Impulsivity and Partner Violence in Male Alcoholics

University Of Mississippi Med Ctr, Jackson MS

Investigators

Linked publications & trials

Abstract

[unreadable] DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Although alcohol use disorders (ADD) in men are well established as important risk factors for intimate partner violence (IPV), there is clear evidence that not all men with ADD engage in IPV. Researchers have begun to identify characteristics that may distinguish partner-violent and non partner-violent ADD men, but the mechanisms through which risk for IPV is heightened in AUD samples remains largely unknown. In the proposed exploratory/ developmental study (R21), we will examine the role of underlying deficits in impulsecontrol and related self-regulatory processes as one mechanism through which AUD and IPV may be linked. To achieve this research goal, we will conduct assessments on 124 treatment-seeking alcohol dependent men. The two-session assessment will comprise standard interview and diagnostic measures as well as a battery of self-report and behavioral measures that tap impulsivity and some related self-regulatory processes. The behavioral measures will consist of standard neuropsychological tests and laboratory research tasks. Female partners of the male study participants will be asked to provide collateral reports of IPV. This exploratory/developmental study will provide preliminary data on the utility of a self-regulation model to account for IPV in alcohol treatment populations. Findings from the proposed study will allow us to estimate effect sizes associated with a variety of putative measures of self-regulatory processes. These preliminary data and effect sizes will be used to inform the development of a larger study. In addition, evidence that impulsivity and related self-regulatory processes underlie IPV in alcohol dependent men will inform treatments for partner-violent AUD men currently under development by our research team. [unreadable] [unreadable] [unreadable]