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Dimensions of personality: clinicians' perspectives
Stephanie N Mullins-Sweatt1, Vera Smit, Roel Verheul
1Department of Psychology, University of Kentucky, Lexington, Kentucky, USA. stephanie.sweatt@gmail.com
Summary
Clinicians favored including most personality disorder scales from eight dimensional models in diagnostic nomenclature. This refined list comprehensively covers personality domains, reflecting expert preferences for a robust classification system.
Area of Science:
- Psychiatry and Psychology
- Clinical Diagnostics
- Personality Disorders
Background:
- Current diagnostic systems for personality disorders are debated.
- Dimensional models offer alternative frameworks for classifying personality traits.
- Clinician input is crucial for refining diagnostic tools.
Purpose of the Study:
- To assess clinician opinions on the utility of personality scales from eight dimensional models.
- To inform the potential inclusion of these scales in an official diagnostic nomenclature.
Main Methods:
- Psychiatrists (n=226) and psychologists (n=164) from two continents rated the clinical utility of personality scales.
- Scales were organized according to eight alternative dimensional models.
- A selection process prioritized scales based on endorsement and domain coverage.
Main Results:
- Clinicians supported the inclusion of most scales across all eight models.
- Both normal and abnormal personality traits received endorsement, with abnormal traits favored.
- A final list was curated by grouping redundant scales and selecting the highest-rated within five broad domains.
Conclusions:
- The curated list comprehensively represents key personality domains.
- It highlights the strengths of various dimensional models based on clinician preferences.
- This approach provides a clinician-informed foundation for potential diagnostic nomenclature revisions.
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