The effects of substance misuse on the personality traits of impulsivity and risky sexual decision-making

Abstract

The present study examined the effects of substance misuse on the personality traits of impulsivity and risky sexual decision-making. One hundred and one participants (101) were recruited via opportunist sampling, which comprise of 49 female, 52 male, 5 homosexual, 2 bisexual and 92 heterosexual with the mean age of 23. Among these participants, 88.1% were white, 4 % African and 3 % oriental. A standardized self-reported anonymous questionnaire was administered to generate data from the representative sample of the participants. Results indicate that impulsiveness and sexual sensation seeking were moderately correlated with high scores on the substance misuse and risky sexual decision-making. Implications of these findings were discussed for targeted preventive health campaign on high-risk behaviour associated with substance misuse and unprotected sex. Several limitations of the study also suggest additional research.

African Journal for the Psychological Study of Social Issues Vol. 9(1) 2006: 3-13