CUBI-18: Un instrumento para medir tres subtipos de impulsividad

Abstract

Given the conceptual complexity of the impulsivity construct, authors such as Whiteside and Lynam (2001) have proposed that, when one speaks of this term, it is referring to at least three or four different phenomena. Based on the theory of the five major personality factors (Costa, & McCrae, 2000) Whiteside and Lynam propose that four subtypes of impulsivity can be drawn from the personological dimensions Neuroticism, Extravertion and Consciousness of the Big five model. These are Urgency, facet of Neuroticism; Sensation Seeking trait of Extroversion; Lack of Planning and Lack of Persistence as part of the Consciousness dimension. An instrument has recently been proposed, adapted to the Argentine population of the Buenos Aires city, to simultaneously measure three subtypes of impulsivity based on this theoretical paradigm. The Questionnaire of Urgency, Sensation Seeking and Impulsivity (CUBI, 2017). The CUBI does not include the Lack of Persistence of the original model because it is not considered a subtype of impulsivity But if a characteristic associated with Improvidence Impulsivity. The CUBI measures Compulsive Urgency, Sensation Seeking and Improvidence Impulsivity. The Urgency scale is related to the commission of compulsive behaviors, whose objective is to alleviate the discomfort caused by emotional stress. The Urgency is a measure of the inability to regulate one's impulses. On the other hand, the items of Sensation Seeking indicate the predisposition of the individuals to the behavioral approach before the signals of rewards and novel stimuli. It is also a measure of intolerance to monotony. Finally, Impulsivity for lack of Planning is a scale that indicates the tendency to act fast, without foreseeing theconsequences of the acts themselves. It characterizes individuals who do not use all the information they have available before making decisions. The objective of the present work is to obtain an abbreviated version of CUBI maintaining the content validity of the three types of scale. The sample was constituted by 675 participants of the general population of the Federal Capital of Buenos Aires city of Argentina (57% women). The mean age was 33.5 years (sd = 15.7), with ages ranging from 18 to 81 years. Participants were recruited according to inclusion criteria: they should not be psychologists or students of psychology, they should not be taking psychiatric mediation, nor find themselves being treated for a psychopathological disorder. The CUBI-18 was constituted from content analysis of the 47 original items. Six items were selected for each scale, according to the content validity of the three subtypes of impulsivity. A kappa index of 80% is reached between two judges. The result is a version of 18 items adjusted to the theoretical content. An exploratory factor analysis was applied to reduce the 18 items. Items weighing less than .30 were eliminated following the criteria of Hair, Anderson, Tatham, & Black (1998). All three factors accounted for 53.4% of the instrument's total variance. When comparing the subsamples of men and women emerged the same factor structure without the need to eliminate any item. To estimate the internal consistency of the factors obtained, the omega coefficient was applied. It was possible to reduce the data extracted with the 18 items in three large dimensions that correspond to the concepts of Compulsive Urgency, Sensation Seeking and Improvidence Impulsivity. It is proved that the psychometric properties of CUBI-18 maintain those reached by the original CUBI. This allows for a shorter and equally effective test for the exploration of this complex construct.