Miller and Campbell (pp. 180–191, this issue) provide an informative discussion of the importance of considering narcissistic personality trait research when attempting to understand narcissistic personality disorder. Their arguments might seem so straightforward and compelling that they are hardly worth presenting. However, it does seem that this considerable body of literature is at times neg...

This paper presents observations on fantasy as it participates in the formation ofmultiple personality disorder. It,focuses on the function of restitution in the fantasy life of children during the development of the disorder. It is proposed that one pathway to the development of multiple personality disorder utilizes repressed early childhood fantasies of mastery over trauma and that these ear...

The UBC Twin Project is an on-going study of personality and personality disorder that has collected personality data on approximately 1000 adult volunteer twin pairs. The primary purpose of the study is to develop and validate measures of the major forms of personality disorder as a quantitative alternative to the classificatory system first proposed by the DSM-III using the standard methods o...

Personality disorders are a considerable risk factor for suicidal behavior. In psychological autopsy studies, individuals with personality disorders are frequently found among suicide victims. Suicidal attempts (which are a major risk factor for completed suicide) are also an important issue among affected patients. We performed careful MedLine, Excerpta Medica, PsycLit and PsycINFO searches fr...

Background: The abuse of narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances such as amphetamines and ecstasy has had a growing trend. Tachycardia, increased blood pressure, hallucinations, panic attacks, and psychosis are the negative effects of methamphetamine abuse. The present study aimed to assess psychiatric disorders associated with methamphetamine-induced psychotic disorder. Methods: This cross-...

OBJECTIVE Time-limited manualized dynamic psychotherapy was compared with community-delivered psychodynamic therapy for outpatients with personality disorders. METHOD In a stratified randomized clinical trial, 156 patients with any personality disorder diagnosis were randomly assigned either to 40 sessions of supportive-expressive psychotherapy (N=80) or to community-delivered psychodynamic t...

OBJECTIVE The extant literature indicates that individuals with borderline personality disorder generally report higher levels of pain than individuals without this disorder. This study examined relationships between borderline personality symptomatology, pain, and pain catastrophizing (a related aspect of the pain experience). METHOD Using a cross-sectional consecutive sample of internal med...

OBJECTIVE To determine the rates of psychiatric disorder and personality variables in a sample of older people who had committed suicide and to compare the rates in a subgroup of this sample with those in a control group of people who died from natural causes. DESIGN Descriptive psychological autopsy study, including interviews with informants, of psychiatric and personality factors in 100 su...

OBJECTIVE The authors investigated the concurrent and predictive validity of the DSM-III-R diagnosis of personality disorder in adolescents by means of baseline and follow-up assessments of inpatients treated at the Yale Psychiatric Institute. METHOD One hundred sixty-five hospitalized adolescents were reliably assessed by using a structured interview for personality disorder diagnoses as wel...