Personality pathology in adolescence: relationship quality with parents and peers as predictors of the level of personality functioning

Gabriele Skabeikyte-Norkiene; Carla Sharp; Paulina Anna Kulesz; Rasa Barkauskiene

doi:10.1186/s40479-022-00202-z

Personality pathology in adolescence: relationship quality with parents and peers as predictors of the level of personality functioning

Borderline Personal Disord Emot Dysregul. 2022 Oct 19;9(1):31. doi: 10.1186/s40479-022-00202-z.

Authors

Gabriele Skabeikyte-Norkiene¹, Carla Sharp², Paulina Anna Kulesz³, Rasa Barkauskiene⁴

Affiliations

¹ Institute of Psychology, Faculty of Philosophy, Vilnius University, Universiteto st. 9, 01513, Vilnius, Lithuania. gabriele.skabeikyte@fsf.vu.lt.
² Department of Psychology, University of Houston, Houston, USA.
³ Texas Institute for Measurement, Evaluation, and Statistics (TIMES), University of Houston, Houston, USA.
⁴ Institute of Psychology, Faculty of Philosophy, Vilnius University, Universiteto st. 9, 01513, Vilnius, Lithuania.

Abstract

Background: The dimensional approach to personality pathology opens up the possibility to investigate adolescence as a significant period for the development of personality pathology. Recent evidence suggests that symptoms of personality pathology may change during adolescence, but the negative consequences such as impaired social functioning persist later on in life. Thus, we think that problems in social functioning may further predict personality impairments. The current study aimed at investigating the role of relationship quality with parents and peers for the prediction of the level of personality functioning across adolescence. We hypothesized that 1) relationship quality with both parents and peers will significantly account for the level of personality functioning in adolescence and 2) the importance of relationship quality with peers for the relation to impairments in personality functioning will increase with age.

Methods: A community sample consisting of 855 adolescents aged 11-18 (M = 14.44, SD = 1.60; 62.5% female) from different regions in Lithuania participated in this study. Self-report questionnaires included the Levels of Personality Functioning Questionnaire to investigate personality impairments and the Network of Relationships Questionnaire to assess the quality of dyadic relationships.

Results: Discord in the parent, but not peer relationships, was related to a more severe level of personality functioning across adolescence. Lower levels of closeness with parents accounted for higher impairments in personality functioning. The importance of closeness with peers for the explanation of the level of personality functioning increased with age.

Conclusions: During the sensitive period for the development of a personality disorder, relationship quality with the closest adults and peers both remain important for the explanation of impairments in personality functioning.

Keywords: Adolescence; Alternative Model for Personality Disorders (AMPD); ICD-11; Level of personality functioning; Network of relationships; Relationship quality.

Grants and funding

No. S-MIP-21-20/Lietuvos Mokslo Taryba