title: Violent behavior and driving under the influence of alcohol: prevalence and association with impulsivity among individuals in treatment for alcohol dependence in Poland.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Driving while intoxicated or under the influence (DUI; for the purposes of this paper, we use the following terms synonymously: driving under the influence, driving while intoxicated, and drunk driving) and engaging in interpersonal violence are two injury-related problems of high public health importance that have both been linked to alcohol consumption. This study sought to estimate the prevalence of DUI and violence in a sample of individuals in treatment for alcohol dependence in Poland. Patient characteristics associated with DUI and violence involvement, with a particular focus on impulsivity, were examined.
  
  
  METHODS
  Three hundred and sixty-four patients consecutively admitted to four alcohol treatment programs in Warsaw, Poland participated in this study. Questions concerning history of interpersonal violence as well as those about DUI were derived from the Michigan Alcoholism Screening Test. Impulsivity level was measured using the Barratt Impulsiveness Scale 11, the Revised NEO Personality Inventory, and the stop-signal task.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Among all participants in the study, 148 (40.1%) had been arrested in the past for DUI, and 196 (55%) reported involvement in a fight under the influence of alcohol (FUI). The DUI group had a significantly earlier onset of alcohol problems, a longer period of heavy alcohol use, and fewer women in comparison to participants without a DUI history. FUI patients were significantly younger, with a younger average age of onset of drinking problems, longer period of heavy drinking, and lower percentage of women than the non-FUI group.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Both of the self-reported measures of impulsivity indicated a higher level of impulsivity among participants from the FUI group than those from the non-FUI group.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, Medical University of Warsaw, Warsaw, Poland.
authors.forename: Anna
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Klimkiewicz
authors.forename: Andrzej
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Jakubczyk
authors.forename: Anna
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Wnorowska
authors.forename: Jakub
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Klimkiewicz
authors.forename: Amy
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Bohnert
authors.forename: Mark A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Ilgen
authors.forename: Kirk J
authors.initials: KJ
authors.lastname: Brower
authors.forename: Marcin
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Wojnar
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D017668:Age of Onset; D000428:Alcohol Drinking / Q000009:adverse effects* / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology*; D000435:Alcoholic Intoxication / Q000150:complications / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology; D000437:Alcoholism / Q000150:complications / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology* / Q000628:therapy*; D001334:Automobile Driving / Q000523:psychology* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007175:Impulsive Behavior / Q000187:drug effects*; D008297:Male; D010555:Personality Inventory; D011044:Poland / Q000453:epidemiology; D015995:Prevalence; D012737:Sex Factors; D014754:Violence / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*