Graduate Program

Clinical Psychology

Degree Name

Master of Arts (MA)

Semester of Degree Completion

2005

Thesis Director

Anu Sharma

Thesis Committee Member

Russell Gruber

Thesis Committee Member

Marjorie Hanft-Martone

Abstract

The present study examined bias within the diagnostic criteria for personality disorders, a category for diagnosis in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders published by the American Psychiatric Association. Specifically, gender biases, ethnic biases, and interaction effects between the two were examined for the three Cluster C PD diagnoses. One of the more heated controversies concerning the DSM-IV involves the diagnosis of PD's, especially with regard to the notion of diagnostic bias. For the present study, 60 female and 60 male participants were recruited from the introductory psychology subject pool and given course credit for their participation.

Participants completed a demographic questionnaire then viewed a PowerPoint presentation displaying Cluster C PD criteria. Participants were randomly placed into one of four ethnic conditions varying according to the ethnic background of the presented stimulus (Asian, African American, White, or Latino). Each PD criterion was presented twice, once for a male and once for a female within each ethnic condition. Participants rated the degree to which they believed the criterion was characteristic of the depicted individual using a Likert scale on the computer. Results indicted the existence of gender bias within the Cluster C PD diagnoses. Females were more likely to be characterized as possessing traits of both Avoidant and Dependent PD's, which is consistent with what prior research has found. Very scarce research exists on the topic of ethnic bias with respect to personality disorders, and no overall ethnic biases were found to exist within the Cluster C diagnostic criteria. However, a significant interaction between gender and ethnicity was found for Dependent Personality Disorder. These results, as well as the clinical implications and suggestions for future research are discussed.

Download

Included in

Psychology Commons

Share

COinS