Relationships of subclinical depression, psychopathy and hysteria to patterns of alcohol consumption and abuse in males and females.

Abstract

Personality studies have consistently indicated a high prevalence of both psychopathy and depression among chronic alcoholics. This study examined the relationship of subclinical depression, psychopathy and hysteria (MMPI) to reported alcohol consumption and abuse (MAST scores) in a normal population of 18--21 year-olds. Both depression and psychopathy were positively related to frequency of consumption whereas hysteria was not. Separate analyses of the data were conducted by sex. Psychopathy and depression were positively related to consumption among males but not among females. Hysteria was positively related to consumption among females but not among males. Regarding abusive drinking, both depression and psychopathy were related to MAST scores among females whereas only psychopathy was among males. Hysteria was unrelated to MAST scores among both sexes. These results support the hypothesis that different psychological processes are involved in the drinking behavior of males and females. The results also underscore the importance of distinguishing simple consumption from abuse. Within the male and female groups, those personality variables related to consumption were not necessarily related to abuse and vice versa.