The relationship of dysfunctional attitudes to personality in depressed patients.

AIM: To examine the relationship between dysfunctional attitudes and personality in depressed patients.

METHOD: One hundred depressed patients completed both the Dysfunctional Attitudes Scale (DAS) and the Temperament and Character Inventory (TCI).

RESULTS: Scores on the DAS correlated with duration of depression, age of onset of depression, age, harm avoidance and self-directedness. In a multiple regression analysis three measures explained 45% of the DAS score. These were duration of depression, reward dependence and self-directedness. In both the univariate analyses and multiple regression the strongest predictor of dysfunctional attitudes was the character dimension of self-directedness.

CONCLUSION: The character dimension of self-directedness in the TCI which assesses an individuals' self-concept, relates highly with the dysfunctional attitudes score on the DAS. Given that the TCI assesses personality within a broader framework of a psychobiologic and developmental model, self-directedness may have a wider application as a measure of self-concept than the DAS.