An empirical study of the DSM-IV defensive functioning scale in personality disordered patients

The inclusion of the Defensive Functioning Scale (DFS) in the DSM-IV provides clinicians with the opportunity to incorporate psychodynamic information into their descriptive diagnoses. The DFS contains 27 specific defenses covering six levels of defensive functioning ranging from psychotic to normal...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published inComprehensive psychiatry Vol. 37; no. 6; pp. 435 - 440
Main Authors Blais, Mark A, Conboy, Cathy A, Wilcox, Nancy, Norman, Dennis K
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published New York, NY Elsevier Inc 01.11.1996
Elsevier
Subjects
Adaptation, Psychological
Adult
Biological and medical sciences
Defense Mechanisms
Diagnosis, Differential
Female
Humans
Male
Manuals as Topic
Medical sciences
Personality Disorders - diagnosis
Personality Disorders - psychology
Prognosis
Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry
Psychometrics. Diagnostic aid systems
Psychopathology. Psychiatry
Regression Analysis
Reproducibility of Results
Retrospective Studies
Sex Distribution
Techniques and methods
Human
Evaluation scale
Sex
Defense mechanism
Psychometrics
Personality
Diagnostic and Statistical Manual IV
Personality disorder
Online AccessGet full text

Cover

More Information
Summary:The inclusion of the Defensive Functioning Scale (DFS) in the DSM-IV provides clinicians with the opportunity to incorporate psychodynamic information into their descriptive diagnoses. The DFS contains 27 specific defenses covering six levels of defensive functioning ranging from psychotic to normal. This study undertook an initial empirical evaluation of the DFS. A sample of 100 clinicians completed a questionnaire containing both the personality disorder (PD) symptoms and the DFS defenses of PD patients known to them. DFS ratings were not related to clinician orientation. Patient gender was related to only one defense level, with women being assigned significantly more action level defenses than men. Multiple regression analyses revealed unique and meaningful patterns of association between the defense levels and PD symptoms. Additionally, the DFS ratings provided unique information regarding level of impairment and treatment success. These results provide initial empirical support for the clinical application and relevance of the proposed DFS system.
Bibliography:ObjectType-Article-1
SourceType-Scholarly Journals-1
ObjectType-Feature-2
content type line 23
ISSN:0010-440X
1532-8384
DOI:10.1016/S0010-440X(96)90027-9