[Personality of healthy volunteers. Normality and paradox]

The personality characteristics of 62 subjects to be screened for eligibility in psychopharmacology studies have been assessed. The psychological screening comprised the Cattell anxiety scale (CAS), the Eysenck Personality inventory (EPI) and the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI) in its complete version (550 items). The comparison of the results to a population matched for age and status showed that the anxiety level was not different, extraversion factor was higher (p less than 0.001) and various personality traits were different. The most striking differences were observed on the factors: Psychopathic deviation, Mania, Schizophrenia greater than controls and social introversion lower than controls. These differences may evoke several biases, such as a recruitment bias or a specific personality pattern of young healthy subjects. In order to discuss these hypothesis, further comparisons with other centers are required to conclude.