Bipolar disorder: I. Temperament and character

Background: The nature of the relationship between personality and bipolar affective disorders is an important but unanswered question. Methods: We have studied personality in bipolar patients by using the Temperament and Character Inventory (TCI). TCI were administered to 100 euthymic bipolar patie...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of affective disorders 2004-10, Vol.82 (1), p.131-134
Main Authors: Engström, Christer, Brändström, Sven, Sigvardsson, Sören, Cloninger, Robert, Nylander, Per-Olof
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adult
Adult and adolescent clinical studies
Aged
Biological and medical sciences
Bipolar
Bipolar Disorder - psychology
Bipolar disorders
Case-Control Studies
Character
Cross-Sectional Studies
Female
Humans
Male
Medical sciences
MEDICIN
MEDICINE
Middle Aged
Mood disorders
Personality
Personality Inventory
Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry
Psychopathology. Psychiatry
Temperament
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Summary:Background: The nature of the relationship between personality and bipolar affective disorders is an important but unanswered question. Methods: We have studied personality in bipolar patients by using the Temperament and Character Inventory (TCI). TCI were administered to 100 euthymic bipolar patients and 100 controls from the normal population. Results: Bipolar patients were significantly higher in harm avoidance (HA) and lower in reward dependence (RD), self-directedness (SD), and cooperativeness (CO) than controls. Bipolar patients are more fatigable, less sentimental, more independent, less purposeful, less resourceful, less empathic, less helpful, less pure-hearted, and have less impulse control than controls. Bipolar II patients are more impulsive, more fatigable, less resourceful, and have less impulse control than bipolar I patients. Limitations: Our results are limited to euthymic bipolar patients and cannot be generalized to affective disorders. Conclusions: Even when clinically euthymic on lithium maintenance, bipolar patients continue to have a characteristic cognitive deficit. This is in agreement with cognitive theories about cognitive deficits in depression that are regarded as important vulnerability factors in mood disorders.
ISSN:0165-0327
1573-2517
1573-2517
DOI:10.1016/j.jad.2003.09.004