Interrelationship of Personality Disorders: Theoretical Formulations and Anecdotal Evidence

Abstract

In this paper an attempt is made to define the interrelationship of personality disorders. Relationships both between and among the 3 major groupings of DSM-III are discussed. It is proposed that 3 personality disorders, namely passive aggressive, avoidant, and borderline are impure and serve as bridges between the 3 major DSM-111 groupings. Placement within the 3 groupings is discussed with antisocial, compulsive, and schizoid as being the essence of the 3 categories. Anecdotal evidence from previous psychometric research is provided.

DSM-III diagnosis and code types of the diagnostic inventory of personality and symptoms in public hospital settings

“…Among individuals who received a personality disorder diagnosis, half were seen as having an immature personality disorder and half were seen as having a neurotic personality disorder. Specifically, more than one-fourth of these individuals were seen as passive-aggressive, which is consistent with the theory (Vincent, 1987a). More than one-fifth were classified as dependent.…”

“…Slightly less than half of the individuals of this profile type were diagnosed as having an alcohol abuse disorder, and one-fifth received a diagnosis of drug abuse or stress-adjustment disorder. Among individuals diagnosed as having a personality disorder, slightly more than half were diagnosed as neurotic, which is consistent with the theory (Vincent, 1987a). More than a third were diagnosed as having an immature character disorder.…”

“…Also, generalizations with regard to response style from psychometric theory and instruments such as the MMPI appear to hold true for the DIPS. It is worth noting with regard to the broadband personality disorders categories and their combinations that only three of the eight possibilities performed as precisely predicted by Vincent's theory (Vincent, 1987a). These were the immature character, the immatureneurotic character combination, and the no elevation on the WIN character scales.…”

“…These were the immature character, the immatureneurotic character combination, and the no elevation on the WIN character scales. In an earlier study that involved private patients, five of the eight possible personality combinations were examined, and four of the five performed as predicted by Vincent's theory (Vincent, 1987a). Whether this is due to the unusually large number of immature characters and, consequently, the resulting "pull" of the base rate remains to be seen.…”