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ObjectiveThe DSM-5 Alternative Model of Personality Disorders distinguishes core personality dysfunction common to all personality pathology from maladaptive traits that delineate specific variants of disorder. Previous research shows the convergence between maladaptive and normal range trait domains as well as substantial correlations between maladaptive traits and core dysfunctions, leading some to conclude that personality traits and dysfunction are redundant. This study sought to examine the potential utility of the concept of core dysfunctions as a means of clarifying the nature of the relationship between maladaptive and normal-range traits.MethodThree nonclinical samples (n = 178, 307, and 1,008) were evaluated for personality dysfunction, maladaptive traits, and normal-range traits using different measures.ResultsResults indicated that: (1) normal trait domains and core dysfunction contribute independently to understanding maladaptive traits; (2) the correlation of a normal trait domain with its putative maladaptive equivalent is consistently accounted for in part by core dysfunction; and (3) the multitrait multimethod matrices of normal and maladaptive personality trait domains demonstrate appreciable discriminant validity problems that are clarified by a consideration of core dysfunction.ConclusionThese results suggest that maladaptive traits reflect the distinguishable contributions of core personality dysfunction (problems) and normal-range personality traits (person).

We established realness as the relatively stable tendency to act on the outside the way one feels on the inside, without regard for proximal personal or social consequences. In nine studies, we showed that realness is a) a core feature of individual differences in authenticity, b) generally adaptive but largely unrelated to agreeableness, c) highly stable, d) reliably observable in dyadic behavior, and e) predictive of responses to situations with potential for personal or social costs. Informants both perceive agreeable motives in real behavior and recognize that being real can be disagreeable. We concluded that realness represents an important individual difference construct that is foundational for authentic social behavior, and that being real comes with both costs and benefits.

The Alternative Model of Personality Disorders (AMPD) integrates several theoretical models of personality functioning, including interpersonal theory. The interpersonal circumplex dimensions of warmth and dominance can be conceptualized as traits similar to those in AMPD Criterion B, but interpersonal theory also offers dynamic hypotheses about how these variables that change from moment to moment, which help to operationalize some of the processes alluded to in AMPD Criterion A. In the psychotherapy literature, dynamic interpersonal behaviors are thought to be critical for identifying therapeutic alliance ruptures, yet few studies have examined moment-to-moment interpersonal behaviors that are associated with alliance ruptures at an idiographic level. The current study examined the concurrent and cross-lagged relationships between interpersonal behaviors and alliance ruptures within each session in the famous Gloria films ("Three Approaches to Psychotherapy"). Interpersonal behaviors (warmth and dominance) as well as alliance ruptures (i.e., withdrawal and confrontation) were calculated at half minute intervals for each dyad. We identified distinct interpersonal patterns associated with alliance ruptures for each session: Gloria (patient)'s warmth was positively related with withdrawal ruptures concurrently in the session with Carl Rogers; Gloria's dominance and coldness were related with increased confrontation ruptures in the session with Fritz Perls concurrently, while her coldness was also predicted by confrontation ruptures at previous moments; lastly, both Gloria's dominance and Albert Ellis's submissiveness were positively related with withdrawal ruptures. These interpersonal patterns demonstrated the promise of using AMPD dimensions to conceptualize momentary interpersonal processes related to therapy ruptures, as well as the clinical importance of attuning to repetitive, dyad-specific interpersonal cues of ruptures within each session.

OBJECTIVE:The DSM-5 Alternative Model of Personality Disorders distinguishes core personality dysfunction common to all personality pathology from maladaptive traits that delineate specific variants of disorder. Previous research shows the convergence between maladaptive and normal range trait domains as well as substantial correlations between maladaptive traits and core dysfunctions, leading some to conclude that personality traits and dysfunction are redundant. This study sought to examine the potential utility of the concept of core dysfunctions as a means of clarifying the nature of the relationship between maladaptive and normal-range traits. METHOD:Three nonclinical samples (n = 178, 307, and 1,008) were evaluated for personality dysfunction, maladaptive traits, and normal-range traits using different measures. RESULTS:Results indicated that: (1) normal trait domains and core dysfunction contribute independently to understanding maladaptive traits; (2) the correlation of a normal trait domain with its putative maladaptive equivalent is consistently accounted for in part by core dysfunction; and (3) the multitrait multimethod matrices of normal and maladaptive personality trait domains demonstrate appreciable discriminant validity problems that are clarified by a consideration of core dysfunction. CONCLUSION:These results suggest that maladaptive traits reflect the distinguishable contributions of core personality dysfunction (problems) and normal-range personality traits (person).

