Impulsivity is a feature of behavior that is characterized by a tendency to perform actions without thinking, under the influence of emotions, external circumstances. Impulsive people are emotionally unrestrained, impatient, irritable. They often show irresponsibility, frivolity, touchiness. Diagnostics of impulsivity is carried out by the method of conversation, observation, psychological testing. Symptomatic assistance includes psychocorrection, medication, the formation of the skill of introspection, planning.
general characteristics
Impulsivity is manifested by the inability to restrain momentary impulses, the tendency to act without regard for the consequences, under the influence of the current situation and one's own emotions. Impulsive behavior is often accompanied by inattention, hyperactivity, and emotional excitability. People with this feature act on the first impulse, just as quickly begin to feel remorse when their activity leads to a negative result. Example: impulsively buying an attractive but useless item and then regretting wasting money.
The opposite quality is self-control - the ability to inhibit immediate desires, to think about the result of an act, to take into account the positions of other people, and not just your own interests. This is the main difference between decisiveness and impulsiveness. Both qualities are similar to a purposeful reaction, but decisiveness involves thinking about actions, analyzing possible results, and making a conscious choice of behavior.
Often, impulsivity is identified with irascibility, since this reaction is also characterized by speed, thoughtlessness, and lack of control. The difference between these qualities is that quick-tempered people are emotionally unrestrained, they can openly express irritability, anger, anger. But if they are not impulsive, then no action will follow. Another difference is that short temper is always associated with negative emotions, and impulsiveness can be fueled by joy, happiness, and a state of inspiration.
Reasons for impulsivity
Scientists have identified the biological mechanisms of impulsivity. This quality is closely related to the activity of dopamine, a substance that transmits information in nerve cells. Impulsive behavior is accompanied by excessive production of dopamine in the midbrain, and as a result, a change in the activity of the frontal lobes responsible for programming and controlling activity. As a result, the process of analyzing the situation, predicting the consequences is reduced or completely “falls out”, executive functions are immediately activated.
The reasons for the above biochemical changes are manifold. These can be age-related features of the nervous system, fixing certain behavioral reactions, temporary physiological dysfunctions and persistent pathological changes in the nervous system, mental activity. Factors that provoke impulsivity can be divided into two large groups: psychophysiological characteristics and mental illness.
Psychophysiological factors
Impulsivity appears in most people. As a rule, it is unstable, does not have serious negative consequences. Reckless actions are committed under the influence of strong emotional experiences, intense external stimuli, a state of confusion or fatigue. All these factors temporarily reduce the ability to self-control. Persistent, but not pathological impulsivity is observed at certain stages of a person's mental development, with certain types of character. As causes of mild to moderate impulsivity are considered:
- Children's age . Impulsivity is manifested in children of preschool and primary school age. It is due to the insufficient formation of the behavior control function, that is, the incompleteness of the development of the frontal parts of the brain. In the future, there is the development of social roles, the adoption of rules of conduct, which requires restraining one's own motives, taking into account the interests of the people around.
- Adolescence. During this period, puberty occurs, hormonal imbalance is reflected in the emotional state: adolescents become excitable, easily irritated, angry, despair. In parallel with physiological changes, an adolescent crisis develops, accompanied by a conflict between the needs of a teenager and the social situation that has developed around him (expectations of parents, teachers). Affective intemperance is the basis of impulsive actions.
- Character feature . Sometimes impulsiveness is a character trait of a person. It is based on the mobility of the processes of higher nervous activity, which is characteristic of sanguine and choleric temperaments. Consolidation of impulsive traits occurs in the process of education and socialization. Such people are quick-tempered, do not have sufficient self-control, tend to commit aimless acts. Often they are guided by spontaneous desires, whims, underestimate the negative consequences of their actions.
- Asthenization . The depletion of the body's resources is manifested by a decrease in its tolerance to psychological discomfort - affective outbursts (crying, screaming), rash acts. Therefore, a possible cause of impulsive reactions is asthenia with overwork, lack of sleep, health problems, long waits, a series of failures. Impulsivity acts as a way to discharge psycho-emotional stress, it arises as a result of weakening of the control centers in the brain.
- Stimulus-rich environment . The environment, which provides many stimuli, contributes to the call and manifestation of uncontrollable impulses. An obvious example is a large store with a lot of goods, advertising design, musical accompaniment. Getting into such an environment, a person becomes prone to impulsive purchases, acquires things spontaneously.
mental illness
The causes of persistent pathological impulsivity are mental disorders. Insufficient control of behavior, emotional instability, a decrease in critical abilities become the basis for committing actions that violate adaptation in society, hindering the process of learning and work. Impulsivity is a symptom of the following diseases:
- ADHD. Hyperkinetic behavioral disorders are diagnosed at preschool age, characterized by insufficient perseverance when performing mental work, a tendency to switch to a new task after finishing the previous one. Activity is excessive, poorly regulated, manifested with recklessness, impulsiveness. Children do not feel distance in relationships with adults, they do not know how to follow the rules in games, so they are left without friends.
- Behavior Disorders . Common causes of impulsivity in adolescents and children are behavioral disorders. Patients are characterized by dissocial, aggressive, provocative actions, violations of relationships with peers and family members, school failure. It is based on the lack of control and programming of activities, due to improper upbringing, the negative influence of the environment and, in part, biological mechanisms. Behavior is characterized by increased conflict, absenteeism, running away from home, committing offenses.
