IMPULSIVIDAD Y CONSUMO DE ALCOHOL Y PROBLEMAS ASOCIADOS EN ADOLESCENTES DEL ECUADOR. ANÁLISIS COMPARATIVO POR GÉNERO Y DE INFLUENCIA

Aims. Identify the influence of impulsiveness with the practice of alcohol consumption and associated problems in adolescents in Ecuador, as well as gender differences. Methodology. The research presents a quantitative, descriptive, comparative, correlational, explanatory and cross-sectional approach through the Plutchik impulsivity scales and The Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT). Participants. 770 adolescents (57,7% men, 42,3% women) between 12 and 18 years old (M= 15 years old; SD= 1,71). Students from various secondary educational institutions (74,3% private, 24,9% public and 0,8% Fiscomisional) from 3 provinces of Ecuador. Results. Impulsivity is moderate (M= 19,74; SD= 6,36) and alcohol consumption is low (M= 5,68; SD= 8,80) among the participants. There are gender differences. These variables are moderately related to each other with r= .593; p< .05. In addition, impulsivity explain changes in variance by 53.1%. Conclution: Impulsivity is a significant indicator to explain the practice of alcohol consumption in adolescents.