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As developmental and clinical research on identity has largely developed in disconnect, scholars recommend adopting a developmental psychopathology perspective on identity, which considers adaptive and pathological identity functioning. Such a perspective has also been introduced in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (5th ed.; DSM-5) Alternative Model for Personality Disorders (AMPD), which suggests that all personality disorders (PDs) are marked by moderate to extreme deficits in self-functioning (i.e., identity and self-direction). The present study aims to validate the Dutch Self-Concept and Identity Measure (SCIM), a 27-item self-report questionnaire that assesses consolidated identity, disturbed identity, and lack of identity, in 153 psychiatric inpatients with PDs (75.2% female; Mage = 31.73). We investigated the factor structure and reliability of the SCIM, and examined associations of SCIM scales with typical identity processes, AMPD domains of self-functioning, and symptoms of all PDs. Results indicated that a 23-item Dutch SCIM produced valid and reliable scores among patients with PDs. Furthermore, SCIM scales were significantly and differentially related to identity commitment processes, ruminative identity exploration, domains of self-functioning, and symptoms of all PDs. Moreover, findings indicated that PDs varied regarding the severity of identity impairment.

Abstract. Identity difficulties have been associated with various psychiatric conditions and are considered a central issue in personality pathology. Following the Alternative Model for Personality Disorders, measures of self- and interpersonal functioning have been developed. Although these measures were intended to be separate ratings of self-other deficits, only a global rating was obtained. Moreover, these measures fall short in bridging the gap between developmental and clinical identity work. To capture both adaptive and disturbed identity dimensions, Kaufman et al. (2015) developed the Self-Concept and Identity Measure (SCIM) that assesses consolidated identity, disturbed identity, and lack of identity. Using two-wave longitudinal data (2,150 adolescents; 54.2% girls; age range = 12–19), this study investigated the factor structure and reliability of the Dutch SCIM, its measurement invariance across time, its longitudinal measurement invariance across gender and age groups, and associations of the SCIM with identity synthesis and confusion, Big-Five personality traits, and borderline personality disorder features. Consolidated identity scores were positively related to identity synthesis and adaptive Big-Five traits, whereas negatively related to identity confusion, neuroticism, and borderline features. Opposite associations were obtained for disturbed identity and lack of identity scores. The Dutch SCIM appeared to produce valid and reliable scores and seemed suited to assess longitudinal identity functioning in Belgian adolescents.

In Section III of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders – fifth edition (DSM-5), an Alternative Model for Personality Disorders (AMPD) is proposed, including a criterion for personality functioning impairment (Criterion A) to assess severity of personality pathology. The present study examined the structure, reliability, and convergent validity of the Dutch version of a five-item screening scale for Criterion A—the Five-Item Screening Scale for Personality Disorders (FISSPD; Skodol et al., in Personality Disorders: Theory, Research, and Treatment, 2, 4-22, 2011)—in a community sample of 1,477 adolescents and 546 adults. To assess convergent validity, identity and personality (pathology) questionnaires were completed by adolescents and adults. Confirmatory factor analysis yielded a single factor structure for the FISSPD, which proved to be (partially) invariant across age and gender. Adequate reliability coefficients were obtained for the FISSPD. In both the adolescent and adult sample, significant correlations were found between the FISSPD and consolidated identity (negative) and disturbed identity/lack of identity (positive). In the adult sample, the FISSPD showed significant correlations with several personality disorders (and especially with the borderline personality disorder), maladaptive personality traits (Criterion B of the AMPD), and general personality impairment. In the adolescent sample, the FISSPD was positively correlated with borderline personality disorder characteristics. Furthermore, significant correlations were found with the Big-Five personality traits in the adolescent sample: the FISSPD correlated significantly positive with neuroticism, and negative with extraversion, agreeableness, and conscientiousness. In sum, the present study supports the reliability and validity of the FISSPD to screen for (severity of) personality pathology. ispartof: Journal Of Psychopathology And Behavioral Assessment vol:44 issue:2 pages:418-431 status: Published online

