Multidimensional measures of impulsivity in obsessive-compulsive disorder: cannot wait and stop.
OBJECTIVE
Although the relationship between obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) and impulsivity has long been debated, impulsivity has not been systematically examined in clinical samples of OCD. Meanwhile, recent findings suggest that impulsivity is multi-dimensional construct that can be examined through several constructs. Therefore, this study is aimed to evaluate multiple facets of impulsivity in OCD.


METHODS
The recruitment includes 80 OCD and 76 healthy control participants. Participants completed a test battery comprising three behavioral tasks of stop signal task (SST), delay discounting task (DDT) and balloon analog risk test (BART), and one self-report measure of the Barratt Impulsiveness scale (BIS-11).


RESULTS
OCD subjects showed significantly lower stop signal reaction time of SST reflecting higher action impulsivity and higher delay discounting parameter of DDT suggesting increased choice impulsivity but significantly lower adjusted mean pump of BART implying lower risk taking propensity of BART than healthy control.


CONCLUSIONS
Increased Action and choice impulsivity, and decreased risk taking propensities were found in OCD. These findings seem to be consistent with clinical characteristics of OCD such as greater preference for or avoid risky situations (avoidance), inability to wait tension relief may provoke safety behaviors (compulsion) and inability to stop already started behaviors (repetition).
Department of Psychiatry and Institute of Behavioral Science in Medicine, Yonsei University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea.
Sung Yun
SY
Sohn
Department of Psychiatry and Institute of Behavioral Science in Medicine, Yonsei University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea.
Jee In
JI
Kang
Department of Psychiatry and Institute of Behavioral Science in Medicine, Yonsei University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea.
Kee
K
Namkoong
Department of Psychiatry and Institute of Behavioral Science in Medicine, Yonsei University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea.
Se Joo
SJ
Kim
D000328:Adult; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007175:Impulsive Behavior; D008297:Male; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests; D009771:Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder / Q000175:diagnosis*; D055815:Young Adult