A Comparative Study of Dialectical Behavior Therapy and Aripiprazole on Impulsive Behavior in Hypersexual Patients

Sexual desires and sexual activities are one of the natural needs of human being, which if not used in the right direction, may become problematic and lead to various sexual disorders, including hypersexuality. The aim of this research was to compare the dialectic behavior therapy and aripiprazole drug on impulsive behavior in hypersexual patients.

This experimental study based on control and treatment groups with pre-test and post-test and follow up was done on 54 male and female with hypersexuality that were selected and placed randomly in two groups of treatment (18 patients in every group) and one group of control (18 patients). Pre-test stage was done for three groups by Barratt Impulsiveness Scale Version 11 (BIS-11). The first treatment group underwent DBT intervention for 8 sessions of 2 hours (once a week) and the second experimental group was prescribed aripiprazole for two months. The post-test and follow up was done for all three groups. The data were analyzed using SPSS software version 24 and multivariate analysis of covariance (MANCOVA).

DBT had an effect on the impulsive behavior and improved it (P˂0.01); Aripiprazole had an effect on the motor impulsivity component of impulsive behavior and improved it (P˂0.01). There was a difference between the effects of DBT and aripiprazole, with the greater effect of DBT, in the variables of impulsive behavior (P˂0.01).

Based on the results, it can be said that the intervention of DBT and aripiprazole drug can have an effect on impulsive behavior of patients.