Papers by Leen Bastiaansen

Personality disorders, Jan 9, 2015
Besides the categorical classification of personality disorders (PDs) in Section II of the DSM-5 ... more Besides the categorical classification of personality disorders (PDs) in Section II of the DSM-5 (American Psychiatric Association, 2013), which has been transferred as such from DSM-IV, Section III provides an alternative model to stimulate further research on the dimensional conceptualization of PDs. In this alternative system, a PD diagnosis is based on 2 essential criteria: impaired personality functioning and the presence of pathological traits. One topic that warrants further research concerns the incremental validity of these 2 components. The current study addresses this issue in a mixed community-patient sample (N = 233). First, Goldberg's (2006) "bass-ackwards" method was used to examine the hierarchical structure of pathological traits as measured by the Dimensional Assessment of Personality Pathology (DAPP-BQ; Livesley & Jackson, 2009). We then extracted a single higher order factor from the Severity Index of Personality Problems (SIPP-118; Verheul et al., ...

Personality Disorders: Theory, Research, and Treatment, 2013
As it stands now, the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (5th ed.; DSM-5; Amer... more As it stands now, the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (5th ed.; DSM-5; American Psychiatric Association, in press) will maintain the categorical model and criteria distinguishing the 10 personality disorders (PDs) described in the fourth edition of the manual (DSM-IV; American Psychiatric Association, 1994). An alternative diagnostic proposal based on two criteria, being impaired personality functioning and the presence of maladaptive traits, will be referred to a special section for further research and clinical evaluation. Two issues pertaining to this alternative diagnostic approach need further clarification. First, more insight is required in the specific nature of personality dysfunction, its underlying structure, and optimal operationalization. Second, confusion still exists about how personality dysfunction and traits are interconnected and how they both contribute to the PD diagnosis. The current study addresses both issues empirically in a sample of 159 psychiatric patients by (a) investigating the structure of personality functioning as assessed by the Severity Indices of Personality Problems (SIPP-118), and (b) determining the incremental validity of the resulting dysfunction factors vis-à-vis trait domains (measured by the NEO Personality Inventory-Revised [NEO-PI-R]) in explaining DSM-IV PD variance. Trait and dysfunction dimensions were strongly correlated but showed significant, though limited, incremental validity above each other. Implications for the conceptualization of personality pathology are discussed.
Journal of personality assessment, 2014
We examined the factorial structure of the Dutch version of the Personality Adjective Checklist (... more We examined the factorial structure of the Dutch version of the Personality Adjective Checklist (PACL-D) in a Belgian sample of 3,012 community-dwelling adults. Exploratory factor analyses revealed a 5-factor structure (Neurotic, Aggressive/Dominant, Introverted vs. Extraverted, Conscientious, and Cooperative), that showed considerable overlap with 3 of the Big Five factors (i.e., Neuroticism, Extraversion, and Conscientiousness). Moreover, the 5-factor structure closely resembled the structure found in the original American PACL and was equivalent across gender and age.
Journal of Psychopathology and Behavioral Assessment, 2013

Journal of Personality Disorders, 2011
Earlier factor analytical studies on the empirical validity of the DSM-IV-TR (American Psychologi... more Earlier factor analytical studies on the empirical validity of the DSM-IV-TR (American Psychological Association, 2000) Axis II classification have offered little support for the current three-cluster structure. In his large-scale meta-analysis of previously published personality disorder correlation matrices, found four factors, corresponding to the neuroticism, extraversion, agreeableness, and conscientiousness domains of the five-factor model of personality. In the present study, this dimensional four-factor model and the categorical DSM three-cluster structure were fitted to the Assessment of DSM-IV Personality Disorders questionnaire (ADP-IV; scale scores using structural equation modelling. The results strongly favored the dimensional model, which also resembled other well-founded four-factor proposals . Moreover, a multigroup confirmatory factor analysis showed that this model was highly invariant and thus generalizable across two large clinical (n = 1,029) and general population (n = 659) samples.

