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Dispositional traits as risk in problem drinking
D Chalmers1, N L Olenick, W Stein
1University of California, Irvine.
Journal of Substance Abuse
|January 1, 1993
Summary
The Problem Drinker Trait List (PDTL) effectively identifies personality traits linked to drinking problems, performing comparably to or better than the MacAndrew Alcoholism Scale (MAC). This trait-dispositional approach offers valuable insights into problematic alcohol use.
Area of Science:
- Psychology
- Addiction Research
- Personality Science
Background:
- Personality traits are increasingly recognized as significant factors in the development and maintenance of alcohol use disorders.
- Traditional personality assessments, such as the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI), have been used to understand problematic drinking.
- A trait-dispositional paradigm offers an alternative framework for examining personality and its relation to drinking problems.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the relationship between personality dispositions and drinking problems using a trait-dispositional framework.
- To compare the predictive efficacy of the Problem Drinker Trait List (PDTL) with the MacAndrew Alcoholism Scale (MAC).
- To analyze the psychometric properties of the PDTL and identify key predictive trait clusters for men and women.
Main Methods:
- A total of 241 subjects (192 men, 49 women) attending a Driving While Intoxicated (DWI) first-offender program were assessed.
- Data collected included the Michigan Alcoholism Screening Test (MAST), Blood Alcohol Concentration (BAC) at arrest, the MacAndrew Alcoholism Scale (MAC), and the Problem Drinker Trait List (PDTL).
- Psychometric properties of the PDTL were analyzed and compared to the MAC, with a focus on predicting drinking problems across varying severity levels.
Main Results:
- The PDTL demonstrated comparable or superior performance to the MAC in predicting drinking problems, especially for individuals with lower arrest BAC.
- Comparative analysis revealed minimal overlap between the item domains of the MAC and PDTL's best predictors.
- Predictive trait clusters for men included Emotionality/Depressiveness, Impulsivity, and Low Self-Confidence; for women, they included Depressiveness, Overcontrol, and Alienation.
Conclusions:
- The trait-dispositional paradigm, operationalized by the PDTL, is a valuable tool for understanding and predicting drinking problems.
- The PDTL shows strong predictive validity, particularly in identifying individuals with less severe drinking problems based on BAC.
- Distinct personality trait clusters are associated with problematic drinking in men and women, highlighting the need for gender-specific considerations in assessment and intervention.