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Article Excerpt
Using H. J. Eysenck's (1957,1967) theory of temperament, this study examined the relationship between drug preference, drug use, and personality among incarcerated inmates. Analysis indicated a general preference for marijuana and alcohol over 8 other commonly used drugs across different personality types. Theoretical and clinical implications are offered.
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Hans J. Eysenck (1957), a pioneer of alcohol and other drug (AOD) research, postulated that temperament can be modified by AOD use and serves as a predictor of drug preference. His early research has stimulated generations of studies on personality and vulnerability to drug use. Whereas drug preference may or may not be implied by the use of particular drugs (as actual drug use may be a function of cost, availability, and peer influence), the majority of research (Bobes et al., 2002; LoCastro, Spiro, Monnelly, & Ciraulo, 2000; Lujic, Reuter, & Netter, 2005; Saiz et al., 2003; Spotts & Shontz, 1984, 1986; Trull, Waudby, & Sher, 2004) has focused more on drug use (those drugs an individual actually uses) than on drug preference (those drugs an individual prefers to use) and on how this use correlates with personality variables. An early study by Harford (1978) found evidence that preference and use were relatively independent inasmuch as only "a scant majority of the drug abusers ... used the type of drug that they most preferred" (p. 910). However, very few studies (e.g., Goldman, 1993; O'Connor, Berry, Morrison, & Brown, 1995) have directly studied drug preference in relation to personality.
Thus, extant research that has sought to validate those personality theories that predict drug preference (Eysenck, 1957, 1967; Zuckerman, 1979, 1983; Zuckerman, Eysenck, & Eysenck, 1978; Zuckerman & Kuhlman, 2000) has tested the relationship between drug use and personality, rather than the relationship between drug preference and personality. If it can be demonstrated that personality characteristics drive people to seek particular drugs to experience specific effects (e.g., altered states of consciousness, moods, and/or behaviors), then it is important to study drug preference. Testing Eysenck's (1957, 1967) theory has also been difficult because many studies have used participants who tended to use multiple drugs (Bobes et al., 2002; Spotts & Shontz, 1986). For example, of the more than 1,200 individuals who used drugs and/or alcohol studied by Pekala, Ainslie, et al. (2000), less than 19% used a single substance (alcohol). The remainder reported using multiple drugs. Hence, examining drug preference directly may be more practically relevant because it avoids the cumbersome task of finding individuals who use only one drug.
The current study was designed to assess how (a) drug preference relates to selected personality characteristics, (b) drug use relates to selected personality characteristics, and (c) how drug use relates to drug preference. Four personality characteristics were selected for the purposes of this study: extraversion, neuroticism, dissociativity, and fantasy proneness. Extraversion and neuroticism were chosen not only for their theoretical relevance in relation to drug use but also because they have been studied extensively by many investigators (reviewed later in this article). Although dissociativity, defined as the tendency to disengage from self or environment, and fantasy proneness (Cardena, 1997), defined as proclivity for vivid imagination and sensory experiences, have not attracted similar attention from researchers as have extraversion and neuroticism, they have been found to be clinically relevant in studies on suggestibility (Barber, 2000; Pekala, Kumar, & Marcano, 1995) and are often implicated in polydrug use (Pekala, Kumar, et al., 2000). As such, these variables were also included for exploratory purposes.
To better understand the variables used in the current study, the following sections provide a review of Eysenck's (1957, 1967) model of personality as it pertains to drug preference, as well as a review of research that bears on testing predictions derived from the model. In light of a dearth of studies on drug preference and personality, recent as well as older studies were reviewed on both the relationships of drug preference and drug use with personality. This section is followed by a review of research on dissociation and fantasy proneness.
