Personality Tests

A total of 101 elderly depressed patients and 85 community residents (matched for age and sex) were interviewed about life events, difficulties, and confiding relationships. Significantly more of the depressed sample reported at least one severe event in the three months before the onset of their illness. Lack of a good confiding relationship was associated with depression in men but not in women. In this relatively affluent Australian sample, life difficulties were rare and, probably as a result, were not significantly associated with depression.

To determine whether psychological factors differentiate patients with silent versus symptomatic myocardial ischemia, a battery of psychometric tests was administered to 68 patients with positive thallium stress tests. Compared with patients who became symptomatic (n = 25), patients with silent ischemia on the treadmill (n = 24) were less often aware of cardiac and other bodily sensations (p less than 0.005) and were less avoidant of harm or pain in general (p less than 0.05). They did not differ on variables associated with symptom reporting biases. To clarify the relationship between ischemia and symptom reporting, symptomatic patients were subgrouped on the basis of anginal pain latency. Psychologically, the patients with silent ischemia were most similar to patients with the longest pain latencies and most different from those who reported angina before the onset of ST depression. The psychological profile of patients with silent ischemia during exercise testing is consistent wi...

Hostility and depression were examined in male psychiatric patients who exhibited either assaultive (n = 40) or suicide-attempting behavior (n = 20). Both groups were compared to a sample of nonviolent males (n = 22) to provide a basis for interpreting the absolute as well as relative magnitude of these variables in relation to their violent behavior. Both suicide-attempting and assaultive patients were characterized by high levels of hostility and depression, as evidenced by significantly higher scores than those of the nonviolent group on almost all indices. Assaultive subjects evidenced relatively greater overt expression, frankly assaultive impulses, and verbalized anger and hostility. Suicide-attempting subjects tended to experience anger and hostility in a more intropunitive and covert manner and displayed higher levels of guilt and depression. Covariance analyses indicated that anger and depression contributed separately to the affective configuration of the assaultive and suicide-attempting groups.

Sons of alcoholics and nonalcoholics drawn from a community sample were compared across multiple dimensions of temperament. Sons of alcoholics scored higher on only behavioral activity level. This trait score was found to be unrelated to family environment. The implications of these findings for clarifying alcoholism vulnerability are discussed.

Reports findings from &terv&ws with parents of demographically-comparable groups of highly-stressed urban children with stress-resilient (SR) and stress-affected (SA) outcomes at ages 10-12. SR and SA children were compared on family milieu and child development ...

This article outlines a typology of nonresponse biases that may occur in research based on voluntary participation and presents empirical evidence on the relationships between nonresponse and personality traits. We describe four different types of nonresponse occurring at the recruitment stage, during data collection, and at the stage of recruitment for further research. Personality correlates of all types of nonresponse were investigated using data from an online survey e-mailed to owners of personal Web sites, and observer ratings on the targets' personality were obtained. After reviewing the target persons' Web sites, observers judged complete nonrespondents as less agreeable and less open to experience than respondents. Furthermore, higher extraversion, higher openness to experience, and higher narcissism differentiated volunteers for follow-up research from nonvolunteers in both self- and observer ratings. We found only weak evidence of personality correlates of careless and selective item nonresponse. Findings show that nonresponse biases may have significant implications for representativeness in surveys and personality test norms.

Phenomenological, biological, genetic, treatment-response, and outcome data support a link between schizotypal personality disorder (SPD) and schizophrenia. Furthermore, SPD and normal schizotypy also seem connected, although the relationship can at times be ambiguous. In this regard, this study was conducted to test the hypothesis of a possible association between neurocognitive performance evaluated by the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test (WCST) and schizotypal personality traits evaluated by the Schizotypal Personality Questionnaire (SPQ) in a nonclinical sample and a sample of schizophrenic patients. The main finding of the study was that WCST performance was correlated with SPQ (total and subscale) scores in the control group; on the contrary, in the patients, the relationship between WCST and SPQ scores was weaker. Taken together, our results seem to support the hypothesis that different cognitive aspects (i.e., elementary WCST subcomponent scores) correlate differentially with some SPQ schizotypal traits in a group of nonclinical subjects. This report underlines the relevance of studying normal subjects within the brain-behavior paradigm to highlight the brain-behavior relationship in the mental illness.

