title: Diagnostic accuracy of the Gerontological Personality Disorder Scale (GPS) in Dutch general practice.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Personality disorders (PDs) often remain unrecognized in older adults by doctors in general practice. Therefore, this study evaluated the diagnostic accuracy of a screening instrument, the Gerontological Personality Disorder Scale (GPS), in a Dutch general-practice population of older adults.
  
  
  METHODS
  The psychometric properties of the GPS patient (GPS-pv) and informant (GPS-iv) versions were assessed in a sample of 302 (144 male) patients (average age: 69.9 years) and 302 (124 male) informants (average age: 64.7 years), respectively, using an informant-based personality questionnaire (the Hetero-Anamnestische Persoonlijkheidsvragenlijst ) as a reference criterion.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The internal consistency (average item correlation) of the subscale and total scores of the GPS-pv and GPS-iv were .12 (HAB), .16 (BIO), and .10 (total); and .16 (HAB), .15 (BIO), and .12 (total), respectively. The test--retest reliability was strong for both the GPS-pv (rs = .56 [HAB], rs = .67 [BIO], rs = .66 [total]) and the GPS-iv (rs = .52 [HAB], rs = .65 [BIO], rs = .68 [total]) versions. The sensitivity and specificity of the GPS-pv were .83 and .27, respectively, with a cutoff score of ≥1. Raising the cutoff score to ≥2, the sensitivity dropped to .59, whereas the specificity rose to .57. For the GPS-iv, a cutoff score of ≥3 maximized the sensitivity (.78) and specificity (.65).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The diagnostic accuracy of the GPS-iv was preferable to that of the GPS-pv. This is the first psychometric study to use the GPS as an age-specific screening instrument for PDs.
authors: a Department of Family Medicine , School for Public Health and Primary Care, Maastricht University (UM) , Maastricht , The Netherlands.
authors: Krystle A P
authors: KA
authors: Penders
authors: b Faculty of Psychology & Educational Sciences, Department of Clinical & Lifespan Psychology , Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB) , Brussels , Belgium.
authors: Gina
authors: G
authors: Rossi
authors: a Department of Family Medicine , School for Public Health and Primary Care, Maastricht University (UM) , Maastricht , The Netherlands.
authors: Job F M
authors: JF
authors: Metsemakers
authors: a Department of Family Medicine , School for Public Health and Primary Care, Maastricht University (UM) , Maastricht , The Netherlands.|c Department of Integrated Care , Maastricht University Medical Centre (MUMC), Maastricht University (UM) , Maastricht , The Netherlands.
authors: Inge G P
authors: IG
authors: Duimel-Peeters
authors: b Faculty of Psychology & Educational Sciences, Department of Clinical & Lifespan Psychology , Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB) , Brussels , Belgium.|d Department of Old Age Psychiatry, Mondriaan Hospital , Heerlen-Maastricht , The Netherlands.
authors: Sebastiaan P J
authors: SP
authors: van Alphen
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D005260:Female; D058006:General Practice; D015577:Geriatric Assessment / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009426:Netherlands; D010554:Personality Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis*; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales / Q000592:standards*; D011594:Psychometrics / Q000295:instrumentation*; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity
keywords: diagnostic efficiency; elderly; general practice; personality disorders; reliability