The role of inhibition capacities in the Iowa gambling test performance in young tattooed women

Background: Using the Iowa Gambling Test (IGT), we demonstrated previously impaired decision-making process in young tattooed women. The purpose of the present study was to explore the associations among the three facets of impaired inhibition (response inhibition, reflection inhibition and interference inhibition) and decision-making processes in this population. Methods: To this end, the participants of the previous study (60 tattooed women and 60 non-tattooed women) were assessed in the Go/NoGo task, a measure of response inhibition, the Matched Familiar Figure Test (MFFT), a measure of reflection inhibition and the Stroop task a measure of interference inhibition. Results: Tattooed women were significantly slower than non-tattooed women in the Go/NoGo performance; however, no differences were detected in the MFFT and the Stroop task. A hierarchical regression analysis did not reveal any significant main effects of these inhibition measures on the IGT performance. Conclusions: These findings do not support the hypothesis that risky decision in young tattooed women is due to impaired inhibitory control. Further studies are needed to identify the cognitive mechanisms involved in the tendency to risky decisions in young tattooed women.