- Mental retardation . Most patients with oligophrenia belong to the category of impulsive, insufficiently adapted. They experience irrational fears, are affectively unstable, and have reduced skills of volitional regulation. Their impulsiveness is combined with an infantile response style, an inability to solve problems on their own, and a passive expectation of help from adults. Social immaturity complicates the process of interpersonal interaction, integration into society.
- Autism Spectrum Disorders . Autism and similar diseases are characterized by speech development disorders, communication difficulties, lack of emotional contact with others. Patients with autism perform stereotypical actions, with difficulty focusing attention, impulsive, restless. These traits are most fully manifested in subjectively disturbing, unpleasant situations - when approaching unfamiliar people, trying to establish bodily or verbal contact.
- Epilepsy . According to studies, patients with temporal lobe epilepsy show a tendency to outbursts of aggressiveness, exceeding in severity the stressful situations that caused them. Impulsive reactions persist as a habitual form of response to everyday difficulties. In epileptic psychosis, aggressiveness comes to the fore. In general, patients are characterized by manifestations of motor hyperactivity, inattention, and rudeness.
- Excitable psychopathy . The nature of this disorder is characterized by explosiveness, incontinence, conflict. Explosive psychopaths have a low level of self-control, prone to aggressiveness that occurs without a reason. In this case, aggression can be directed at others, at oneself. Impulsivity increases the risk of self-harm, drug abuse, and alcohol abuse.
- Dementia . Violations of self-control of behavior are most characteristic of frontal and frontotemporal types of nervous degeneration. A common variant is Pick's disease. Changes in the emotional and personal sphere are represented by the absence of criticism, passivity of behavior, spontaneousness, impulsiveness. Patients become rude, swear, behave inappropriately.
Diagnostics
Impulsivity is determined in the course of complex diagnostics. The examination is carried out by a psychiatrist, a psychologist, sometimes a neurologist. Pronounced impulsive traits are already detected during the conversation: patients are restless, emotionally unstable, easily distracted. They often do not single out their own impulsivity as a pointed or pathological trait, so the doctor receives more objective information from family members who are able to talk about the possible causes of the symptom, its severity, and the impact on family, professional and friendly relations (the degree of socialization). Diagnosis includes observation and psychological testing:
- Surveillance with provocation . To identify impulsivity, experimental conditions are organized in which the psychologist creates potentially conflict situations or gives difficult tasks to solve, and observes the patient's behavior. With difficulties, emotional tension increases, rash non-purposeful actions are committed (tearing the form with the task, throwing a pencil).
- Psychodiagnostic questionnaires . Determination of the degree of impulsivity, its correlation with other character traits is carried out using complex personality questionnaires, such as MMPI, Cattell's 16-factor questionnaire. In the results, elevated values of impulsive behavior scales are often combined with high rates of emotional instability and excitability. Isolated impulsive qualities are diagnosed by special tests, for example, the method "Diagnostics of the potential of communicative impulsivity" by V. A. Losenkov.
- Projective tests . In projective methods, personality traits are manifested that a person does not recognize, does not notice in himself or diligently hides from others, deliberately giving false answers in questionnaires. In such cases, drawing tests are used (a drawing of a person, a non-existent animal), situations interpretation tests (TAT, Rosenzweig test). Impulsiveness is seen in graphic characteristics, drawn details, explanation of situations as conflict, tense.
Treatment
Pathological impulsivity violates the social adaptation of a person, is associated with the risk of committing administrative and criminal offenses, and therefore requires treatment and correction. The main therapeutic measures are determined by the disease that provoked the behavioral disorder. Symptomatic medical and psychological care is provided to patients on an outpatient basis, includes psychocorrection, drug therapy, recommendations for changing the regimen.
Psychocorrection
Psychological correction of impulsiveness is carried out in the form of exercises and group games that train concentration, attention span, self-control skills, and the ability to take responsibility for one's actions. Individual psychological counseling is aimed at mastering the ability to inhibit immediate impulses to action - to take a break and think, predict the result. For example, the "Forbidden symbol" technique is used. Joint games and trainings require curbing momentary desires, taking into account the rules of the game, the interests of other participants.
Medical therapy
If a patient with impulsivity poses a threat to others or to himself, medications are selected that reduce psychomotor agitation. In severe disorders, normotimics, anticonvulsants are prescribed. In addition, in recent years, serotonergic antidepressants have been increasingly used, which, in addition to their main effect, reduce obsessive-compulsive symptoms, prevent outbreaks of aggression, and reduce craving for alcohol. At the beginning of therapy, antidepressants are combined with small doses of tranquilizers.
Lifestyle change
An effective method of self-correction of impulsivity is the planning of the day, adherence to the regimen. Keeping planners, diaries, personal diaries allows you to objectively assess the existing shortcomings and weaknesses of the individual, and then compensate for them. Example: if a person does not have time to prepare a full breakfast every morning, impulsively snacks on harmful foods, then the correction will be to change the time of awakening and getting out of bed. The ability to plan things, avoid unnecessary temptations, competently alternate rest and work allows you to avoid impulsive actions.