Engagement in posttraumatic stress disorder treatment for veterans who experienced military sexual trauma and are diagnosed with serious mental illness.

It is important to ensure that veterans who have experienced military sexual trauma (MST) and have posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) have access to trauma-focused treatment. For veterans with serious mental illness (SMI), prior work documents decreased likelihood to receive trauma-focused care. This study focused on evaluating the engagement of Veterans Health Administration (VHA) patients diagnosed with PTSD and who have experienced MST in PTSD specialty care, as well as how this differs for veterans with SMI. Using VHA administrative data, all VHA patients who screened positive for MST prior to fiscal year 2019 (FY2019) were identified (N = 84,503). Based on information from FY2019, measures of psychiatric diagnosis status and VHA treatment participation were generated for all cohort members. Logistic regressions assessed whether there were differences in the likelihood to initiate PTSD care (1+ VHA PTSD specialty clinic encounter) or receive guideline-concordant levels of PTSD specialty care (8+ VHA PTSD specialty clinic encounter) during FY2019. Several other patient characteristics associated with decreased likelihood to receive VHA PTSD specialty servies were identified, including White race and older age. Patient SMI status was not significantly associated with likelihood to initiate or receive guideline-concordant levels of PTSD specialty care. Overall, PTSD treatment initiation was low (11% of veterans with SMI initiated PTSD specialty treatment, as opposed to 10% of veterans without SMI). Additional work is merited to identify ways that VHA is able to overcome barriers to trauma care participation experienced by persons who have experienced MST and been diagnosed with PTSD. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

Mortality and suicidality in veterans health administration patients with newly-identified early episode psychosis.

Within the Veterans Affairs (VA), management of self-harm is a major clinical priority. However, there is limited information on risks for self-harm among VA patients with emerging psychotic disorders relative to VA patients with other emerging mental health conditions. Using information from fiscal years 2010 through 2018, a national cohort of VA patients 30 or younger was classified based on mental health diagnoses into three groups: 1) early episode psychosis (EEP), 2) non-early episode psychosis mental health (non-EEP MH), or 3) no mental health (no MH). Analyses focused on cohort members' risk for all-cause mortality, suicide mortality, and non-fatal suicide attempts (NFSA) during the year following initial diagnosis of mental health conditions (or first year of VA care, for the no MH group). In unadjusted analyses, the EEP group had elevated rates of all-cause mortality, suicide mortality, and NFSA relative to the non-EEP MH and no MH groups and the non-EEP MH had elevated rates of all-cause mortality, suicide mortality, and NFSA relative to the no MH group. After adjusting for demographics and care receipt, EEP status was unrelated to all-cause mortality but associated with increased suicide mortality risk and NFSA. Non-EEP MH status was associated with reduced risk of all-cause mortality but increased risk for NFSA. In the year following first diagnosis, VA patients with EEP are at increased risk for suicide mortality and self-harm even after accounting for other risk factors. Clinical services targeting this crucial time can help promote safety for this vulnerable group.

Borderline personality disorder traits and rates of NSSI during the COVID-19 pandemic: An initial investigation.

Objective: The current study evaluated frequency of nonsuicidal self-injury (NSSI) and associated maladaptive traits between three time periods: pre-pandemic, early pandemic, and later pandemic. Participants: Two college student samples (n = 362; n = 337) were collected via two online studies. Method: Participants completed measures assessing maladaptive borderline personality traits, engagement in NSSI over the past month, and reasons for and types of NSSI engaged in across the lifetime. Results: Results demonstrated a stable and potentially a slight increase in general rates of NSSI over the course of the pandemic. Further, specific maladaptive traits that underly borderline personality disorder (i.e., despondence, fragility, self-disturbance, and anxious-uncertainty) were related to engagement in NSSI 1-month post COVID. Conclusion: The study highlights the need for added interventions that might reach at risk populations during these heightened periods of stress.

Attitudes, Clinical Practices, and Perceived Advocacy Needs of Professionals With Interests in Personality Disorders.

Experts in personality disorders (PDs) generally prefer dimensional diagnostic systems to categorical ones, but less is known about experts' attitudes toward personality pathology diagnoses in adolescents, and little is known about public health shortfalls and advocacy needs and how these might differ geographically. To fill these gaps, the International Society for the Study of Personality Disorders surveyed 248 professionals with interests in PDs about their attitudes toward different diagnostic systems for adults and adolescents, their PD-related clinical practices, and perceived advocacy needs in their area. Results suggested that dimensional diagnostic systems are preferable to categorical and that skepticism about personality pathology in adolescents may not be warranted. The most pressing advocacy need was the increased availability of PD-related services, but many other needs were identified. Results provide a blueprint for advocacy and suggest ways that professional societies can collaborate with public health bodies to expand the reach of PD expertise and services.

