Examining the relations among the DSM-5 alternative model of personality, the five-factor model, and externalizing and internalizing behavior.
Level 4 - case-series / case-control
Cross-sectional psychometric validation study (by design analogy, not clinical CEBM).
PubMed 28125251 · doi:10.1037/per0000240
What was done
Researchers compared the Personality Inventory for DSM-5 (PID-5), which measures the DSM-5 Alternative Model pathological trait domains, with an International Personality Item Pool (IPIP) measure of the Five-Factor Model (FFM). A sample of 340 undergraduate students completed both inventories along with assessments of internalizing and externalizing symptoms to examine convergent and discriminant validity.
What was found
The abstract reports no numerical values, test statistics, or correlation coefficients. Qualitatively, domains across both instruments were significantly related and exhibited similar associations with criterion symptoms: Antagonism/low Agreeableness and Disinhibition/low Conscientiousness related to externalizing behaviors, while Negative Affectivity/Neuroticism was most significantly related to internalizing symptoms. However, the PID-5 exhibited large interrelations among its own domains and poorer discriminant validity compared to the IPIP.
Why it matters
The findings support conceptualizing DSM-5 Section III traits as extensions of the Five-Factor Model, but identify potential measurement limitations regarding PID-5 domain overlap.
Limits
The study used a non-clinical convenience sample of university undergraduates, limiting generalizability to clinical populations with personality disorders. The cross-sectional self-report design cannot establish causality or longitudinal stability, and the abstract omits quantitative effect sizes.
Cited by
- supports Chronic engagement in maladaptive behaviors such as drug use, aggression, and risky sexual behavior typically involves three personality dimensions: sensation-seeking, disinhibition, and antagonism or callousness.