Personality Features of OCD and Spectrum Conditions

This chapter reviews personality features (comorbid personality disorders, trait dimensions, and related constructs) in obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) and hypothesized obsessive compulsive spectrum conditions (body dysmorphic disorder, compulsive hoarding, tic disorders, and impulse control disorders). For each disorder, there is a discussion of the impact of personality features on clinical course, including the development and maintenance of symptoms, and treatment outcome. The chapter also includes a review of the longstanding, yet often misunderstood, relationship between OCD and obsessive compulsive personality disorder (OCPD). Understanding the role of personality variables in the psychopathology of OCD and related conditions has important etiological, clinical, and theoretical implications for the study of these disorders.