The role of impulsivity in predicting maladaptive behaviour among female students

This study examines the role of impulsivity and the Big Five personality traits as predictors of academic performance and alcohol consumption in a sample of 273 first year female students at a British university. Academic performance was assessed at two points in the first year, at the beginning and the end of the second semester. The Big Five personality traits, impulsivity and alcohol consumption were assessed by self report at the beginning of the first semester. Impulsivity proved to be a significant predictor of both measures of academic performance and of self-reported alcohol consumption. Of the Big Five traits, only conscientiousness showed a significant positive correlation with academic performance whereas both agreeableness and conscientiousness correlated significantly and negatively with alcohol consumption. Further analysis indicated that despite the high correlation between impulsivity and conscientiousness, as well as with the Big Five taken as a whole, the variance unique to impulsivity was significantly predictive of the criterion variables. Implications for the concept of impulsivity and its relation to the Big Five are discussed.