Citation

Cohen LJ, Tanis T, Bhattacharjee R, Nesci C, Halmi W, Galynker II. Psychiatry Res. 2014; 215(1): 192-201.

Affiliation

Beth Israel Medical Center, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Beth Israel Medical Center, 1st Avenue & 16th Street, New York, NY 10003, USA. Electronic address: LCohen@chpnet.org.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2014, Elsevier Publishing)

DOI

10.1016/j.psychres.2013.10.036

PMID

24268580

Abstract

While considerable data support the relationship between childhood trauma and adult personality pathology in general, there is little research investigating the specific relationships between different types of childhood maltreatment and adult personality disorders. The present study tested a model incorporating five a priori hypotheses regarding the association between distinct forms of childhood maltreatment and personality pathology in 231 psychiatric patients using multiple self-report measures (Personality Diagnostic Questionnaire-4th Edition, Child Trauma Questionnaire, Conflict in Tactics Scale Parent-Child Child-Adult, and Multidimensional Neglectful Behavior Scale). Step-wise linear regressions supported three out of five hypotheses, suggesting independent relationships between: physical abuse and antisocial personality disorder traits; emotional abuse and Cluster C personality disorder traits; and maternal neglect and Cluster A personality disorder traits after controlling for co-occurring maltreatment types and personality disorder traits. Results did not support an independent relationship between sexual abuse and borderline personality traits nor between emotional abuse and narcissistic personality disorder traits. Additionally, there were three unexpected findings: physical abuse was independently and positively associated with narcissistic and paranoid traits and negatively associated with Cluster C traits. These findings can help refine our understanding of adult personality pathology and support the future development of clinical tools for survivors of childhood maltreatment.

Language: en