Personality dimensions of compulsive sexual behavior in the Sex@Brain study

Hypersexual disorder is characterized by recurrent and intense sexual fantasies, sexual urges, or sexual behaviors that can lead to clinically relevant levels of distress and adverse consequences for affected individuals. Earlier research has established a connection between sexual phenomena, such as compulsive sexual behavior, and personality features. The aim of the present study was to gain further insights into the associations of personality maladjustment and HD.

The present study applied the dimensional approach of personality maladjustment presented in the fifth edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5) to connect compulsive sexual behavior to personality maladjustment. We investigated 47 men suffering from HD (age: M = 36.51, SD = 11.47) and 38 matched men without HD (age: M = 37.92, SD = 12.33) regarding personality maladjustment using a 100-item version of the Personality Inventory for DSM-5 (PID-5-BF).

The men with HD showed higher levels of personality maladjustment regarding all PID-5-BF domains (negative affect, detachment, psychoticism, antagonism, and disinhibition) and significantly differentiated from men without HD in the level of subordinate facets. However, no domain of personality differentiated significantly between groups using a binary stepwise logistic regression analysis.

In sum, the findings of the study underline the extent of personality maladjustment in men with HD. Interpersonal difficulties which men with HD frequently experience can contribute to clinically relevant levels of distress and adverse consequences reported by affected individuals.