Assessing DSM5-oriented level of personality functioning: Development and psychometric evaluation of the semi-structured interview for personality functioning DSM5 (STiP-5.1)

The alternative model for personality disorders (AMPD) in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM5) features a Level of Personality Functioning Scale, measuring intrinsic personality processes that include identity, self-direction, empathy, and intimacy. This study describes the development and psychometric evaluation of a semistructured interview schedule for the multi-item assessment of the level of personality functioning, the Semi-Structured Interview for Personality Functioning DSM5 (STiP-5.1). Eighty patients and 18 community subjects completed the STiP-5.1. Patients additionally completed the Brief Symptom Inventory, the Severity Indices of Personality Problems, and the Structured Clinical Interview for DSMIV Axis I and Axis II Personality Disorders. Good interrater reliability was observed in subsamples of patients (n = 40) and nonpatients (n = 18). Associations between the interview scores and conceptually relevant external measures consistently supported the construct validity of the instrument. The STiP-5.1 thus offers a brief, relatively userfriendly instrument with generally favorable psychometric properties for the assessment of level of personality functioning of the DSM5 AMPD.