The effects of impulsivity on the perceptual and decision stages in a choice reaction time task

In order to determine the effects of impulsivity on the perceptual and response selection stages of information processing, 42 subjects were divided into high and low impulsivity groups according to their scores on the EPI subscale. The two groups performed a choice reaction time task in which stimulus complexity and stimulus-response compatibility were manipulated, following Sternbergʹs Additive Factor Method (AFM, Sternberg, Acta Psychologica, 30, 276–315, 1969). Impulsivity affected the response selection stage but not the perceptual stages.