Veterans affairs serious mental illness patients: Differences in high-intensity service use by personality disorder status.

Individuals with serious mental illnesses (SMI) or personality disorders (PD) have complex treatment needs and are at risk of adverse outcomes. Yet, little is known about the impact of comorbid SMI and PD on risk factors. This study used the Veterans Health Administration (VHA)'s corporate data warehouse (CDW) to assess the differences between those with and without a comorbid PD, as well as the prevalence and impact of PD diagnoses on high-intensity/emergency service utilization in VHA patients with a SMI diagnosis (schizophrenia spectrum disorders and bipolar spectrum disorders). In fiscal year 2018, 163,904 VHA patients had encounters that listed SMI diagnoses, including 9,216 patients who had encounters that listed PD diagnoses. Bivariate analyses and logistic regression were used to compare group characteristics and determine whether a PD diagnosis was associated with utilization of high-intensity care services. The SMI with no PD and SMI with comorbid PD (SMI-PD) groups differed in terms of demographic, medication, clinical, and service utilization characteristics, including that the SMI-PD group was 5.25 times more likely to have documented suicide risk and 4.73 times more likely to have documented behavioral risk. After controlling for multiple patient characteristics, patients in the SMI-PD group were 1.35 times more likely to have some emergency department (ED) utilization and 1.94 times more likely to have some inpatient mental health use. Having a diagnosed comorbid PD was associated with increased prevalence of medical and psychiatric problems. Findings suggest that patients with comorbid PDs have particularly high-treatment needs and may benefit from assessment of, and adapted treatments for, PDs. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).

Personality disorder and suicide risk among patients in the veterans affairs health system.

Among veterans in Veterans Health Administration (VHA) care, patients with mental health and substance use conditions experience elevated suicide rates. However, despite previously demonstrated high rates of suicidal behavior, little is known regarding suicide rates among veteran VHA users with personality disorders (PDs) as a whole, or by PD clusters (A: Eccentric; B: Dramatic; C: Fearful; and PD-not otherwise specified). PD prevalence and suicide rates were assessed through 2017; overall and by clusters for 5,517,024 veterans alive as of 12/31/2013 and with more than 2 VHA encounters in 2012-2013. In all, 46,050 (.83%) had a PD diagnosis in 2012-2013. Suicide risk was examined using proportional hazards regressions adjusted for age, sex, veteran status, clustering within a geographic region, and other mental health diagnoses. Patients with PDs had greater suicide risk than those without (156.5 vs. 46.7 per 100,000 person-years). Individuals in Cluster B, which includes borderline and antisocial PDs, were at the highest risk (178.5 per 100,000 person-years), followed by PD-not otherwise specified and Cluster C (152.6 and 121.4 per 100,000 person-years, respectively). Rates of PDs in the VHA system were lower than those usually found in community samples. Veterans with a PD diagnosis had an increased risk of suicide, which was especially elevated for those with Cluster B diagnoses. Study findings document the importance of enhancing diagnosis and treatment for veterans with PDs and targeted suicide prevention services. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).

Access to timely mental health care treatment initiation among Veterans Health Administration patients with and without serious mental illness.

Timely care initiation is a priority within the Veterans Health Administration (VHA). Patients with serious mental illnesses (SMI) are a group that benefits from timely care initiation due to elevated risks of negative outcomes with delayed care. However, no evaluation has assessed whether VHA SMI patients disproportionately experience delays in mental health care initiation. VHA administrative care data were used to compare delays in mental health care initiation for VHA patients with and without SMI who had newly identified mental health needs. Analyses assessed rates of delayed initial mental health appointments within five settings (General Mental Health [GMH], Primary Care Mental Health Integration [PC-MHI], Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder [PTSD], Substance Use Disorder [SUD], and Psychosocial Rehabilitation clinics [PSR]). SMI patients were more likely to receive delayed initial appointments in three of five clinical settings (PTSD, SUD, PSR) and had significantly longer average wait times for an initial appointment when referred to the PTSD clinic for an initial appointment. Overall, SMI patients were equally as likely to receive delayed initial appointments. While VHA SMI patients were not more likely to experience delayed mental health care initiation overall, they were more likely to experience delays within three of the five treatment settings. Findings suggest that the majority of VHA SMI patients experience equivalent timeliness, though those with more complex needs, and particularly those with trauma-related care needs, may be more likely to experience treatment initiation delays. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).

Predictors of High-Intensity Psychiatric Service Utilization by Veterans Health Administration Patients With Early Psychosis.

OBJECTIVE: People with early episode psychosis (EEP) have more negative care outcomes than do people with later episode psychosis (LEP), including higher levels of high-intensity psychiatric service use. It is unclear whether these differences are best explained by clinical differences between these two groups or whether people with EEP have specific treatment needs. An assessment of the treatment needs of patients with EEP can help inform the implementation of national treatment programming designed to provide better care to this group. METHODS: Administrative data were used to compare characteristics of Veterans Health Administration patients who had EEP (i.e., a psychotic diagnosis, diagnosis history of ≤4 years, and age ≤30 years; N=4,595) with those with LEP (i.e., a psychotic diagnosis, longer diagnosis history, and older age; N=108,713) who received care during a 1-year evaluation period. The authors generated logistic regressions to assess the potential impact of EEP status on the likelihood of receipt of emergency department (ED) and inpatient psychiatric admissions while controlling for other patient characteristics. RESULTS: Patients with EEP had elevated psychiatric comorbidity and mental health severity yet received equivalent outpatient mental health services. Patients with EEP were more likely to have had an ED visit for the treatment of a mental health condition and inpatient psychiatric admissions; this pattern persisted in analyses that controlled for group differences. CONCLUSIONS: Patients with EEP have unique mental health treatment needs. The development and implementation of EEP-specific treatments could help address these needs and reduce the number of patients using higher levels of psychiatric services within large health care systems.

Validation and extension of personality disorder spectra scales from MMPI-2-RF items.

OBJECTIVES: Recent efforts have been made to develop 10 personality disorder spectra scales using items from the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory-2 Restructured Form (MMPI-2-RF). These scales, developed by Sellbom et al. (2018, J. Pers. Assess., 1-15), demonstrated good validity and warranted cross-validation. METHOD: In all, 97 veterans undergoing neuropsychological evaluation in a VA outpatient clinic completed the MMPI-2-RF and the MCMI-III. We examined the psychometric properties of the scales and proposed additional scales based on personality constructs found in other established tests and prior versions of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual for Mental Disorders (DSM; APA, 2013). RESULTS: The 10 original and three additional scales demonstrated acceptable psychometric properties. Most of the 13 scales correlated strongly with the corresponding MCMI-III scale, however, DSM criteria coverage was variable between scales. CONCLUSION: These data provide additional support for 10 personality disorder spectra scales based on MMPI-2-RF items and establish preliminary evidence for three additional scales. Further validation is needed in larger and diverse samples.

Expanding the validity of the malignant self-regard construct in an Italian general population sample.

Malignant self-regard (MSR) was proposed as a particular type of self-structure that may account for similarities among a set of clinically relevant Personality Disorders (PDs) such as masochistic/self-defeating and depressive PDs that yet have failed to be adequately represented in the diagnostic manuals. The investigation on the MSR may provide a better framework upon which to understand the nature of these personality types and their discrimination from related constructs. The present study examines the psychometric properties of the Italian adaptation of the Malignant Self-Regard Questionnaire (MSRQ). Reliability and validity indicators are determined in a large sample of adults from general population (n = 2574). The measure was found to be reliable and valid, given its correlations with measures of depressive personality, negative affectivity, self-defeating, and vulnerably narcissistic personalities. MSR also can be meaningfully differentiated from a nomological network of related constructs, including sadness rumination, depression, neuroticism, extraversion, and grandiose narcissism. These findings suggest that MSR may be a personality component which includes a negativistic self-representation, vulnerability and hypersensitivity to judgment, sometimes compensated by perfectionistic tendencies. As a whole, results seem to support the reliability and the validity of the Italian adaptation of the MSRQ as a measure of the MSR.

Introduction of the DSM-5 levels of Personality Functioning Questionnaire.

With the introduction in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition (DSM-5) of a hybrid system of personality disorder assessment, the ability to assess patients' traits, as well as their level of personality functioning, has become increasingly important. To assess this criterion, the DSM-5 Levels of Personality Functioning Questionnaire (DLOPFQ) was developed. The DLOPFQ assesses individuals' self-impairments and other impairments in several domains (self-direction, identity, empathy, and intimacy) and across 2 contexts (work/school and relationships). A sample of 140 psychiatric and medical outpatients was administered the DLOPFQ and several other measures to assess its reliability and construct, incremental, and discriminant validity. The internal consistency and convergence with validation measures yielded generally meaningful and expected results. Several DLOPFQ scales and subscales were significantly correlated with measures of DSM-5 trait domains and levels of personality functioning. DLOPFQ scales also correlated with self-reported ratings of overdependence, detachment, healthy dependency, and overall mental health and well-being. The DLOPFQ also predicted interpersonal and general functioning beyond DSM-5 trait domains. These results support the reliability and validity of the DLOPFQ, which appears to be suitable for clinical use and warrants ongoing study. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2018 APA, all rights reserved).

