Intergenerational transmission of personality disorder: general or disorder-specific?

Figures & data

Table 1. Domains of personality disorder.

Secondary Domain	Primary Trait
1. Emotional Dysregulation	Anxiousness
	Emotional reactivity
	Emotional intensity
	Pessimistic anhedonia
	Submissiveness
	Insecure attachment
	Social apprehensiveness
	Need for approval
	Cognitive dysregulation
	Oppositional
	Self-harming acts
	Self-harming ideas
2. Dissocial Behaviour	Narcissism
	Exploitativeness
	Sadism
	Conduct problems
	Hostile-dominance
	Sensation seeking
	Impulsivity
	Suspiciousness
	Egocentrism
3. Inhibitedness	Low affiliation
	Avoidant attachment
	Attachment need
	Inhibited sexuality
	Self-containment
	Inhibited emotional expression
	Lack of empathy
4. Compulsivity	Orderliness
	Conscientiousness

(Note: Based on Livesley, 2007).

Figure 1. Hypothesised two factor model of the intergenerational transmission of the four domains of personality disorder. Note: Fathers’ PD dimension variables: G2EmDys = Emotional Dysregulation, G2Disso = Dissocial Behaviour, G2Inhib = Inhibitedness, G2Compu = Compulsivity. Offspring’s PD dimension variables: G3EmDys = Emotional Dysregulation, G3Disso = Dissocial Behaviour, G3Inhib = Inhibitedness, G3Compu = Compulsivity.

Figure 2. Intergenerational transmission of Livesley’s (2007) four domains of personality disorder from G2 fathers to G3 male offspring.

Table 2. Indices of fit for alternative models for the intergenerational transmission of personality disorder.

Model		X²	df	P value	RMSEA	GFI	CFI
G2 fathers to G3 male offspring
General transmission only		99.16	38	<0.001	0.084	0.949	0.951
Specific transmission effects
	Emotional Dysregulation	95.92	37	<0.001	0.083	0.951	0.773
	Dissocial Behaviour	80.99	37	<0.001	0.072	0.958	1.000
	Inhibitedness	98.03	37	<0.001	0.085	0.950	1.000
	Compulsivity	85.47	37	<0.001	0.076	0.955	1.000
G2 fathers to G3 female offspring
General transmission only		68.97	38	0.00156	0.061	0.962	0.328
Specific transmission effects
	Emotional Dysregulation	68.83	37	0.00114	0.062	0.962	1.000
	Dissocial Behaviour	61.78	37	0.00649	0.055	0.966	1.000
	Inhibitedness	66.37	37	0.00214	0.060	0.964	1.000
	Compulsivity	51.62	37	0.05571	0.042	0.972	1.000

Figure 3. Intergenerational transmission of Livesley’s (2007) four domains of personality disorder from G2 fathers to G3 female offspring.

Livesley, W. J. (2007). A framework for integrating dimensional and categorical classifications of personality disorder. Journal of Personality Disorders, 21(2), 199–224. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1521/pedi.2007.21.2.199

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