Extraversion-Introversion and Neuroticism: Theoretical Basis for Drug Use and Drug Preference
Eysenck's (1957, 1967) theory provides an intriguing approach for examining the relationship between his major personality constructs of extraversion-introversion and neuroticism and drug choice. Eysenck (1957, 1967) postulated that central nervous system stimulants such as amphetamines, caffeine, and cocaine decrease cortical inhibition and increase excitation, pushing the user toward introversion. In contrast, depressant drugs such as alcohol, barbiturates, and opiates decrease cortical excitation and increase inhibition, pushing the user toward more extroversion. Furthermore, Eysenck (1957) suggested that extraverts need only small doses of a stimulant drug to reach a certain level of excitation but that they would need larger doses of depressants to reach a certain level of inhibition.
Later refinements of Eysenck's theory (Eysenck, 1967; Eysenck & Eysenck, 1975, 1985) included the notion of optimal arousal, specifying that introverts who are habitually in a state of high cortical arousal are likely to seek "downers" or "depressants," such as barbiturates, to bring their level of arousal down to an optimal level. In contrast, extraverts, who are habitually in a state of low cortical arousal, are likely to be bored easily and seek stimulation from external sources in order to bring up their level of arousal to a more optimal level. This stimulus-seeking tendency naturally drives extraverts to seek drugs that would raise their arousal levels.
Individuals scoring high on neuroticism tend to be anxious, worrying, depressed, guilt ridden, emotional, and irrational and/or have low self-esteem (Eysenck & Eysenck, 1985). Their activation thresholds of the sympathetic nervous systems, implicated in the fight-or-flight response, are easily activated even in the presence of minor stressors, making them vulnerable to experiencing frequent negative affect, clinical disorders, and drug use (Eysenck & Eysenck, 1968; Eysenck & Eysenck, 1985). The next section examines evidence for and against Eysenck's (1957, 1967) model of the hypothesized relationship between personality and drug choice as it pertains to the present study.
Drugs and Alcohol Use: Evidence for and Against Eysenck's Theory
A review of studies (Bobes et al., 2002; Goldman, 1993; O'Connor et al., 1995; Rouse & Ewing, 1974; Saiz et al., 2003; Spotts & Shontz, 1984, 1986) suggests a mixed pattern of results concerning the relationship between drug use or drug preference and personality, as theorized by Eysenck (1957, 1967). This rather contradictory state of affairs may be partially related to the fact that the aforementioned literature addressed different types of "uppers" and "downers," with different types of such drugs having different subjective and behavioral effects upon the user (Allen & Landis, 1998). Furthermore, there is very little research on how drug preference, recency of drug use, or chronicity of drug use may be related to personality.
A review of literature on the relationship between personality and alcohol suggests a stronger and more consistent relationship between neuroticism and alcohol abuse than between extraversion and alcohol abuse (Barnes, 1983; LoCastro et al., 2000; Sher & Trull, 1994; Trull et al., 2004; Zuckerman & Kuhlman, 2000). Although problem drinking has been correlated with sociability and extraversion (Cook, Young, Taylor, & Bedford, 1998), it appears that extraverts and introverts drink for different reasons (Brown & Munson, 1987). Whereas extraverts expect more physical and social pleasure from drinking, introverts expect to feel more powerful and aggressive. It is possible that extraverts who drink for social reasons may engage in nonproblem drinking, but extraverts who think of drinking as a masculine thing to do may engage in problem drinking. Introverts are more likely to drink to reduce negative affect and for social enhancement (LoCastro et al., 2000).
There are four general observations from the aforementioned review of the literature. First, there is little evidence that consistently supports either the theories of Eysenck (1957, 1967) or Zuckerman (1979, 1983) relating personality to the use of particular types of drugs. Extraverts and sensation seekers tend to use drugs that not only depress the central nervous system (e.g., barbiturates, heroin, alcohol) but also increase arousal (e.g., cocaine, amphetamines). Put more simply, extraverts and sensation seekers who abuse substances do not tend to discriminate in their choice of drug. Second, whereas the relationship between extraversion and drug use seems tenuous, the relationship of drug abuse with neuroticism and sensation seeking seems better documented. Third, neuroticism shows a stronger relationship with alcohol problems than with extraversion. Finally, studies, by...
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