Convergent and Discriminant Validity and Utility of the DSM-5 Levels of Personality Functioning Questionnaire (DLOPFQ): Associations with Medical Health Care Provider Ratings and Measures of Physical Health.

The ability to evaluate patients' level of personality functioning in assessing personality disorders has become increasingly important since the DSM-5 Section III hybrid system of personality disorder assessment was released. One measure developed to assess this criterion is the DSM-5 Levels of Personality Functioning Questionnaire (DLOPFQ; Huprich et al., 2017 ), which assesses individuals' self and other representations in four domains-self-direction, identity, empathy, and intimacy-across two contexts-work or school and relationships. A sample of 140 psychiatric and internal medicine outpatients were administered several questionnaires, including the DLOPFQ. Provider ratings also were obtained for level of functioning and DSM-5 pathological personality traits. Several of the DLOPFQ scales were significantly correlated with self-reported and provider-reported measures of DSM-5 trait domains and levels of functioning, along with self-reported measures of effortful control, overall physical and mental health, and well-being. Certain DLOPFQ scales and subscales were associated with provider ratings of likeability and patient contact with the providers. However, relatively modest validity coefficients, as well as poor discriminant validity of domain scales, indicate further research and measure refinement might be needed. It is concluded that, although further research is necessary, the DLOPFQ could be useful for understanding patients' personality pathology in clinical settings.

Object relations predicts borderline personality disorder symptoms beyond emotional dysregulation, negative affect, and impulsivity.

Many studies have determined that the traits of emotional dysregulation, negative affect, and impulsivity are the strongest predictors of borderline personality disorder (BPD). Although psychodynamic, empirically supported BPD treatments (i.e., transference-focused, mentalization based) focus upon changing the internal representations of self and other, no studies have simultaneously evaluated the contribution of object relations in relation to these traits in predicting BPD symptoms. This study sought to determine the combined effects of emotional dysregulation, negative affect, impulsivity, and object relations in the prediction of BPD through the use of mediation modeling in 4 a priori hypothesized relationships among these variables. One hundred sixty-nine psychiatric outpatients and 171 undergraduate students were evaluated with self-reported trait and object relations measures and were administered 2 semistructured diagnostic interviews for BPD. Although all trait and object relations measures were correlated with BPD symptoms, the best fitting model was one in which object relations partially mediated the relationship of negative affect and impulsivity with BPD symptoms. Direct effects of the traits were also observed in mediation. Self-reported object relational quality had more of an effect on the prediction of BPD than previously recognized within a trait-framework, thus further supporting the model explicated in psychodynamic and relationally based treatments for BPD. (PsycINFO Database Record

A quantitative and qualitative evaluation of trainee opinions of four methods of personality disorder diagnosis.

Four methods of how to assess and diagnose personality disorders have received much attention within the literature: the Shedler-Westen Assessment Procedure (Shedler & Westen, 1998), the DSM-5 Section III Personality Disorders section (APA, 2011), the DSM-5 Section III trait model (APA, 2013), and the Psychodynamic Diagnostic Manual (PDM; PDM Task Force, 2006) descriptions of 15 personality disorders. Given that much of the debate has been driven by clinician concerns, it is important to consider clinical utility when evaluating the usefulness of each method. The present study compares the 4 models on ratings of several dimensions of clinical utility provided by 329 graduate student clinicians and psychology interns from across the United States. Findings suggest that participants rated the DSM-5 trait model significantly higher in most clinical utility domains. Additionally, qualitative analyses of the open-ended responses provided by participants indicated that each method had strengths and weaknesses. Most notably, participants commented positively on the PDM's level of comprehensiveness and appreciated the SWAP-II's inclusion of a health category, despite the ease of use not being as highly rated for these methods. (PsycINFO Database Record

Sensitivity to criticism differentially mediates the relationship between interpersonal problems and state and trait depression.

