Some personality correlates in a group of drug addicts

The Eysenck Personality Questionnaire (EPQ) was administered to three groups of male, Saudi, drug addicts treated at Al-Amal Hospital, Jeddah. Each group consisted of 50 patients. The three groups were: volunteer in-patients (VIP), volunteer out-patients (VOP) and involuntary in-patients (IIP). The IIP group scored significantly higher than the VIP and VOP groups on the P scale (P< 0.05), the N scale (P< 0.01 and P< 0.001, respectively), and on the L scale (P< 0.05 and P< 0.001, respectively). On the E scale the IIP scored significantly higher than the VOP (P< 0.05). The only significant difference between the VIP and the VOP was on the N scale (P< 0.01) in favour of the former. Addicts were also compared with the normative Saudi population and scored significantly higher than university students on the P, N and L scales (P< 0.001) and higher than secondary students on the N and L scales (P< 0.001). Only the E and the L scales correlated positively (r = 0.17). The other scales showed independence.