Personality sex differences of narcotic addicts and treatment implications

Research on the personality of addicts has generally dealt with psychopathological classification and been based on male samples. In this study, Sixteen Personality Factor Questionnaire comparisons were made between 1,735 male and 348 female addicts. The results indicate that (a) males are more guarded and females more anxious, (b) there is no indication of severe deviance for either sample, and (c) ethnicity by sex interactions may be important considerations in identifying personality differences. The discussion centers around the implications of this type of research for treatment strategies and modalities, and the need to avoid generalizations from one client population to another.