Both state- and trait-like manifestations of depression have been associated with poor interpersonal functioning. One mechanism by which this could occur is through individuals' sensitivity to criticism. In the present study, 414 undergraduates were assessed with the Beck Depression Inventory-II (Beck et al. 1996) and Depressive Personality Disorder Inventory (Huprich et al. 1996) as representative measures of state and trait depression respectively. They also were assessed with self-report measures of sensitivity to criticism and interpersonal problems. Sensitivity to criticism significantly mediated the relationship between state and trait depression within five dimensions of interpersonal problems. However, sensitivity to criticism was more strongly related to the trait depression-interpersonal problems relationship than the state depression-interpersonal problems relationship, when controlling for state depression and trait depression respectively. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Expanding the utility of the malignant self-regard construct.

The empirical and theoretical literature suggest that several proposed personality disorders (PDs) - Masochistic/Self-Defeating, Depressive, and Vulnerably Narcissistic - may be related through a common self-representation know as Malignant Self-Regard (MSR). To assess this construct, the MSR Questionnaire (MSRQ) was developed. Though its initial psychometric properties were very strong, the present study extended these findings by examining the relationship of the MSRQ with measures of other PDs and depressive subtypes, and by establishing four-week and eight-week test-retest reliability in two samples (Ns=840, 911) of undergraduate students. The MSRQ was internally consistent and temporally stable over four and eight weeks. It was positively correlated with measures of introjective and anaclitic depression, measures of Self-Defeating, Depressive, and Vulnerably Narcissistic personalities (rs ranging between 0.60 and 0.82), and other select PDs. After controlling for depressive symptoms and self-esteem, the highest remaining partial correlations were with Vulnerably Narcissistic, Self-Defeating, Depressive, and Avoidant personalities. A factor analysis of the MSRQ with measures of other PDs yielded a two-factor solution, with MSR loading most strongly on one factor, along with Vulnerably Narcissistic, Avoidant, Depressive, and Self-Defeating personalities. It is concluded that MSR is a psychometrically supported construct that might have good clinical utility in explaining personality pathology that has historically been difficult to assess.

Advancing the Assessment of Personality Pathology With the Cognitive-Affective Processing System.

The Cognitive-Affective Processing System (CAPS) is a dynamic and expansive model of personality proposed by Mischel and Shoda (1995) that incorporates dispositional and processing frameworks by considering the interaction of the individual and the situation, and the patterns of variation that result. These patterns of cognition, affect, and behavior are generally defined through the use of if … then statements, and provide a rich understanding of the individual across varying levels of assessment. In this article, we describe the CAPS model and articulate ways in which it can be applied to conceptualizing and assessing personality pathology. We suggest that the CAPS model is an ideal framework that integrates a number of current theories of personality pathology, and simultaneously overcomes a number of limits that have been empirically identified in the past.

Factor Structure of the Assessment of Qualitative and Structural Dimensions of Object Representations (AOR) Scale.

The Assessment of Qualitative and Structural Dimensions of Object Representations assessment instrument (AOR; Blatt, Chevron, Quinlan, Schaffer, & Wein, 1992 ) is one measure of parental representations used in the literature that assesses nonconscious processes while minimizing self-presentation biases. However, only 2 studies have considered the latent factor structure, with mixed findings reported that raise questions about the constructs being assessed. This study used archival data from 4 previous studies containing clinical and nonclinical samples, totaling 722 participants. Individuals were divided into 2 groups in which an exploratory factor analysis (EFA) was followed by a confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). Results of both the EFA and CFA suggested that a 3-factor solution was best, with factors that were labeled Agency, Communion, and Punitive based on previous research. The implications of these findings are explored, particularly with regard to the punitive aspect of maternal representations, as well as a possible revision to the scoring rubric.

Malignant self-regard: accounting for commonalities in vulnerably narcissistic, depressive, self-defeating, and masochistic personality disorders.

Several personality disorders (PDs) have been of interest in the clinical literature, yet failed to have been adequately represented in the diagnostic manuals. Some of these are masochistic, self-defeating, depressive, and narcissistic PDs. The theoretical and empirical relationships among these disorders are reviewed. It is proposed that a particular type of self-structure, malignant self-regard (MSR), may account for similarities among all of them and provide a better framework upon which to understand the nature of these personality types and their discrimination from related constructs. Subsequently, a questionnaire to assess MSR was created and evaluated for its psychometric properties. The measure was found to be reliable (Cronbach's alpha=.93) and valid, given its correlations with measures of self-defeating, depressive, and vulnerably narcissistic personalities (rs range from .66 to .76). MSR also can be meaningfully differentiated from a nomological network of related constructs, including neuroticism, extraversion, depression, and grandiose narcissism. The utility of assessing self-structures, such as MSR, in the diagnostic manuals is discussed.