Evidencias de validez empírica y fiabilidad de la Level of Personality Function Scale en estudiantes universitarios

In section III of the latest edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5; American Psychiatric Association, 2013) an alternative model of classification of personality disorders is presented, these disorders are evaluated according to a mixed dimension-category criterion. In criteria A and B, dimensional assessments of the level of dysfunction are postulated, from them a categorical classification according to the dimensional aspects is made. This work will focus on criterion A, which examines the level of deficiency in the personality functioning according to two dimensions: self and interpersonal relationships. The first one involves aspects of identity (experience of oneself as  a unique being, with boundaries between the self and others, which involves a stability of self-esteem and the ability to regulate emotions) and self-direction (search for coherent and meaningful goals). Interpersonal relationships, on the other hand, are divided into empathy (understanding of the experiences and motivations of others, as well as the ability to recognize the possible effects of one's own behavior on others) and intimacy (it encompasses lasting bonds and capacity for intimacy). The Level of Personality Function Scale (LPFS; Morey, 2017) constitutes the operationalization of these dimensions. It consists of 80 items with a Likert response format. It is composed of four sub-scales: Identity, Self-Direction, Empathy and Intimacy. Due to its recent publication, few studies are currently available on its psychometric properties (e.g., Hopwood et al., 2018; Weekers et al., 2018). Therefore, the objectives of this work are: 1) to analyze the internal consistency of the LPFS; 2) to provide evidence of discriminant validity with the Big Five Inventory. Through simple intentional sampling, data were obtained from 79 students from public and private universities in Buenos Aires and its surrounding area (59.5% women; 40.5% men), between 19 and 60 years old (M = 29.09; SD = 9.45). Data collection was carried out with the following instruments: 1) LPFS (Morey, 2017) in process of local adaptation, 2) Big Five Inventory (BFI, Castro Solano & Casullo, 2000; John, 1990); a scale of 44 items with a Likert response scale of five options. It evaluates the five great personality traits (extraversion, agreeableness, responsibility, neuroticism, openness to experience). Regarding the results, in order to respond to the first objective, internal consistency was analyzed by calculating Cronbach alphas, finding the following results: identity= .83; self-direction= .83; empathy= .65, intimacy= .81. Considering the second objective, Pearson's r correlations between dimensions of the LPFS and the BFI were calculated to provide evidence of discriminant validity. Moderate negative associations (p <.01) of negative type were found between identity and extraversion (r= -.38), agreeableness (r= -.41), responsibility (r= -. 43); while with neuroticism the correlation was positive (r = .46). Similarly, correlations were negative and moderate (p <.01) between self-direction and extraversion (r=-.45), agreeableness (r = -.45), responsibility (r= -.46), openness to experience (r= .41), but positive with neuroticism (r= .39). Empathy presented the lowest correlations: it showed negative results (p <.05) with extraversion (r = -. 31), agreeableness (r= -.26) and openness to experience (r = -. 24). Finally, intimacy had moderate negative associations (p <.01) with agreeableness (r= -. 51) and responsibility (r= -.36) and low correlations with extraversion (r = -. 29) and neuroticism (r = .28), the latter being positive. In conclusion, evidence of the reliability of the scores was provided, finding excellent values ​​for the dimensions, with the exception of empathy, which was acceptable. Regarding the evidence of discriminant validity, an expected pattern of associations was found: the LPFS scales were negatively linked to functional personality traits (extraversion, agreeableness, responsibility, openness to experience), while their correlation with neuroticism was positive. It is recommended that future research continues studying the psychometric quality of LPFS, expanding the sample to allow generalizing the results to other populations.