This article outlines a typology of nonresponse biases that may occur in research based on voluntary participation and presents empirical evidence on the relationships between nonresponse and personality traits. We describe four different types of nonresponse occurring at the recruitment stage, during data collection, and at the stage of recruitment for further research. Personality correlates of all types of nonresponse were investigated using data from an online survey e-mailed to owners of personal Web sites, and observer ratings on the targets' personality were obtained. After reviewing the target persons' Web sites, observers judged complete nonrespondents as less agreeable and less open to experience than respondents. Furthermore, higher extraversion, higher openness to experience, and higher narcissism differentiated volunteers for follow-up research from nonvolunteers in both self- and observer ratings. We found only weak evidence of personality correlates of careless and selective item nonresponse. Findings show that nonresponse biases may have significant implications for representativeness in surveys and personality test norms.

This study examines the relation of depressive mood, measured using the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression scale, with major depression, assessed using the Diagnostic Interview Schedule. Data are from 1244 Mexican American and 1149 non-Hispanic white randomly-selected community residents. Major depression is strongly related to depressed mood, irrespective of the persistence or content of mood, with some components of depressed mood (negative affect and somatic disturbance) more strongly associated with major depression than other components (lack of positive affect and interpersonal problems). Low socioeconomic status and social isolation contribute to depressed mood independent of major depression. Low education is associated with persistent depressed mood. Mexican Americans report more overall depressive mood than non-Hispanic whites, but there is no ethnic difference in major depression or in the mood symptoms most strongly related to major depression. Mexican Americans report more persistent symptoms than non-Hispanic whites in every content category. Ethnic differences in education appear to account for ethnic differences in all components of depressed mood except lack of positive affect, which may be attributable to language differences.

This study uses the NEO-Five Factor Personality Inventory (NEO) to assess its value in identifying resident educational needs. A cohort of surgical residents (n = 65) were administered the NEO. Statistical analysis compared the results between previously determined national norms and between varying resident demographics. The resident scores of Extroversion, Openness, and Conscientiousness were significantly higher than those of the US population and Agreeableness was significantly lower. By gender, only Agreeableness was statistically higher for female residents. The mean Extroversion score for residents who were postgraduate years (PGYs) 3 to 5 was significantly higher than that of PGYs 1 to 2. Further subanalyses were conducted on each primary component. The NEO was valuable for identifying areas where training could be especially useful to augment Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) core competencies. The use of this test on resident populations could be of significant value for tailoring comprehensive surgical leadership education programs.

Phenomenological, biological, genetic, treatment-response, and outcome data support a link between schizotypal personality disorder (SPD) and schizophrenia. Furthermore, SPD and normal schizotypy also seem connected, although the relationship can at times be ambiguous. In this regard, this study was conducted to test the hypothesis of a possible association between neurocognitive performance evaluated by the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test (WCST) and schizotypal personality traits evaluated by the Schizotypal Personality Questionnaire (SPQ) in a nonclinical sample and a sample of schizophrenic patients. The main finding of the study was that WCST performance was correlated with SPQ (total and subscale) scores in the control group; on the contrary, in the patients, the relationship between WCST and SPQ scores was weaker. Taken together, our results seem to support the hypothesis that different cognitive aspects (i.e., elementary WCST subcomponent scores) correlate differentially with some SPQ schizotypal traits in a group of nonclinical subjects. This report underlines the relevance of studying normal subjects within the brain-behavior paradigm to highlight the brain-behavior relationship in the mental illness.