Anxiety sensitivity: relations to psychopathy, DSM-IV personality disorder features, and personality traits

Relatively few data are available concerning the relations between anxiety sensitivity (AS) and both abnormal and normal personality traits. In particular, little is known about the associations between AS and personality disorders, although Shostak and Peterson [Behav. Res. Ther. 28 (1990) 513.] hypothesized that AS would be negatively correlated with antisocial personality disorder (ASPD) and perhaps related conditions (e.g., psychopathy). We examined the relations between AS, as assessed by the AS Index (ASI), and measures of psychopathy/ASPD, personality disorder features. and personality traits in a sample of 104 undergraduates. The ASI was not significantly associated with global measures of psychopathy or ASPD, although it was negatively correlated in some cases with the core affective deficits of psychopathy. In addition, the ASI was positively correlated with features of several Clusters B (e.g., borderline) and C (e.g., dependent) personality disorders and with features of passive-aggressive personality disorder. In addition, the ASI was positively associated with measures of several normal-range personality traits, including trait anxiety, alienation, well being, Negative Emotionality, and Constraint. Some, although not all, of the abnormal and normal personality correlates of the ASI were attributable to the variance shared by the ASI with trait anxiety measures. Implications and limitations of the present findings for the correlates and etiology of AS are outlined.