title: The age distribution of self-reported personality disorder traits in a household population.
abstract: Stability over time is an essential criterion for the diagnosis of a personality disorder (PD) according to DSM-IV and ICD-10. However, both longitudinal and cross-sectional studies have demonstrated considerable changes of personality disorder traits during life-span, an observation which challenges this assumption. We measured self-reported DSM-IV personality disorder traits in a nationally representative community sample using a cross-sectional design. We investigated the association of dimensional PD scores with age. Our analyses confirmed a decreasing prevalence of personality disorder mean scores across age groups in the population, particularly Cluster B, with an increase in self-reported schizoid and obsessive-compulsive scores. Furthermore, specific interactions of demographic characteristics and age were identified. Analyses of transition points in the distribution of personality disorders across different age groups did not demonstrate increasing stability after age 30 as previously observed for normal personality traits. Significant changes occurred primarily after the third decade.
authors.affiliation: Barts and the London Medical School, Queen Mary University of London, Forensic Psychiatry Research Unit, William Harvey House, 61 Bartholomew Close, London EC1A 7BE, UK. s.ullrich@qmul.ac.uk
authors.forename: Simone
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Ullrich
authors.forename: Jeremy
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Coid
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D001883:Borderline Personality Disorder / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology*; D015897:Comorbidity; D039721:Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders; D005195:Family Relations; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D010554:Personality Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology*; D015995:Prevalence; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D012307:Risk Factors; D012650:Self Disclosure; D012647:Self-Assessment; D006113:United Kingdom / Q000453:epidemiology; D055815:Young Adult