Level of personality functioning of adolescents in an acute psychiatric treatment setting: A cohort study

Abstract

Background: Adolescents admitted as acute inpatients are a particularly vulnerable psychosocial population. This study aimed to examine their level of personality functioning in an acute psychiatric treatment setting.

Methods: We evaluated personality functioning in 62 adolescents using the Level of Personality Functioning-Questionnaire 12-18 (LoPF-Q 12-18) from a patient perspective and the Level of Personality Functioning Scale (LPFS) completed by clinicians.

Results: Adolescent patients exhibited a relatively high level of impaired personality functioning, with females tending to show partly higher levels of impairment than males. The agreement between self-reported and clinician reported impairment of personality functioning was low. Biopsychosocial mental health was a strong predictor of self-reported and clinician-reported levels of personality functioning, in contrast to nonsuicidal self-injurious behavior and suicidality.

Conclusion: Our findings identify important characteristics of adolescents in acute psychiatric inpatient units. The LoPF-Q may serve as a valuable screening tool for diagnostics and treatment.

Keywords: adolescence; early detection; personality functioning; severe mental health problems.