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Personality traits in the DSM-5.

Christopher J Hopwood¹

¹Department of Psychology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48824-1116, USA. hopwood2@ msu.edu

Journal of Personality Assessment

|July 19, 2012

Summary

Personality science can improve the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5) by assessing normative personality traits separately from personality disorders. This approach enhances clinical diagnosis and research integration.

Area of Science:

Psychological assessment
Clinical psychology
Personality science

Background:

Limitations in previous DSM editions (DSM-III, DSM-IV) for personality pathology.
Advancements in personality research offer opportunities for DSM-5.
Need for well-validated, broadly distributed, and theoretically integrative personality traits.

Purpose of the Study:

To advocate for the integration of normative personality trait assessment into DSM-5.
To propose assessing personality traits separately from personality disorders.
To leverage personality science for improved diagnostic practices.

Main Methods:

Review of personality research advancements.
Analysis of limitations in DSM-III and DSM-IV personality disorder representations.

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Conceptual argument for separating trait and disorder assessment.

Main Results:

Current DSM editions have limitations in representing personality pathology.
Well-validated normative traits can enhance personality assessment.
Separate assessment links research to clinical practice and encourages holistic patient evaluation.

Conclusions:

Five-factor model personality traits should be assessed separately from personality disorders in DSM-5.
This separation promotes better clinical consideration of disorder severity and symptoms.
Integrating normative traits improves diagnostic accuracy and research utility.