THE INTERNATIONAL PERSONALITY-DISORDER EXAMINATION - THE WORLD-HEALTH-ORGANIZATION ALCOHOL, DRUG-ABUSE, AND MENTAL-HEALTH ADMINISTRATION INTERNATIONAL PILOT-STUDY OF PERSONALITY-DISORDERS

Background: One of the aims of the World Health Organization/Alcohol, Drug Abuse, and Mental Health Administration joint program on psychiat ric diagnosis and classification is the development and standardizatio n of diagnostic assessment instruments for use in clinical research wo rldwide. The International Personality Disorder Examination (IPDE) is a semistructured clinical interview compatible with the International Classification of Diseases, Tenth Revision, and the DMS-III-R classifi cation systems. This is the first report of the results of a field tri al to investigate the feasibility of using the IPDE to assess personal ity disorders worldwide. Methods: The IPDE was administered by 58 psyc hiatrists and clinical psychologists to 716 patients enrolled in clini cal facilities at 14 participating centers in 11 countries in North Am erica, Europe, Africa, and Asia. To determine interrater reliability, 141 of the IPDEs (20%) were independently rated by a silent observer. To determine temporal stability, 243 patients (34%) were reexamined af ter an average interval of 6 months. Results: The IPDE proved acceptab le to clinicians and demonstrated an interrater reliability and tempor al stability roughly similar to instruments used to diagnose the psych oses, mood, anxiety, and substance use disorders. Conclusion: It is po ssible to assess personality disorders with reasonably good reliabilit y in different nations, languages, and cultures using a semistructured clinical interview that experienced clinicians find relevant, meaning ful, and user-friendly.