Journal
ADDICTIVE BEHAVIORS
Volume 39, Issue 11, Pages 1573-1579Publisher
PERGAMON-ELSEVIER SCIENCE LTD
DOI: 10.1016/j.addbeh.2013.10.033
Keywords
Sex differences; Impulsive action; Impulsive choice; Laboratory animals; Humans
Categories
Funding
- National Institute on Drug Abuse [DA002812, DA032015, F32 DA033756]
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Here, we review the evidence for sex differences in behavioral measures of impulsivity for both humans and laboratory animals. We focus on two specific components of impulsivity: impulsive action (i.e., difficulty inhibiting a prepotent response) and impulsive choice (i.e., difficulty delaying gratification). Sex differences appear to exist on these measures, but the direction and magnitude of the differences vary. In laboratory animals, impulsive action is typically greater in males than females, whereas impulsive choice is typically greater in females. In humans, women discount more steeply than men, but sex differences on measures of impulsive action depend on tasks and subject samples. We discuss implications of these findings as they relate to drug addiction. We also point out the major gaps in this research to date, including the lack of studies designed specifically to examine sex differences in behavioral impulsivity, and the lack of consideration of menstrual or estrous phase or sex hormone levels in the studies. (C) 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
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