Agressividade e impulsividade: uma avaliação neuropsicológica

Abstract

Executive functions (EFs) involve multiple cognitive systems and are involved in attentional control, strategic planning, abstract reasoning, cognitive flexibility and hypothesis generation. In this sense, from the point of view anatomicoclinical be correlated to the prefrontal cortex, a region that is also responsible for performing the control actions of our emotional nature, such as aggressive and / or impulsive behaviors. This study aims to correlate executive functioning and aggressive and impulsive behaviors in individuals with depression, according to an updated neurocognitive model performing an interpretation of the traditional conception of Beck on suicidal behavior, and involvement in aggression and dysfunctions executive in this process. The sample consisted of 57 subjects, aged 18 to 49 years, divided between the control compound (29 subjects) and the clinical group (28 subjects). After approval by the Ethics Committee, the proband underwent a flexible battery of tests, which are: Nonverbal Intelligence Test (Beta-III), Beck Depression Scale, Scale for Suicidal Ideation Beck, analysis of working memory (Digit Span), analysis of inhibitory control (Stroop color test), analysis of aggressive behavior (aggression scale of Buss Perry), assessing the level of impulsivity (Barratt Scale, version 11) and decision making (Test betting Iowa). With the results it was observed that there were positive correlations in the comparison of means between verbal aggression (p 0.02) in individuals with depression and control. And the hostile aggression there was also a significant difference (p 0.00), and the same occurred in the correlation between executive functions, working memory and sustained attention in the application of spam digit direct order (p 0.03) and in the reverse order (p 0.02); and finally the comparison between the groups was a positive correlation in suicidal ideation (p 0.00). When assessed only the clinical group was observed: significance in the correlation between depression and suicidal ideation (p 0.51), between depression and FEs with respect to the number of errors in selective attention (r 0.53) between suicidal ideation and FEs with respect to the number of errors in selective attention (r 0.66) and there was significant difference between verbal aggression and attentional impulsivity (r -0.48). Given the above, it can be concluded that significant data on the comparison between the groups with regard to aggressiveness, executive functions in relation to working memory, sustained attention and increased risk of suicide in individuals with depression. Future studies may help to broaden the understanding of this complex relationship between executive neuropsychological functioning, aggression and impulsivity in individuals with depression.