Psychoanalytic Psychology, Vol 41(4), Oct 2024, 161-170; doi:10.1037/pap0000510
The Psychodynamic Diagnostic Manual (PDM; PDM Task Force, 2006) and its subsequent second edition (PDM-2; Lingiardi & McWilliams, 2017) aims to provide a “taxonomy of people” rather than a “taxonomy of disorders.” The Psychodiagnostic Chart (PDC; Gordon & Bornstein, 2012) and PDC-2 (Gordon & Bornstein, 2015) is a clinician-rated instrument designed to operationalize the PDM/PDM-2. Evidence for the PDC/PDC-2 is emerging, thus the present study sought to provide further evidence for the validity of the PDC/PDC-2 using a multimethod assessment in a sample of 40 outpatients diagnosed with borderline personality disorder who were receiving transference-focused psychotherapy. Clinicians rated their patients using the PDC-2, and results showed good convergent validity with Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (5th ed.) personality pathology assessed via clinician ratings and a semistructured diagnostic interview, a semistructured clinical interview assessing psychodynamic constructs (object relations, defenses), and patient self-reported interpersonal distress and general psychopathology distress. Results also pointed to potential revisions for subsequent editions of the PDM with regard to the assessment of aggression and moral functioning. Overall, the present study demonstrated that the PDC-2 is a valid instrument for assessing personality and psychopathology in a clinical sample. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved)