A practical way to diagnosis personality disorder: A proposal

General criteria for the diagnosis of personality disorder are provided bas ed on rating a few items describing four core features of personality disor der: (a) low Self-directedness, (b) low Cooperativeness, (c) low Affective Stability, and (d) low Self-transcendence. These core features correspond c losely with the basic concept of personality disorder in DSM-TV and are bas ed on specific items easy for clinicians to rate in a short time. Criteria are also provided for rating severity of personality disorganization and fo r subtyping based on a profile of three additional dimensions corresponding to core features of DSM-TV clusters A, B, and C. This approach should faci litate efficient screening in clinical practice, encourage an understanding of the development of comorbidity as a self-organizing process, and provid e a theory-driven basis for therapeutic planning with drugs and psychothera py.