Impulsive responses to emotion as a transdiagnostic vulnerability to internalizing and externalizing symptoms

IntroductionThis study explored the hypothesis that impulsive reactions to heightened emotion may reflect a transdiagnostic vulnerability to both externalizing and internalizing symptoms.MethodsA sample of undergraduates completed self-report measures of aggression, borderline personality disorder symptoms, anxiety symptoms, and alcohol problems, and a subset completed interviews that assessed suicidality. All participants also completed self-report measures relating to impulsivity. We predicted that emotion-reactive impulsivity, but not other aspects of impulsivity, would be related to the set of psychopathology symptoms.ResultsMultiple regression analyses found that emotion-reactive impulsivity was uniquely related to each of the psychopathology scales, whereas non-emotion-relevant impulsivity was uniquely related only to alcohol problems.ConclusionDiscussion focuses on limitations and clinical implications.