The impact of ADHD and autism spectrum disorders on temperament, character and personality development
Abstract
OBJECTIVE: The authors describe personality development and disorders in relation to symptoms of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and autism spectrum disorders. METHOD: Consecutive adults referred for neuropsychiatric investigation (N=240) were assessed for current and lifetime ADHD and autism spectrum disorders and completed the Temperament and Character Inventory. In a subgroup of subjects (N=174), presence of axis II personality disorders was also assessed with the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV Personality Disorders (SCID-II). RESULTS: Patients with ADHD reported high novelty seeking and high harm avoidance. Patients with autism spectrum disorders reported low novelty seeking, low reward dependence, and high harm avoidance. Character scores (self-directedness and cooperativeness) were extremely low among subjects with neuropsychiatric disorders, indicating a high overall prevalence of personality disorders, which was confirmed with the SCID-II. Cluster B personality disorders were more common in subjects with ADHD, while cluster A and C disorders were more common in those with autism spectrum disorders. The overlap between DSM-IV personality disorder categories was high, and they seem less clinically useful in this context. CONCLUSIONS: ADHD and autism spectrum disorders are associated with specific temperament configurations and an increased risk of personality disorders and deficits in character maturation.
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The comorbidity between ADHD and the different emotional instability disorders is remarkably large.
“The comorbidity between ADHD and the different emotional instability disorders is remarkably large.”
From Top-Down Dysregulation—From ADHD to Emotional Instability (2016) · cites this paper as Anckarsater et al., 2006
The prevalence of BPD in a cohort of 81 patients with ADHD was 37%.
“while the prevalence of BPD in a cohort of 81 patients with ADHD was 37% (Anckarsater et al., 2006).”
From Top-Down Dysregulation—From ADHD to Emotional Instability (2016) · cites this paper as Anckarsater et al., 2006
Emotional instability disorders (BPD, ASPD, CD) have a high rate of comorbidity with ADHD and ADHD symptoms.
“Although all these disorders have a high rate of comorbidity with ADHD and with ADHD symptoms, they are unquestionably different from classical DSM-5 ADHD.”
From Top-Down Dysregulation—From ADHD to Emotional Instability (2016) · cites this paper as Anckarsater et al., 2006
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References 31 · Cited by 271
- Authors
- Anckarsäter, H., Stahlberg, O., Larson, T., Hakansson, C., Jutblad, S.-B., Niklasson, L., Nydén, A., Wentz, E., Westergren, S., Cloninger, C. R., Gillberg, C., & Rastam, M.
- Affiliations
- Skåne University Hospital (SE)
- Corresponding author
- Anckarsäter, Henrik
- Venue
- American Journal of Psychiatry
- Published
- 2006-07
- Volume
- 163
- Issue
- 7
- Pages
- 1239-1244
- ISSN
- 0002-953X (ISSN-L)
- 1535-7228
- OpenAlex
- W2117402840
- Cited by
- 271
- References
- 31
- Citations by year
- 2025: 4 · 2024: 4 · 2023: 6 · 2022: 5 · 2021: 17 · 2020: 2 · 2019: 11 · 2018: 18 · 2017: 12 · 2016: 27 · 2015: 22 · 2014: 19 · 2013: 21 · 2012: 14
- FWCI
- 15.85
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- American Journal of Psychiatry (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Lund University Publications (Lund University) (submittedVersion)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Personality Disorders and Psychopathology
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Psychiatry and Mental health › Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Personality Traits and Psychology
- Keywords
- attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, autism spectrum disorder, personality development, temperament, character, personality disorders, novelty seeking, harm avoidance, reward dependence, self-direction, cooperativeness, cluster B personality disorders, neuropsychiatric disorders, personality disorder classification
- MeSH terms
- Adult, Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity, Autistic Disorder, Character, Cooperative Behavior, Cross-Sectional Studies, Exploratory Behavior, Female, Humans, Male, Middle Aged, Personality Development, Personality Disorders, Personality Inventory, Psychiatric Status Rating Scales, Retrospective Studies, Temperament, Cohort Studies, Comorbidity, Prevalence, Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders
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