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Is interpersonal sensitivity specific to non-melancholic depressions?
1Department of Psychiatry, Fujita Health University School of Medicine, Kutsukake-cho, Dengakugakubo 1-98, Aichi, 470-1192, Toyoake City, Japan. tsato@fujita-hu.ac.jp
Journal of Affective Disorders
|April 21, 2001
Summary
Japanese patients with non-melancholic depression exhibit higher interpersonal sensitivity, particularly a fragile inner self, compared to melancholic depressives and controls. This suggests distinct personality profiles in different depression subtypes.
Area of Science:
- Psychiatry and Psychology
- Clinical Psychology
- Personality Disorders
Background:
- Investigated personality differences between melancholic and non-melancholic Japanese depressive patients.
- Focused on interpersonal sensitivity as a key personality feature.
- Utilized the Interpersonal Sensitivity Measure (IPSM) for assessment.
Purpose of the Study:
- To determine if melancholic and non-melancholic depressive patients exhibit distinct personality traits.
- To explore the role of interpersonal sensitivity in differentiating depression subtypes.
- To compare personality profiles of depressed patients with healthy controls.
Main Methods:
- Recruited 154 healthy controls, 66 remitted melancholic patients, and 55 remitted non-melancholic patients.
- Administered the Interpersonal Sensitivity Measure (IPSM), Temperament and Character Inventory (TCI), and Munich Personality Test (MPT).
- Classified patients into melancholic and non-melancholic groups based on RDC, DSM-III, and DSM-IV criteria.
Main Results:
- Significant personality dimension differences were found among the three groups post-Bonferroni adjustment.
- Non-melancholic patients scored higher on the total IPSM and 'fragile inner-self' compared to controls and melancholic patients.
- Principal component analysis identified two factors: one related to IPSM scores differentiating non-melancholic from melancholic depressives, and another differentiating depressives from controls.
Conclusions:
- The Interpersonal Sensitivity Measure (IPSM) scales, especially 'fragile inner-self', can distinguish between non-melancholic depression and melancholia.
- IPSM scales appear independent of dimensions measured by TCI and MPT.
- Further prospective studies are needed to confirm if these personality deviations reflect premorbid personality function.