EVALUATING JOINT MODELS OF PSYCHOPATHOLOGY AND PERSONALITY ITEMS IN CHILDREN

Taxonomic models of psychopathology and personality share striking similarities, but lines of research are often conducted independently. Integrating the two frameworks facilitates the inclusion of important constructs that are commonly overlooked in traditional models of psychopathology, but there is not yet consensus on the best joint factor structure (e.g., two-factor psychopathology models; multi-factor personality models), particularly in developmentally important periods such as childhood. The current study integrated psychopathology and personality data collected via parent-report from 649 children (52.54% male; aged 8-12) to compare four-factor, three-factor, and two-factor bifactor models. Although a four-factor model demonstrated the best fit according to traditional goodness of fit indices, only a two-factor internalizing/externalizing model satisfied interpretability/reliability criteria. Additionally, the inclusion of positive affectivity items improved the predictive utility of an internalizing factor when predicting depression. Findings suggest that traditional two-factor internalizing/externalizing models produce factors that are best suited for interpretation and reproduction in research and clinical work but can be supplemented with important temperament dimensions such as positive affectivity.