Relationships between functional and dysfunctional impulsivity, delay discounting and cognitive distortions

Impulsivity is a multidimensional construct assessed by a variety of behavioural and self-report measures. Each measure is thought to assess a separate component, but the inter-relationship between these measures in relation to the functional and dysfunctional nature of this psychological construct remains unclear. In addition, cognitive attributes of functional and dysfunctional impulsivity have not yet been identified. The present study addressed these issues by examining the inter-relationships between impulsivity measured using the delay discounting task and self-report questionnaires, alongside a measure of cognitive distortions. The results showed that delay discount rates were positively correlated with both functional and dysfunctional impulsivity measures, non-planning-impulsiveness and total scores of the Barratt Impulsiveness Scale (BIS-11). These findings are consistent with the idea that discounting the value of delayed rewards may be related to some, not necessarily dysfunctional, forms of impulsive behaviour. Furthermore, the present study suggests that negative cognitive attributes may operate as cognitive processing associated with some subtypes of impulsivity, i.e., dysfunctional impulsivity, non-planning and cognitive impulsiveness.