Individual differences in identity development are commonly captured by identity statuses, representing combinations of high and/or low scores on identity exploration and commitment processes. Although identity impairment is considered a potential diagnostic criterion of all personality disorders (PDs) in Section III of DSM-5, studies that relate identity processes or statuses to PDs are limited. The current study examined associations between identity processes and statuses, and dimensionally measured PDs among 343 Belgian emerging adults (71.4% female; Mage = 22.73, SD = 2.85, age range = 18–30). Stepwise cluster analysis on the identity processes revealed six identity statuses: achievement, foreclosure, searching moratorium, troubled diffusion, carefree diffusion, and an undifferentiated status. Generally, commitment making and identification with commitment were negatively associated with PDs, whereas ruminative exploration was positively related to PDs. Individuals in troubled and carefree diffusion statuses reported the highest mean scores on PD symptomatology, whereas individuals in achievement and foreclosure statuses reported the lowest mean PD scores. The present findings suggest that individuals who appear unable to settle on identifying-defining commitments are prone to the highest levels of PD symptomatology. ispartof: European Journal Of Developmental Psychology vol:18 issue:1 pages:75-95 status: published

In the DSM-5 Section III Alternative Model for Personality Disorders (AMPD), the severity of personality pathology (criterion A) and the presence of pathological personality trait domains and facets (criterion B) are assessed independently. Recent studies have challenged this assumption of independence but the interplay between criterion A and criterion B remains subject of further research. Using model-based cluster analysis on the criterion B trait domains, we compared criterion B trait domain clusters with respect to criterion A severity measures. Results revealed a six-cluster solution. Four of the six clusters represented a gradual increase in criterion B trait domains, paralleling an increase in criterion A severity. Two clusters did not follow this pattern: an Anxious-Detached type exhibiting overall high criterion A severity scores, and an emotionally stable psychopathy type exhibiting a number of low criterion A severity scores. Our findings indicate that criterion B domain clusters are informative of criterion A severity, relevant for future conceptualizations of the AMPD.

Introduction: Research on identity development has primarily studied over-time trends in identity status change and exploration and commitment processes among late adolescents and emerging adults. Identity development in early and mid-adolescents has generally been overlooked. Hence, little is known about how a sense of identity synthesis and confusion evolves from early to late adolescence for boys and girls. Methods: The present cross-sectional study examined gender-moderated age trends in identity synthesis and confusion from ages 12 to 25 among 5860 Belgian adolescents (56.1% girls; Mage = 16.09). In addition, using a subsample of 2782 participants, we investigated associations of identity synthesis and confusion with depressive symptoms in early, mid-, and late adolescents. Results: Mean scores on identity synthesis decreased from ages 12 to 15, subsequently increased from ages 15 to 23, and decreased again later on. Mean scores on identity confusion followed a parallel but opposite cubic trend. Gender differences in these age trends were dependent upon the developmental period. For all age groups, identity synthesis scores were negatively associated with depressive symptoms, whereas positive associations emerged between identity confusion and depressive symptoms. Conclusions: From 12 to 25 years old, individuals experience an increasing sense of identity synthesis and less identity confusion, despite fluctuations that appear to be dependent upon the developmental period. Identity synthesis and confusion seem to be strongly negatively and positively associated with depressive symptoms in early, mid-, and late adolescents. ispartof: Journal Of Adolescence vol:87 pages:106-116 ispartof: location:England status: published

Section III of the fifth edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5) includes an alternative model for diagnosing personality disorders (PDs). This model highlights identity impairment as a potential criterion of all PDs, which has stimulated researchers to characterize identity functioning across PD presentations. Accordingly, the present study examined associations between dimensions of identity functioning and PD symptomatology among 242 Flemish community adults (49.2% female; Mage = 42.76, SD = 14.42). Participants completed the Self-Concept and Identity Measure (Kaufman, Cundiff, & Crowell, 2015) to assess identity functioning and the Assessment of DSM-IV Personality Disorders (Schotte, De Doncker, Vankerckhoven,Vertommen, & Cosyns, 1998) to assess dimensionally measured PDs. A correlational analysis yielded negative associations between the consolidated identity subscale and all PDs, whereas scores on both disturbed identity and lack of identity scales were positively associated with PDs. A multivariate regression analysis indicated that the consolidated identity scale did not account for unique variance in PD dimensions. Disturbed identity and lack of identity scale scores positively predicted variance in all PDs, with the lack of identity scale being the stronger predictor of symptoms of paranoid, schizotypal, and borderline PDs. Study findings generally support identity impairment as a central dimension in PD symptomatology in a Flemish community sample. ispartof: Journal Of Psychopathology And Behavioral Assessment vol:43 issue:1 pages:1-10 status: Published online

