title: Sex differences in behavioral impulsivity in at-risk and non-risk drinkers.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Mounting evidence from both animal and human studies suggests that females are more vulnerable to drug and alcohol abuse than males. Some of this increased risk may be related to behavioral traits, such as impulsivity. Here, we examined sex differences in two forms of behavioral impulsivity (inhibitory control and impulsive choice) in young men and women, in relation to their level of alcohol consumption and alcohol-related problems (at-risk or non-risk).
  
  
  METHODS
  Participants performed a go/no-go task to assess inhibitory control and a measure of delay discounting to assess impulsive choice.
  
  
  RESULTS
  On the measure of inhibitory control, at-risk women committed significantly more inhibitory errors than at-risk men, indicating poorer behavioral control among the women. By contrast, no sex differences were observed between at-risk men and women in delay discounting, or between the male and female non-risk drinkers on any measure.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Heavy drinking women displayed poorer inhibitory control than heavy drinking men. It remains to be determined whether the sex differences in inhibitory control are the result of drinking, or whether they pre-dated the problematic drinking in these individuals.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neuroscience, University of Chicago , Chicago, IL , USA.
authors.forename: Jessica
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Weafer
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neuroscience, University of Chicago , Chicago, IL , USA.
authors.forename: Jessica
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: De Arcangelis
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neuroscience, University of Chicago , Chicago, IL , USA.
authors.forename: Harriet
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: de Wit
keywords: AUDIT; alcohol; behavioral impulsivity; delay discounting; go/no-go; impulsive choice; inhibitory control