title: Inverse relationship between defensiveness and lifetime prevalence of psychiatric disorder.
abstract: Defensiveness (the tendency not to report unfavorable information about oneself), as measured by the Marlowe-Crowne Social Desirability Scale, has been shown to be inversely correlated with self-reported symptoms. In this family study of depression, direct interviews with 380 subjects combined with relatives' reports revealed a similar inverse relationship between defensiveness and lifetime prevalence of any psychiatric disorder, especially when diagnostic status was most certain and among those at greater risk for psychopathology. The authors conclude that the Marlowe-Crowne scale measures a factor or trait associated with the relative absence of psychiatric disorder, not the underreporting or denial of disorder.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, University of Health Sciences, Chicago Medical School.
authors.forename: R D
authors.initials: RD
authors.lastname: Lane
authors.forename: K R
authors.initials: KR
authors.lastname: Merikangas
authors.forename: G E
authors.initials: GE
authors.lastname: Schwartz
authors.forename: S S
authors.initials: SS
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.forename: B A
authors.initials: BA
authors.lastname: Prusoff
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D003717:Denial, Psychological; D003866:Depressive Disorder / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology; D008875:Middle Aged; D010555:Personality Inventory; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D011594:Psychometrics; D012928:Social Desirability