Mentalization Impairment Is Associated with Problematic Alcohol Use in a Sample of Young Adults: A Cross-Sectional Study

Claudio Imperatori, Ornella Corazza, Angelo Panno, Raffaella Rinaldi, Massimo Pasquini, Benedetto Farina, Massimo Biondi and Francesco Saverio Bersani
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Claudio Imperatori: Cognitive and Clinical Psychology Laboratory, Department of Human Science, European University of Rome, 00163 Rome, Italy
Ornella Corazza: Department of Clinical, Pharmaceutical and Biological Sciences, University of Hertfordshire, Hatfield AL109AB, UK
Angelo Panno: Cognitive and Clinical Psychology Laboratory, Department of Human Science, European University of Rome, 00163 Rome, Italy
Raffaella Rinaldi: Department of Anatomical, Histological, Forensic and Orthopaedic Sciences, Sapienza University of Rome, 00185 Rome, Italy
Massimo Pasquini: Department of Human Neurosciences, Sapienza University of Rome, 00185 Rome, Italy
Benedetto Farina: Cognitive and Clinical Psychology Laboratory, Department of Human Science, European University of Rome, 00163 Rome, Italy
Massimo Biondi: Department of Human Neurosciences, Sapienza University of Rome, 00185 Rome, Italy
Francesco Saverio Bersani: Department of Human Neurosciences, Sapienza University of Rome, 00185 Rome, Italy

IJERPH, 2020, vol. 17, issue 22, 1-9

Abstract: Background : Alcohol is one of the most widely used drugs among adolescents and young people, and problematic alcohol use (PAU) is related to significant long-term biological, clinical, and psychosocial sequelae. Although preliminary reports have linked deficits in mentalization to increased vulnerability to addiction, no studies have specifically explored this phenomenon in relation to PAU. Methods: The association between mentalization impairment and PAU severity was investigated in a sample of 271 young adults (183 females, 65.9%; mean age: 23.20 ± 3.55 years; range: 18–34). Self-report measures investigating PAU and mentalization were administered to all participants. Results: Individuals with PAU reported a more frequent use of tobacco and illicit drugs in the last 12 months. PAU severity was negatively associated with mentalization capacity ( rho = −0.21; p < 0.001), and also, when possible, confounding variables (i.e., gender, age, occupation, education, tobacco and illegal drugs use) were controlled for ( rho = −0.17; p = 0.004). Conclusion : The present data showed that mentalization impairment is significantly associated with PAU among young adults, suggesting that it may have a role in the development and/or maintenance of alcohol use.

Keywords: problematic alcohol use; mentalization; addiction; psychopathology (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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