Who becomes addicted and to what? psychosocial predictors of substance and behavioral addictive disorders.

A multitude of psychological and social factors likely contribute to the development and maintenance of addictive disorders. As different people develop different addictions, it is important to understand whether psychosocial factors are related differently to different types of addictive disorders. In this study, we examined the
unique interaction of personality traits, family environment, and life events in predicting substance (drugs,
alcohol) and behavioral (gambling, sex) addictive disorders, among 207 participants suffering from an addictive
disorder and 79 controls. Results identified several psychosocial factors, including impulsivity and reported
negative life events, that predicted all types of addictive disorders. There was also a unique prediction model for
each addiction. Drug and alcohol use disorders were predicted by lower agreeableness and less intellectualcultural family orientation, with alcohol use disorder further predicted by lower extraversion and higher family
organization. Gambling disorder was predicted by a family with lower intellectual-cultural orientation and
higher organization and control, whereas compulsive sexual behavior was predicted by lower extraversion and
agreeableness and higher neuroticism, and by higher family control. These findings suggest that the complex
interplay among psychosocial factors is manifested differently across addictive disorders and may thus have
important implications for research, prevention, and intervention.