IPDE - Extranet Systems - World Health Organization

49 IPDE
dimensional scores are not only useful to the clinician, but they also provide
the research investigator with greater reliability and more versatility
in data analysis.
Appropriate subjects
The IPDE is not intended for subjects below the age of 18, although with
slight modifications some investigators have found it useful with those
as young as age 15. The interview is not appropriate for those with
severe depression, psychosis, below-normal intelligence, or substantial
cognitive impairment. Whether it should be used with patients in remission
from a chronic psychotic illness is somewhat problematic. For
example. can one distinguish residual schizophrenia or the interepisodic
manifestations of a bipolar disorder from a PD? A number of investigators
have found the IF'DE useful in studies of those disorders, and the
decision is left to the discretion of the user.
Limitations of the IPDE
The IPDE is essentially a self-report instrument, and assumes that a person
is capable of providing a valid description of disturbances in his personality.
However, an individual may be unaware of some of his traits.
He may also be resistant to acknowledging behaviour, if it is socially
undesirable or if he thinks its disclosure is likely to adversely affect his
best interests. This is especially likely to occur in patients who wish to
terminate treatment prematurely, or in those about to be discharged from
a mental health facility. Others may exaggerate disturbances in their
behaviour. This is sometimes observed in those who are frantically seeking
help, or who are dissatisfied with their treatment or the amount of
attention they are receiving. It may also be a reflection of certain personality
traits. Although subjects may also feign traits or behaviour, particularly
in compensation cases and some forensic and military situations,
the IF'DE discourages this by requiring documentation with convincing
examples, anecdotes, and descriptions.
Patients in a dysphoric state may have a selective recall or distorted
perception of some personality traits. They may also confuse them with
the symptoms of another mental disorder. There is evidence that the
interest may be resistant to such trait-state artifacts in patients with
mild to moderate symptoms, but additional research is required on this
important subject. When possible, some investigators may wish to