title: Personality and life events in a personality disorder sample.
abstract: Individuals with a personality disorder (PD) tend to experience more negative life events (NLEs) than positive life events (PLEs). In community samples, the Five Factor Model of personality (FFM) predicts both positive and negative life events. The present research examined whether FFM normal personality traits were associated with positive and negative life events among individuals with 1 of 4 PDs: avoidant, borderline, schizotypal, and obsessive-compulsive, and tested whether associations between the FFM of personality and PLEs and NLEs were similar across the 4 PD groups and a control group. Among aggregated PDs, neuroticism was positively associated with NLEs, whereas extraversion, openness to experience, and conscientiousness were positively associated with PLEs. Comparisons of each PD group to a control group of individuals with a major depressive disorder indicated that the FFM traits operated similarly across clinical samples with and without PD. Our findings indicate that normal personality traits can be used to help understand the lives of individuals with PD. (PsycINFO Database Record
authors: Department of Psychology, University of British Columbia.
authors: Linden R
authors: LR
authors: Timoney
authors: Department of Psychology, University of British Columbia.
authors: Zach
authors: Z
authors: Walsh
authors: Department of Psychiatry and Human Behavior, Brown University Alpert Medical School.
authors: M Tracie
authors: MT
authors: Shea
authors: Department of Psychiatry and Human Behavior, Brown University Alpert Medical School.
authors: Shirley
authors: S
authors: Yen
authors: Department of Psychiatry, Yale University School of Medicine.
authors: Emily B
authors: EB
authors: Ansell
authors: Department of Psychiatry and Department of Psychology, Yale University School of Medicine.
authors: Carlos M
authors: CM
authors: Grilo
authors: Department of Psychiatry, Yale University School of Medicine.
authors: Thomas H
authors: TH
authors: McGlashan
authors: Decision Sciences Institute, Pacific Institute for Research and Evaluation.
authors: Robert L
authors: RL
authors: Stout
authors: Institute for Mental Health Research.
authors: Donna S
authors: DS
authors: Bender
authors: Department of Psychiatry, University of Arizona College of Medicine.
authors: Andrew E
authors: AE
authors: Skodol
authors: Department of Psychiatry, University of Arizona College of Medicine.
authors: Charles A
authors: CA
authors: Sanislow
authors: Department of Psychology, Texas A&M University.
authors: Leslie C
authors: LC
authors: Morey
authors: Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School.
authors: John G
authors: JG
authors: Gunderson
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008016:Life Change Events; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D008960:Models, Psychological; D010551:Personality; D010554:Personality Disorders / Q000523:psychology*; D055815:Young Adult