The contribution of temperament, childhood neglect, and abuse to the development of personality dysfunction : A comparison of three models

We examined the contribution of temperament, childhood neglect, and abuse to the development of personality dysfunction as postulated in three different but correlated models of personality: the psychobiological, Vaillant's psychoanalytic, and DSM psychopathology models. Character, defense styl...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of personality disorders 2001-04, Vol.15 (2), p.123-135
Main Authors: CARTER, Janet D, JOYCE, Peter R, MULDER, Roger T, LUTY, Suzanne E
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adult
Adult and adolescent clinical studies
Biological and medical sciences
Character
Child
Child Abuse
Child Abuse - psychology
Child Rearing
Defense Mechanisms
Depression
Depression (Psychology)
Depressive Disorder, Major - diagnosis
Depressive Disorder, Major - psychology
Emotional Response
Female
Humans
Male
Medical sciences
Mental Health Programs
Mood disorders
Personality
Personality Development
Personality disorders
Personality Disorders - diagnosis
Personality Disorders - psychology
Personality Problems
Physical Health
Psychiatric Status Rating Scales
Psychiatry
Psychoanalytic Theory
Psychological Patterns
Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry
Psychopathology
Psychopathology. Psychiatry
Rating Scales
Risk Factors
Schizophrenia
Sexual Abuse
Temperament
Validity
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Summary:We examined the contribution of temperament, childhood neglect, and abuse to the development of personality dysfunction as postulated in three different but correlated models of personality: the psychobiological, Vaillant's psychoanalytic, and DSM psychopathology models. Character, defense style, and personality disorder symptomatology (the dependent variables), and temperament, childhood neglect, and abuse (the independent variables) were assessed in 168 depressed outpatients. High harm avoidance (temperament) tended to be the strongest and most consistent risk factor across the three models. Deficient parental care predicted personality dysfunction, however low care was not consistently predictive across all three models. Emotional/psychological abuse and actual physical abuse were risk factors for increasing personality disorder symptomatology only. Childhood sexual abuse was not as predictive of personality dysfunction as might be expected, thereby raising questions as to the importance placed on child sexual abuse as a general risk factor for personality psychopathology.
ISSN:0885-579X
1943-2763
DOI:10.1521/pedi.15.2.123.19216