Personality characteristics of compulsive heroin, amphetamine, and barbiturate users.

Compared MMPI validity and clinical scales for 65 heroin users, 45 amphetamine users, and 34 barbiturate users, average age 23, who were admitted to a VA medical center for treatment. Univariate analyses indicated that drug users evidenced greater maladjustment than normative, reference groups. Heroin users were comparatively less disturbed than amphetamine users and barbiturate users, as indicated by multivariate analyses. One discriminant function was found to differentiate heroin users from amphetamine and barbiturate users. The findings cross-validate previous results by other investigators and establish the need for reevaluating treatment intervention in terms of specific substance of abuse and specific personality problems. (5 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)