Introduction: The DSM-5 Alternative Model of Personality Disorders (AMPD) and the ICD-11 classification of personality disorders (PD) are largely commensurate and, when combined, they delineate 6 trait domains: negative affectivity, detachment, antagonism/dissociality, disinhibition, anankastia, and psychoticism. Objective: The present study evaluated the international validity of a brief 36-item patient-report measure that portrays all 6 domains simultaneously including 18 primary subfacets. Methods: We developed and employed a modified version of the Personality Inventory for DSM-5 – Brief Form Plus (PID5BF+). A total of 16,327 individuals were included, 2,347 of whom were patients. The expected 6-factor structure of facets was initially investigated in samples from Denmark (n = 584), Germany (n = 1,271), and the USA (n = 605) and subsequently replicated in both patient- and community samples from Italy, France, Switzerland, Belgium, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Poland, Czech Republic, the USA, and Brazil. Associations with interview-rated DSM-5 PD categories were also investigated. Results: Findings generally supported the empirical soundness and international robustness of the 6 domains including meaningful associations with familiar interview-rated PD types. Conclusions: The modified PID5BF+ may be employed internationally by clinicians and researchers for brief and reliable assessment of the 6 combined DSM-5 and ICD-11 domains, including 18 primary subfacets. This 6-domain framework may inform a future nosology for DSM-5.1 that is more reasonably aligned with the authoritative ICD-11 codes than the current DSM-5 AMPD model. The 36-item modified PID5BF+ scoring key is provided in online supplementary Appendix A see www.karger.com/doi/10.1159/000507589 (for all online suppl. material).

Recent studies have successfully investigated the validity of the DSM-5 Alternative Model for Personality Disorders. In a final sample of 174 psychiatric patients, the present study examined the relationship between the Personality Inventory for the DSM-5 (PID-5) and syndromal psychosis. Results showed that patients diagnosed with versus without a psychotic disorder significantly differed on all PID-5 domains except Antagonism. Discriminant function analysis indicated that lower Detachment, lower Negative Affect, lower Disinhibition, and higher Psychoticism best discriminated patients with a psychotic disorder from patients with other psychiatric conditions. Subsequent stepwise discriminant analysis on all facet scales of the contributing PID-5 domains revealed that higher Unusual Beliefs, lower Depressivity, and lower Distractibility contributed the most to this differentiation. PID-5 Psychoticism scores showed moderate correlations with current psychotic symptoms and were not influenced by dose of antipsychotic medication. Our results support the ability of the PID-5 to discriminate between patients with and without psychotic disorder. ispartof: Assessment vol:26 issue:2 pages:315-323 ispartof: location:United States status: published

We investigated the relation between subjective cognitive biases measured with the Dutch Davos Assessment of Cognitive Biases (DACOBS-NL) and (1) the presence of a psychotic versus nonpsychotic psychiatric disorder, (2) the current dose of antipsychotic medication and current psychotic symptoms, and (3) the Personality Inventory for the DSM-5 (PID-5) Psychoticism personality trait. Results showed that DACOBS-NL subjective cognitive biases (1) were equally present in patients diagnosed with nonpsychotic disorders compared with patients with a psychotic disorder, (2) could not be explained by the current dose of antipsychotic medication, nor by current psychotic symptoms, and (3) significantly correlated with all PID-5 Personality domains. Moreover, in predicting membership of the psychotic versus nonpsychotic psychiatric disorder group, the addition of the PID-5 domains in step 2 rendered the contribution of the DACOBS-NL subjective cognitive biases in step 1 nonsignificant. Further research is needed to clarify the interplay between cognitive biases and aberrant salience in the prediction of psychotic disorders.

© 2017 Elsevier Ltd Identity formation is a lifelong developmental process. Neo-Eriksonian researchers have primarily focused on normative identity exploration and commitment, while overlooking clinical identity disturbance and disorder. As a result, developmental and clinical conceptualizations of identity are largely disconnected. The Self-Concept and Identity Measure (SCIM; Kaufman, Cundiff, & Crowell, 2015) is a self-report questionnaire assessing identity consolidation, identity disturbance, and lack of identity. This instrument facilitates identifying both developmentally-appropriate and clinical-pathological identity functioning. Using three samples of Flemish individuals (totaling 1087 participants; between 18 and 67 years; 66.33% female), this study examined the factor structure and reliability of a Dutch version of the SCIM. Furthermore, associations with (1) identity dimensions of exploration and commitment, and (2) symptoms of anxiety, depression, and Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) were investigated by means of self-report questionnaires. We replicated the three-factor structure of the SCIM in each sample. All scales showed adequate internal consistency coefficients. In line with expectations, differential associations of SCIM scales were obtained with identity dimensions and psychopathological outcomes. The present findings underscore the importance of focusing on Eriksonian notions of identity synthesis and confusion, as well as on more severe forms of identity problems, as captured by SCIM's lack of identity scale. ispartof: Personality and Individual Differences vol:123 pages:56-64 status: published

ispartof: EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF PSYCHOLOGICAL ASSESSMENT vol:34 issue:5 pages:291-294 status: Published online

