Relationship Between Impulsivity, Sensation-Seeking, and Drug Use in Aggressors and Victims of Violence

María Del Mar Molero Jurado; María Del Carmen Pérez-Fuentes; María Del Mar Simón Márquez; Ana Belén Barragán Martín; Maria Sisto; José Jesús Gázquez Linares

doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2020.600055

Relationship Between Impulsivity, Sensation-Seeking, and Drug Use in Aggressors and Victims of Violence

Front Psychol. 2020 Oct 30:11:600055. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2020.600055. eCollection 2020.

Authors

María Del Mar Molero Jurado¹, María Del Carmen Pérez-Fuentes^{1

2}, María Del Mar Simón Márquez¹, Ana Belén Barragán Martín¹, Maria Sisto¹, José Jesús Gázquez Linares³

Affiliations

¹ Department of Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, University of Almería, Almería, Spain.
² Department of Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, Universidad Politécnica y Artística del Paraguay, Asunción, Paraguay.
³ Department of Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, Universidad Autónoma de Chile, Santiago, Chile.

Abstract

Introduction: The impulsivity, sensation-seeking, and drug use variables, in addition to being closely related, have repercussions on peer conflict and violence in schools. Objective: The purpose of this study was to analyze the relationship between impulsivity, sensation-seeking, and drug use in aggressors and victims of violence. Methods: The study design was cross-sectional and observational. The study sample was made up of 822 students aged 13-18 who had completed an ad hoc questionnaire, the State Impulsivity Scale and the Sensation-Seeking Scale. Results: The results showed that the aggressors had high levels of gratification, automatism, attentional factor, disinhibition, and susceptibility to boredom and used alcohol and/or tobacco. Conclusion: The design of an effective education intervention for reducing risk behaviors related to violence must focus on these variables.

Keywords: adolescent; drug; impulsivity; peer conflict; sensation-seeking.