Personality Disorders

Screening for personality disorder in probationers: validation of the Standardised Assessment of Personality Abbreviated Scale (SAPAS)

by Graham Pluck

Prevalence of ADHD and its subtypes in male and female adult prison inmates.

by Karenleigh A. Overmann

Cahill, B. S., Coolidge, F. L., Segal, D. L., Klebe, K, J., Marle, P. D., & Overmann, K. A. (2012). Prevalence of ADHD and its subtypes in male and female adult prison inmates. Behavioral Sciences and the Law, 30, 154–166

There are few published studies of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in adult inmates, and even fewer... more There are few published studies of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in adult inmates, and even fewer studies that have considered ADHD in adult inmates by gender. The present study examined the prevalence of ADHD, its subtypes, and associated psychological and neuropsychological comorbidity as a function of gender in an adult prison population. The final sample consisted of 3,962 inmates (n = 3,439 men and n = 523 women; M age = 33.6 years, range = 17 to 73 years) who had completed the 250-item, self-report, Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 4th edition (Text Revision) (DSM-IV-TR)-aligned Coolidge Correctional Inventory (CCI). The overall prevalence rate of ADHD was found to be 10.5%, which is substantially higher than the rate found among adults in the general population (2% – 5%). The female inmate ADHD prevalence rate (15.1%) was higher than the male inmate ADHD rate (9.8%), which was consistent with some previous studies. The most prevalent ADHD subtype for both males and females was the hyperactive-impulsive subtype. In general, the combined and inattentive ADHD subtypes had higher levels of comorbid psychopathology than the hyperactive-impulsive ADHD subtype. As the presence of ADHD may impact the success of rehabilitation and educative programs with inmates, the careful assessment of ADHD and any comorbid psychopathology should be a priority in initial inmate screening and evaluation.

Prediction of early-onset deviant peer group affiliation: a 12-year longitudinal study

by Eric Lacourse

Adler, J.M. (2011). Epistemological tension in the future of personality disorder diagnosis. American Journal of Psychiatry,168,11, 1221-1222.

by Jonathan Adler

I disturbi di personalità in pazienti con disturbo alimentare

by Barbara Basile

Olive Tree Community Treatment Centre for Individuals With Personality Disorder: Naturalistic Service Evaluation

by Matthew Broome

Dreaming correlates of Alexithymia among sleep-disordered patients (2011)

by Tore Nielsen

Increasing evidence supports the clinical view that alexithymia is associated with disturbed dreaming. However, a... more Increasing evidence supports the clinical view that alexithymia is associated with disturbed dreaming. However, a consistent, replicable pattern of relationships between alexithymia and different dreaming components has not yet been identified. Groups of sleep-disordered outpatients (N = 580; 46.0 +/- 13.2 years) and nonclinical controls (N
= 145; 22.9 +/- 4.2 years) were administered the Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS-20) and a 14-item Dreaming Questionnaire. Sleep diagnoses were assessed from polysomnography and clinical histories following the American Academy of Sleep Medicine classification system. The Dreaming Questionnaire was reduced by principal-components analysis to a 3-factor solution that distinguishes nightmare distress, dream recall, and dream meaning items. Factor coefficients were correlated with TAS total score and TAS subscales while age was controlled as a covariate. TAS total score was found to correlate positively with nightmare distress and negatively with dream recall for both clinical and nonclinical groups and for both men and women considered separately. TAS total score also correlated negatively with dream meaning for nonclinical participants. TAS subscales were differentially correlated with the 3 dream factors: difficulty identifying feelings (DIF) with increased nightmare distress, difficulty describing feelings (DDF) with decreased dream recall and externally oriented thinking (EOT) with decreased dream meaning. With some exceptions, these patterns were obtained independently for clinical and nonclinical groups and for men and women within these groups. Findings suggest a consistent and replicable pattern of relationships between alexithymia and dreaming components that implicates processes regulating emotion during both wakefulness and dreaming, for example, affect distress, expressive anxiety, and openness to experience.

Alexithymia and impoverished dream recall in asthmatic patients: evidence from self-report measures (1997)

by Tore Nielsen

Sadistic personality disorder and sensational interests: what is the size and specificity of the association?

by Gareth Hagger-Johnson

Co-authored with Vincent Egan

Clinicians and legal practitioners have often assumed, uncritically, that sensational interests are predictive of... more Clinicians and legal practitioners have often assumed, uncritically, that sensational interests are predictive of sadistic personality disorder (SADPD). This association has never been empirically tested in a non-pathological sample. Using a sample of adults (N = 219) from two countries, a four-factor SADPD structure was identified. A latent variable model was used to test the hypothesis that Sensational Interests Questionnaire (SIQ) scores would be associated with SADPD scores, after the separation of general and specific variance. The general association was not significant, but a direct pathway from SIQ Criminal Identity to SADPD Antisocial was required, to improve model fit. SADPD was predicted largely by normal personality traits. Sensational interests are therefore not a simple signifier of deviance or sadism, in clinical and legal contexts.  However, Criminal Identity may emerge as a risk factor for certain forms of antisocial behaviour, and should be investigated further.

Psychotherapy for Personality Disorders

by Katie Dixon-Gordon

Co-authored with Brianna Turner and Alexander Chapman

The causal link between depression and bulimia: Counterposing two theories of mental development.

by Daniel Kupper

Narcissistic self-esteem regulation

by Daniel Kupper

Doctoral Dissertation, Department of Psychology, UCLA, 1992

Clasificación multiaxial de agresores de pareja en centros penitenciarios

by Ismael Loinaz

Intimate partner violence. Batterer typologies. Personality disorders. Prison.

The current ex post facto study describes the evaluation and classification that took place with 48 partner violent... more The current ex post facto study describes the evaluation and classification that took place with 48 partner violent men and compares the results with a previous study done with the same methodology. Using the MCMI-III, the role of personality and its relationship with clinical syndromes on violence in couples is analyzed. Different variables of interest have been assessed through a structured interview, the STAXI-2, IPDMV and
CTS-2. The results obtained attest the typological classification, indicating that it is possible to classify offenders in at least two groups that differ on the variables described internationally. The group called “normalized” represents 43.75% of the sample and is characterized by suffering les psychopathology, less cognitive distortion and having a greater control of their anger. The group called “antisocial” represents 56.25% of the sample and is formed by subjects with greater psychopathology (in both, personality and clinical syndromes) which have greater cognitive distortion and whose violence is more complex.

Examining the Personality of Patrick Bateman of American Psycho

by Chris Schaffer

Written for a doctoral course

Patrick Bateman of Brett Easton Ellis' American Psycho presents a unique challenge for personality theories. Examined... more Patrick Bateman of Brett Easton Ellis' American Psycho presents a unique challenge for personality theories. Examined is how psychoanalytic theory applies to this character. He represents an almost total lack of ego, a superego based on a deviant morality, and an id allowed to act out its most depraved fantasies. This shows how the superego and id can form a perverse pact capable of producing sadistic violence and a loss of distinction between reality and fantasy. These unique conditions also allow self -actualization to be explored from a viewpoint that any behavior can be actualizing. Though we could consider him evil, Bateman has his needs met along the hierarchy until his violent expressions become a perpetuation of deviant ideals that are, in a sense, shared with his victims. This atypical use of theories demonstrates the value of extreme characters in fiction for testing the limits of theoretical
perspectives.