ObjectiveInterpersonal dysfunction is an important marker of individual differences in personality and well-being. Existing research on interpersonal dysfunction focuses primarily on the problematic behaviors of individuals without considering how sensitivity to others' behavior impacts functioning. In this study, we test the structure and correlates of a model of relationship dysfunction that integrates the problems individuals bring to relationships with their sensitivities to others' behavior. We specifically examine the conjoint structure of interpersonal problems and sensitivities using a circumplex framework and associations between dimensions derived from this structure and personality, well-being, attachment, and response style variables.MethodWe evaluated competing measurement models and examined validity correlations of interpersonal problems and sensitivities in two samples (Study 1: N = 955; 79.2% women; Mage = 19.43; Study 2: N = 1,005; 72.1% women; Mage = 19.77).ResultsSix factors capturing general (nonspecific problems and sensitivities) and stylistic (warmth and dominance for both problems and sensitivities) variation in interpersonal dysfunction were empirically distinguishable and provided incremental information about external criteria.ConclusionsResults support problems and sensitivities as overlapping but distinct sources of information about interpersonal dysfunction, and they specifically suggest an integrative six-factor model with considerable potential for future research.

In this study we examined the structure, reliability, and validity of the Levels of Personality Functioning Scale-Self Report (LPFS-SR) in 3 large community samples. The LPFS-SR is a questionnaire with content that corresponds directly to the DSM-5 alternative model of personality disorders, Criterion A. We found that the LPFS-SR was highly reliable across a brief retest interval. LPFS-SR scores correlated substantially with a wide range of maladaptive personality traits, personality disorder constructs, and interpersonal problems. The LPFS-SR did not correlate as strongly with aspects of personality with less clear relations to distress and dysfunction. Data further support that identity, self-direction, intimacy, and empathy components of the LPFS-SR can be characterized by a single factor and have similar correlations with criterion variables, consistent with the hypothesis that DSM-5 Criterion A is a relatively homogeneous construct. Overall, these results support the validity of the LPFS-SR, highlight important issues in assessing personality pathology, and point toward novel avenues for research on personality disorder classification.

Objective: There is a strong evidence‐base for a psychodynamic approach, supporting primary theoretical tenets as well as the treatment effectiveness. Additionally, there are increasing calls from the field for more individualized treatment for clients, and the lack of training in multiple orientations limits the ability of students in clinical psychology Ph.D. programs in the United States to personalize their treatments. The accumulated evidence‐base for contemporary relational psychodynamic theory and therapy places it in good standing to return to the standard clinical psychology curriculum, along with other evidence‐based approaches. Methods: We use data from the Insider's Guide (which describes clinical Ph.D. programs in the United States) from three time points over 20 years to document the waning psychodynamic approach in clinical psychology programs. We review the scientific evidence for four primary tenets of a contemporary psychodynamic approach: three related to development—from healthy to psychopathological: (1) unconscious processes; (2) internal representations of self and other; (3) dimensional model of psychopathology, and a fourth tenet that builds on these three and is the foundation for a contemporary psychodynamic approach to psychotherapy: (4) therapeutic relationship as a primary mechanism of change. Results/Conclusions: Based on the review of the evidence, we make specific recommendations for clinical psychology training programs about how to include a psychodynamic approach in the curriculum. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Psychological pain is an important contributing factor to suicide risk. The present study examined the psychometric properties of the Psychic Pain Scale (PPS), a new measure assessing unbearable negative affect as described in Maltsberger's theory of suicidality. The PPS was administered to n = 131 adult psychiatric patients as well as n = 953 undergraduate students. An initial factor analysis which replicated across both clinical and undergraduate samples identified two factors, affective deluge, and loss of control. These subscales were associated with risk factors including trauma history, severity of psychopathology, and decreased resilience, as well as a range of pathological personality traits. Findings support the utility of the PPS as a measure of psychological pain and point to future directions of empirical evaluation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, we aimed to examine how moment-to-moment interpersonal behaviors of warmth and dominance in patients and therapists, as well as interpersonal complementarity, are related to withdrawal and confrontation ruptures as sessions unfold. Sixteen psychotherapy sessions from eight independent therapeutic dyads were sampled for the highest level of alliance ruptures from a naturalistic psychotherapy data set featuring evidence-based psychodynamic psychotherapy for patients with interpersonal problems and personality pathology. Interpersonal behaviors, complementarity, and alliance ruptures were generated every 30-s within each session. Subgrouping within group iterative multiple model estimation (S-GIMME) was used to identify an idiographic network structure for each session and examine generalizability at the nomothetic and subgroup levels. Nomothetically, patients' dominance negatively predicted therapists' dominance concurrently, but positively predicted therapists' dominance with a 30-s lag; additionally, therapists' dominance predicted their own concurrent warmth. At the subgroup level, therapists being less dominant than typical predicted more concurrent withdrawal ruptures. Idiographic modeling revealed a high degree of heterogeneity in how interpersonal behaviors are associated with ruptures. More confrontation ruptures concurrently predicted higher dominance complementarity in one subgroup. This study demonstrated the interconnection between patients' and therapists' in-session behaviors as well as the role of therapists' behaviors in momentary rupture development. This study highlights the importance of attuning and responding to individualized, momentary therapeutic contexts in navigating ruptures, and emphasizes the value of idiographic relational network approaches to aid in psychotherapy research and case conceptualization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]