Identifying Personality Disorders that are Security Risks: Field Test Results

Accurate identification and assessment of employees with risky personality disorders is imperative for programs that involve access to nuclear materials, weapons, and biological select agents which depend on personnel maintaining mental health and reliable behavior. Certain risky personality disorde...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Shechter, Olga G, Lang, Eric L
Format: Report
Language:English
Subjects:
BEHAVIOR
FIELD TESTS
MENTAL DISORDERS
MENTAL HEALTH
PERSONALITY
Psychology
RISK
SECURITY
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Summary:Accurate identification and assessment of employees with risky personality disorders is imperative for programs that involve access to nuclear materials, weapons, and biological select agents which depend on personnel maintaining mental health and reliable behavior. Certain risky personality disorders, however, are especially difficult to diagnose with routine assessment tools that rely on the subject's self-report. To combat this issue, Defense Personnel Security Research Center, in collaboration with Department of Energy, initiated a field test that examined whether an improved screening tool has utility for clinicians who routinely evaluate personnel in a high-risk program. Five clinicians used the Shedler-Westen Assessment Procedure (SWAP), along with its Dispositional Indicators of Risk Exposure (DIRE) subscale developed earlier, for a period of 4 months to evaluate 26 new candidates and current employees of concern. Debriefing interviews indicated that SWAP/DIRE was more effective than clinicians' existing tools for establishing a positive rapport with the subject, assessing personality disorders, and making legally-defensible recommendations. Findings also include recommendations for using SWAP/DIRE methodology for identifying risky personnel. Prepared in collaboration with Northrop Grumman Technical Services.