Iowa Gambling Task performance and emotional distress interact to predict risky sexual behavior in individuals with dual substance and HIV diagnoses.
HIV+ substance-dependent individuals (SDIs) show emotional distress and executive impairment, but in isolation these poorly predict sexual risk. We hypothesized that an executive measure sensitive to emotional aspects of judgment (Iowa Gambling Task; IGT) would identify HIV+ SDIs whose sexual risks were influenced by emotional distress. We assessed emotional distress and performance on several executive tasks in 190 HIV+ SDIs. IGT performance interacted significantly with emotional distress, such that only in better performers were distress and risk related. Our results are interpreted using the somatic marker hypothesis and indicate that the IGT identifies HIV+ SDIs for whom psychological distress influences HIV risk.
Wardle
Margaret C
MC
Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neuroscience, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL 60637, USA. mwardle@uchicago.edu
Gonzalez
Raul
R
Bechara
Antoine
A
Martin-Thormeyer
Eileen M
EM
D000328:Adult; D000342:Affective Symptoms / Q000150:complications / Q000523:psychology*; D001007:Anxiety / Q000523:psychology; D003627:Data Interpretation, Statistical; D003863:Depression / Q000523:psychology; D039721:Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; D005260:Female; D005715:Gambling / Q000523:psychology*; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000150:complications / Q000523:psychology*; D006679:HIV Seropositivity / Q000523:psychology; D006801:Humans; D007361:Intelligence Tests; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests; D010551:Personality / Q000502:physiology; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D011597:Psychomotor Performance / Q000502:physiology; D011930:Reaction Time / Q000502:physiology; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D013313:Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic / Q000523:psychology; D057190:Stroop Test; D019966:Substance-Related Disorders / Q000150:complications / Q000523:psychology*; D047568:Unsafe Sex / Q000523:psychology*