The five-factor model in schizotypal personality disorder

Gurrera, Ronald J.; Dickey, Chandlee C.; Niznikiewicz, Margaret A.; Voglmaier, Martina M.; Shenton, Martha E.; McCarley, Robert W.

doi:10.1016/j.schres.2005.08.002

« Previous Next »Schizophrenia Research
Volume 80, Issue 2 , Pages 243-251, 15 December 2005

The five-factor model in schizotypal personality disorder

Ronald J. Gurrera
- Harvard Medical School, Department of Psychiatry, USA
- VA Boston Healthcare System, 940 Belmont Street (116A), Brockton MA 02301, USA
- Corresponding author. 940 Belmont Street (116A), Brockton, MA 02301, USA. Tel.: +1 508 583 4500x62482; fax: +1 508 586 0894.
Chandlee C. Dickey
- Harvard Medical School, Department of Psychiatry, USA
- VA Boston Healthcare System, 940 Belmont Street (116A), Brockton MA 02301, USA
- Brigham Behavioral Neurology Group, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston MA, USA
Margaret A. Niznikiewicz
- Harvard Medical School, Department of Psychiatry, USA
- VA Boston Healthcare System, 940 Belmont Street (116A), Brockton MA 02301, USA
- Massachusetts Mental Health Center, Boston MA, USA
Martina M. Voglmaier
- Harvard Medical School, Department of Psychiatry, USA
- Cambridge Health Alliance, Department of Psychiatry, 1493 Cambridge Street, Cambridge MA 02139, USA
Martha E. Shenton
- Harvard Medical School, Department of Psychiatry, USA
- VA Boston Healthcare System, 940 Belmont Street (116A), Brockton MA 02301, USA
- Brigham Behavioral Neurology Group, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston MA, USA
Robert W. McCarley
- Harvard Medical School, Department of Psychiatry, USA
- VA Boston Healthcare System, 940 Belmont Street (116A), Brockton MA 02301, USA

Received 1 March 2005; received in revised form 28 July 2005; accepted 1 August 2005.

Abstract

Studies of the five-factor model of personality in schizotypal personality disorder (SPD) have produced inconsistent results, particularly with respect to openness. In the present study, the NEO-FFI was used to measure five-factor personality dimensions in 28 community volunteers with SPD and 24 psychiatrically healthy individuals. Standard multivariate statistical analyses were used to evaluate personality differences as a function of diagnosis and gender. Individuals with SPD had significantly higher levels of neuroticism and significantly lower levels of extraversion, agreeableness and conscientiousness than those without SPD. Female, but not male, SPD subjects had significantly higher openness levels than their healthy counterparts, and this gender-specific group difference persisted when SPD symptom severity was statistically controlled. These findings suggest that gender-associated differences in openness may account for prior inconsistent findings regarding this dimension, and they further underscore the importance of examining gender effects in future studies of SPD.

Keywords: Schizotypal personality disorder, Five-factor model, Openness, Gender