Interpersonal Competence and Daily Stress Generation in Individuals with Avoidant Personality Disorder Symptoms

Abstract

Stress generation research has historically examined the link between depression and stressful life events, particularly interpersonal events. Stress generation theory has rarely been applied to personality disorders, which are characterized by longstanding, pervasive, and often self-perpetuating interpersonal difficulties. In addition, there is little research on the specific types of interpersonal deficits associated with personality disorders. We examined the associations between symptoms of Avoidant Personality Disorder (AVPD), interpersonal competence, and daily stress generation. College students completed measures of personality disorder symptoms, interpersonal competence, and a 7-day diary of daily negative events. Multilevel mediation models showed that lower Conflict Management skills mediated the relation between AVPD symptoms and daily negative events. These results suggest that a daily model of stress generation might apply to these personality disorder symptoms and that interpersonal compete...