Risk for alcoholism, antisocial behavior, and response perseveration.
Numerous studies have demonstrated the existence of an association between alcoholism and antisocial personality (ASP). The present study tested two hypotheses: First, that nonalcoholic men with a multigenerational familial history (MGH) of alcoholism would play more cards on a card task that has been shown previously to differentiate antisocial populations from normals and, second, that MGH subjects would display more evidence of ASP on two personality questionnaires: The Self-Report Psychopathy scale and the Socialization scale of the California Psychological Inventory. A total of 28 subjects (14 MGH and 14 family history negative for alcoholism [FH-]) were employed in this study. MGH subjects played significantly more cards during the card task than did FH- subjects. However, the two groups did not differ on the ASP questionnaires. The possibility that a subtle frontal-lobe deficit, rather than ASP per se, underlies the poorer performance of the MGH males is discussed.
Giancola
P R
PR
McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
Peterson
J B
JB
Pihl
R O
RO
D000328:Adult; D000437:Alcoholism / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000235:genetics* / Q000523:psychology; D000987:Antisocial Personality Disorder / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000235:genetics* / Q000523:psychology; D001364:Awareness; D016241:Child of Impaired Parents / Q000523:psychology; D005715:Gambling / Q000523:psychology*; D006801:Humans; D007266:Inhibition, Psychological; D008297:Male; D010555:Personality Inventory; D011337:Probability Learning; D012309:Risk-Taking