Objective: A large body of research has demonstrated the importance of cognitive biases in the development and maintenance of psychosis. Self-report scales for routine clinical practice have been developed only recently. Two new instruments on cognitive biases are evaluated: the Cognitive Biases Questionnaire for Psychosis and the Davos Assessment of Cognitive Biases Scale. Methods: In a Flemish sample of 98 patients diagnosed with schizophrenia and 152 healthy controls, we investigated (1) the factor structure, (2) the reliability (internal consistency), (3) the discriminative power and (4) the convergent validity of the Dutch CBQ-P and the DACOBS. Results: Using Confirmatory Factor Analysis, a 1-factor solution provided the best fit for the CBQ-P, and a 3-factor solution for the DACOBS. The CBQ-P Total Scale and the three scales of the DACOBS showed good internal consistencies. The CBQ-P Total Scale and all three DACOBS subscales were able to differentiate between healthy controls and patients diagnosed with schizophrenia, when controlling for age and years of education. The CBQ-P and DACOBS scales showed moderate correlations, confirming the convergent validity of both scales. Conclusions: The CPQ-P and DACOBS appear to be psychometrical sound instruments to assess general thinking bias in psychosis within a Flemish population. Implications for future research are discussed. © 2013 Elsevier B.V.

The factor structure and the convergent validity of the Personality Inventory for DSM-5 (PID-5), a self-report questionnaire designed to measure personality pathology as advocated in the fifth edition, Section III of Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders ( DSM-5), are already demonstrated in general population samples, but need replication in clinical samples. In 240 Flemish inpatients, we examined the factor structure of the PID-5 by means of exploratory structural equation modeling. Additionally, we investigated differences in PID-5 higher order domain scores according to gender, age and educational level, and explored convergent and discriminant validity by relating the PID-5 with the Dimensional Assessment of Personality Pathology—Basic Questionnaire and by comparing PID-5 scores of inpatients with and without a DSM-IV categorical personality disorder diagnosis. Our results confirmed the original five-factor structure of the PID-5. The reliability and the convergent and discriminant validity of the PID-5 proved to be adequate. Implications for future research are discussed.

Based on the widely used Penn State Worry Questionnaire for trait worry, a scale was developed to measure the level of worry experienced during the past 24 h. This instrument, the Penn State Worry Questionnaire—Past Day (PSWQ-PD), was administered to a student sample and two clinical samples. The PSWQ-PD demonstrated high internal consistency, good convergent validity and adequate test-retest reliability. A confirmatory factor analysis revealed that a unifactorial solution provided the best fit. Moreover, it was shown that the PSWQ-PD is a more state-like worry measure than the original PSWQ. The PSWQ-PD is a promising, brief tool for daily worry assessment, which is apt for frequent administration.

The Personality Inventory for DSM-5 (PID-5; Krueger et al., 2012) is a dimensional self-report questionnaire designed to measure personality pathology according to the criterion B of the DSM-5 Section III personality model. In the current issue of DSM, this dimensional Section III personality model co-exists with the Section II categorical personality model derived from DSM-IV-TR. Therefore, investigation of the inter-relatedness of both models across populations and languages is warranted. In this study, we first examined the factor structure and reliability of the PID-5 in a Flemish community sample (N=509) by means of exploratory structural equation modeling and alpha coefficients. Next, we investigated the predictive ability of section III personality traits in relation to section II personality disorders through correlations and stepwise regression analyses. Results revealed a five factor solution for the PID-5, with adequate reliability of the facet scales. The variance in Section II personality disorders could be predicted by their theoretically comprising Section III personality traits, but additional Section III personality traits augmented this prediction. Based on current results, we discuss the Section II personality disorder conceptualization and the Section III personality disorder operationalization. (C) 2016 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.