title: Role of childhood traumatic experience in personality disorders in China.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  There has been no large-scale examination of the association between types of childhood abuse and personality disorders (PDs) in China using standardized assessment tools and the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition (DSM-IV) criteria. Hence, this study aimed to explore the relationship between retrospective reports of various types of childhood maltreatments and current DSM-IV PDs in a clinical population in China, Shanghai.
  
  
  METHODS
  One thousand four hundred two subjects were randomly sampled from the Shanghai Psychological Counselling Centre. PDs were assessed using the Personality Diagnostic Questionnaire, Fourth Edition Plus. Participants were also interviewed using the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV axis II. The Child Trauma Questionnaire (CTQ) was used to assess childhood maltreatment in 5 domains (emotional abuse, physical abuse, sexual abuse, emotional neglect, and physical neglect).
  
  
  RESULTS
  According to Pearson correlations, childhood maltreatment had a strong association with most PDs. Subsequently, using partial correlations, significant relationships were also demonstrated between cluster B PDs and all the traumatic factors except physical neglect. A strongest positive correlation was found between cluster B PD and CTQ total scores (r = .312, P < .01). Using the Kruskal-Wallis rank sum test, significant differences in 4 groups of subjects (clusters A, B, and C PD and non-PD) in terms of emotional abuse (χ(2) = 34.864, P < .01), physical abuse (χ(2) = 14.996, P < .05), sex abuse (χ(2) = 9.211, P < .05), and emotional neglect (χ(2) = 17.987, P < .01) were found. Stepwise regression analysis indicated that emotional abuse and emotional neglect were predictive for clusters A and B PD, and sexual abuse was highly predictive for cluster B PD; only emotional neglect was predictive for cluster C PD.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Early traumatic experiences are strongly related to the development of PDs. The effects of childhood maltreatment in the 3 clusters of PDs are different. Childhood trauma has the most significant impact on cluster B PD.
authors.affiliation: Shanghai Mental Health Center, Shanghai Jiaotong University School of Medicine, Shanghai 200030, PR China.
authors.forename: TianHong
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Annabelle
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Chow
authors.forename: LanLan
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: YunFei
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Dai
authors.forename: ZePing
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Xiao
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D002648:Child; D002649:Child Abuse / Q000523:psychology*; D002681:China; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010552:Personality Assessment; D010554:Personality Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000209:etiology* / Q000523:psychology; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D012307:Risk Factors; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires