Discrepancies in self- and informant-reports of personality pathology: Examining the DSM-5 Section III trait model.

Abstract

A proposed feature of personality pathology involves disturbances in identity, of which a lack of insight is one such manifestation. From recommendations in the literature, one potential approach to assess and quantify such impairment and link it to personality pathology, would be to obtain self-reports and informant reports and subsequently index the degree personality pathology severity exacerbates self-other discrepancies. The current study examines the degree to which self-reports and informant reports of Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition (DSM-5), Section III trait scores are discrepant (i.e., mean-level discrepancies and correlational accuracy), as well as whether general personality pathology severity moderates these characteristics. Target participants (N = 208) in an elevated-risk community sample completed the Personality Inventory for DSM-5 (PID-5), and knowledgeable informants rated targets using the informant version of the PID-5. General personality pathology severity was assessed via an aggregate of five-factor model personality disorder prototype scores derived from self-report, informant-report, and interview ratings. Mean-level discrepancies and correlational accuracy (and their moderation by general personality pathology) for PID-5 domains, facets, and personality disorder scores were subsequently examined. Results suggested that targets tended to mostly rate themselves only slightly lower than informants across all PID-5 scores (median dz = .21), and correlational accuracy across all PID-5 scores was moderate (median r = .34). Importantly, however, mean-level discrepancies increased as general personality pathology severity scores increased. Implications and future directions for the multimethod assessment of dimensional personality pathology are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved).