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Neuroticism, coping and change in MCMI‐II clinical syndromes: test of a mediator model
Author(s) -
Vollrath Margarete,
Torgersen Svenn,
Alnæs Randolf
Publication year - 1998
Publication title -
scandinavian journal of psychology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.743
H-Index - 72
eISSN - 1467-9450
pISSN - 0036-5564
DOI - 10.1111/1467-9450.00051
Subject(s) - neuroticism , psychology , mediator , millon clinical multiaxial inventory , coping (psychology) , clinical psychology , test (biology) , personality , social psychology , personality disorders , medicine , paleontology , biology
The aim of the study was to examine prospectively whether coping mediated the relation between Neuroticism and change in different clinical mental syndromes. Assessments were conducted with 154 former psychiatric outpatients six and seven years after their initial contact with an outpatient clinic. Dispositional coping mediated the relation between Neuroticism and change in four of the nine clinical scales of the Millon Clinical Multiaxial Inventory (MCMI‐II) (Millon, 1987). High Neuroticism led to coping strategies of disengagement and the venting of emotions and to a lack of problem‐focused coping, which in turn translated into a relative increase on the MCMI‐II scales. The mediator model of coping was found to apply to the MCMI‐II scales "somatoform disorder’, ‘dysthymia’, ‘alcohol dependence’ and ‘thought disorder’. Results are discussed under the perspective of an integration of the positions of the transactional theory of stress and personality psychology. .