Structured interviews and the diagnosis of personality disorders

Structured interviews were developed to improve the reliability of the diagnosis of personality disorders, as it has occurred in other areas of psychopathology. Several such interviews are described in this review, which draws together reports scattered across a wide literature. The appearance of structured interviews in Britain reflected the early interest there in the special problems associated with diagnosing personality disorders, whereas in America their development had to await publication of the DSM-III. Studies using these techniques have illustrated important aspects of clinical diagnosis and can be expected to assign value to the diagnosis of personality disorders in the future.