Dependent Personality Disorder and Attachment Problems

The criteria for DSM–III–R dependent personality disorder refer to both attachment and dependency behaviors. Attachment theorists, however, conceptualize attachment and dependence as distinct entities. The authors examine the degree to which the dimensions of attachment and dependency are distinct. The behavioral dimensions of dependency and attachment pathology associated with dependent personality disorder were systematically defined, and psychometrically satisfactory scales were developed to measure each dimension. Investigation of the relationship between dimensions in a general population and a clinical sample indicates that attachment and dependence dimensions form orthogonal factors. The implications of this finding for the delineation of the behavioral features associated with dependent personality disorder are discussed.