Journal of Personality Disorders, 2014
In DSM-5, the categorical model and criteria for the 10 personality disorders included in DSM-IV ... more In DSM-5, the categorical model and criteria for the 10 personality disorders included in DSM-IV will be reprinted in Section II. Moreover, an alternative dimensional classification model will appear in Section III. This alternative DSM-5 proposal for the diagnosis of a personality disorder is based on two fundamental criteria: impairments in personality functioning (Criterion A) and the presence of pathological personality traits (Criterion B). In the maladaptive trait model that has been developed to operationalize Criterion B, 25 pathological traits are organized according to five higher order dimensions. The current study focuses on the convergence of the proposed DSM-5 trait model (as measured by the Personality Inventory for DSM-5 [PID-5]) with the Dimensional Assessment of Personality Pathology (DAPP) model (as measured by the Dimensional Assessment of Personality Pathology-Basic Questionnaire [DAPP-BQ]) in a sample of older people. A joint hierarchical factor analysis showed clear convergence between four PID-5 dimensions (Negative Affect, Detachment, Antagonism, Disinhibition) and conceptually similar DAPP-BQ components. Moreover, the PID-5 and the DAPP-BQ showed meaningful associations on different levels of their joint hierarchical factor structure. Methodological and theoretical implications of these initial results for the conceptualization of personality pathology are discussed.
Journal of Personality Assessment, 2014
We examined the factorial structure of the Dutch version of the Personality Adjective Checklist (... more We examined the factorial structure of the Dutch version of the Personality Adjective Checklist (PACL-D) in a Belgian sample of 3,012 community-dwelling adults. Exploratory factor analyses revealed a 5-factor structure (Neurotic, Aggressive/Dominant, Introverted vs. Extraverted, Conscientious, and Cooperative), that showed considerable overlap with 3 of the Big Five factors (i.e., Neuroticism, Extraversion, and Conscientiousness). Moreover, the 5-factor structure closely resembled the structure found in the original American PACL and was equivalent across gender and age.

European Journal of Personality, 2013
The research agenda for DSM-5 emphasizes the implementation of dimensional trait models into the ... more The research agenda for DSM-5 emphasizes the implementation of dimensional trait models into the classification of personality disorders (PDs). However, because assessment psychologists may still want to recover the traditional DSM-IV categories, researchers developed a count technique that uses sums of selected Five-Factor Model facets to assess the DSM-IV PDs. The presented study examined the convergent and divergent validity of different linear combinations of trait facets to describe specific DSM-IV PDs in a heterogeneous clinical sample (N = 155) with sufficient prevalence of all PDs, using semi-structured interviews to obtain all diagnostic information, and comparing alternative counts from five different sources for each PD. The results show that none of the schizotypal, antisocial, and dependent counts succeeded in combining good convergent with adequate divergent validity. However, the original counts could be optimized for five of the seven remaining PDs by using alternative Five-Factor Model prototypes. The diagnostic and taxonomic implications of these findings are discussed. Note: FFM, Five-Factor Model of personality; PD, personality disorder; DSM-IV, Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, fourth edition. Because the counts are composed of different numbers of facets, their means and standard deviations are divided by this number so that scores on different counts can be compared. L. Bastiaansen et al.

Aging & Mental Health, 2013
Research on the applicability of the five factor model (FFM) to capture personality pathology coi... more Research on the applicability of the five factor model (FFM) to capture personality pathology coincided with the development of a FFM personality disorder (PD) count technique, which has been validated in adolescent, young, and middle-aged samples. This study extends the literature by validating this technique in an older sample. Five alternative FFM PD counts based upon the Revised NEO Personality Inventory (NEO PI-R) are computed and evaluated in terms of both convergent and divergent validity with the Assessment of DSM-IV Personality Disorders Questionnaire (shortly ADP-IV; DSM-IV, Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders - Fourth edition). For the best working count for each PD normative data are presented, from which cut-off scores are derived. The validity of these cut-offs and their usefulness as a screening tool is tested against both a categorical (i.e., the DSM-IV - Text Revision), and a dimensional (i.e., the Dimensional Assessment of Personality Pathology; DAPP) measure of personality pathology. All but the Antisocial and Obsessive-Compulsive counts exhibited adequate convergent and divergent validity, supporting the use of this method in older adults. Using the ADP-IV and the DAPP - Short Form as validation criteria, results corroborate the use of the FFM PD count technique to screen for PDs in older adults, in particular for the Paranoid, Borderline, Histrionic, Avoidant, and Dependent PDs. Given the age-neutrality of the NEO PI-R and the considerable lack of valid personality assessment tools, current findings appear to be promising for the assessment of pathology in older adults.
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Papers by Leen Bastiaansen