Gender Differences in Risk-Taking, Impulsivity, and Inhibitory Control Related to PTSD

Abstract

Gender differences in posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) prevalence are well documented, with women showing a near twofold risk of PTSD diagnosis compared to men. However, in contrast to other symptoms of PTSD, the reckless and self-destructive behavior symptom has been shown to be more prevalent in men than in women. The mechanisms responsible for gender differences in PTSD symptoms are broadly understood through theories of individual differences in risk-taking, social psychology, and PTSD, but none adequately account for potential neurocognitive mechanisms that may contribute to such differences. In a sample of 105 trauma survivors, I explored the relationships between gender, PTSD symptomology, risk-taking, impulsivity, and inhibitory control. Analyses revealed that reckless and self-destructive behavior was not significantly related to gender on a traditional trauma symptom assessment. However, men showed greater overall risk-taking compared to women on various measures of risk, and those with PTSD showed greater risk-taking and impulsivity compared to traumaexposed controls. Although neither gender nor PTSD was individually related to inhibitory control, there was an interaction such that men with PTSD showed the greatest inhibitory control deficits compared to men without PTSD and women with and without PTSD. Inhibitory control was the explanatory mechanism through which men with PTSD experienced greater impulsivity than women. Findings could potentially inform the development of more targeted measurement of risk-taking as it relates to PTSD. In addition, both sociocultural and neurocognitive mechanisms can be targeted therapeutically to mitigate risk-taking and impulsivity with trauma survivors, particularly men.