT did not show any significant difference between groups.

Conclusion.

Higher levels of impulsivity and risk taking behaviors among HIV-positive heroin addicts will increase serious concerns regarding HIV transmission from this group to other opiate dependents and healthy people.

Comparison of subscale scores in each test between HIV-positive group and HIV-negative group.

Item∗	HIV-positive group	HIV-negative group	P value♦
Zuckerman Sensation Seeking Scale (SSS)
Thrill and adventure seeking	6.70 ± 2.80	6.33 ± 2.55	0.45
Experience seeking	4.28 ± 1.90	3.30 ± 2.03	0.007
Disinhibition	3.52 ± 1.65	2.95 ± 1.89	0.083
Boredom susceptibility	2.70 ± 1.65	2.48 ± 1.44	0.44
SSS total score	17.20 ± 5.75	15.07 ± 5.13	0.03
Balloon Analogue Risk Task (BART)
Average Number of puffs in Successful Balloons	34.58 ± 17.11	25.15 ± 13.35	0.002
Number of Successful Balloons	17.52 ± 4.02	22.63 ± 4.00	<0.001
Average Number of puffs in Each Balloon	30.40 ± 12.40	23.64 ± 11.58	0.004
Barratt Impulsiveness Scale (BIS)
Nonplanning impulsivity	28.38 ± 4.10	26.75 ± 4.99	0.053
Motor impulsivity	24.43 ± 5.04	24.57 ± 6.51	0.9
Cognitive impulsivity	19.47 ± 4.27	17.67 ± 4.94	0.035
BIS total score	72.25 ± 10.67	69.08 ± 14.02	0.16
Iowa Gambling Task (IGT)
Total duration of IGT (seconds)	286.54 ± 168.38	314.54 ± 144.77	0.38
Net amount of win (win − loss)	−12667.50  ±  −11223.32	−14242.93 ± 14446.33	0.55
IGT total score [(C + D)−(A + B)]	−2.56 ± 21.54	−5.65 ± 29.38	0.55

∗Data are represented as mean ± SD.

♦Independent sample t-test.

Full article at:   http://goo.gl/SKfpj0

By:  Koosha Paydary, ^{1 , 2 , 3} Somayeh Mahin Torabi, ² SeyedAhmad SeyedAlinaghi, ¹ Mehri Noori, ² Alireza Noroozi, ^{4 , 5}Sara Ameri, ^{1 , 2 , 3} and Hamed Ekhtiari ^{2 , 6 , *}

¹Iranian Research Center for HIV/AIDS (IRCHA), Iranian Institute for Reduction of High-Risk Behaviors, Tehran University of Medical Sciences (TUMS), Tehran, Iran

²Neurocognitive Laboratory, Iranian National Center for Addiction Studies (INCAS), Tehran University of Medical Sciences (TUMS), Tehran, Iran

³Students' Scientific Research Center (SSRC), Tehran University of Medical Sciences (TUMS), Tehran, Iran

⁴School of Advanced Technologies in Medicine (SATiM), Tehran University of Medical Sciences (TUMS), Tehran, Iran

⁵Head of Substance Abuse Prevention and Treatment Office (SAPTO), Mental Health, Social Health and Addiction Department (MeHSHAD), Ministry of Health and Medical Education (MoHME), Tehran, Iran

⁶Translational Neuroscience Program, Institute for Cognitive Science Studies (ICSS), Tehran University of Medical Sciences (TUMS), Tehran, Iran

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