Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

The Personality Assessment Inventory: Clinical Utility, Psychometric Properties, and Normative Data for Bariatric Surgery Candidates

  • Clinical Research
  • Published:
Obesity Surgery Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Background

The Personality Assessment Inventory (PAI), an overall measure of personality and psychopathology, features a number of dimensions that may be useful in the psychological assessment of bariatric surgery candidates. However, its clinical utility is limited because psychometric properties of the PAI with bariatric surgery candidates have never been evaluated, and normative data for this population have never been published.

Methods

We examined the psychometric properties and clinical utility of the PAI with a large sample of bariatric surgery candidates (n = 546) presenting for evaluation in an urban medical center. Internal consistency reliability analyses were performed on the PAI full scales and subscales. Exploratory factor analysis using principal components analysis with oblique rotation was performed and the results compared with community, clinical, and medical samples. Normative data and scale elevation frequencies for the bariatric sample are presented.

Results

Alpha coefficients and mean interitem correlations were acceptable and similar to the test standardization samples. Factor analyses supported the consistency of the underlying factor structure with bariatric surgery candidates and also revealed a factor for warmth and social support. Normative data indicate that overall bariatric surgery candidates appear quite similar to the community standardization sample. Sixteen percent of candidates reported significant (T ≥ 70) somatic complaints, consistent with the greater health problems in this sample.

Conclusions

Our findings support the clinical utility of the PAI in the psychological assessment of bariatric surgery candidates. The availability of PAI normative data and profile elevation statistics will help to facilitate clinical interpretation and inform treatment recommendations for candidates undergoing bariatric surgery.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. National Institutes of Health. Clinical guidelines on the identification, evaluation, and treatment of overweight and obesity in adults. NIH Publication 98-4083; 1998.

  2. Greenberg I, Perna F, Kaplan M, et al. Behavioral and psychological factors in the assessment and treatment of obesity surgery patients. Obes Res. 2005;13:244–9.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  3. Marcus M, Kalarchian M, Courcoulas A. Psychological evaluation and follow-up of bariatric surgery candidates. Am J Psychiat. 2009;166:285–91.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  4. American Society of Bariatric Surgeons. Retrieved 3/26/09 from http://www.asbs.org. 2009.

  5. Sarwer DB, Bohn NI, Gibbons LM, et al. Psychiatric diagnosis and psychiatric treatment among bariatric surgery candidates. Obes Surg. 2004;14:1148–56.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  6. Bauchowitz AU, Gonderer-Frederick LA, Olsbrich ME, et al. Psychosocial evaluation of bariatric surgery candidates: a survey of present practices. Psychosom Med. 2005;67:825–32.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  7. Walfish S, Vance D, Fabricatore AN. Psychological evaluation of bariatric surgery applicants: procedures and reasons for delay or denial of surgery. Obes Surg. 2007;17:1578–83.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  8. Morey LC. Personality assessment inventory professional manual. Odessa: Psychological Assessment Resources; 1991.

    Google Scholar 

  9. Helmes E. A modern instrument for evaluation psychopathology. J Pers Assess. 1993;61:414–7.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  10. Messick S. Validity. In: Linn RL, editor. Educational measurement. 2nd ed. New York: MacMillan; 1989. p. 13–103.

    Google Scholar 

  11. Streiner DL. Starting at the beginning: an introduction to coefficient alpha and internal consistency. J Pers Assess. 2003;80:99–103.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  12. Mauri M, Rucci P, Calderone A, et al. Axis I and II disorders and quality of life in bariatric surgery candidates. J Clin Psychiatry. 2008;69:295–301.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  13. Kalarchian M, et al. Psychiatric disorders among bariatric surgery candidates: relationship to obesity and functional health status. Am J Psychiatr. 2007;162:328–34.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  14. Beck AT, Steer RA, Brown GK. Beck depression inventory. 2nd ed. San Antonio: The Psychological Corporation; 1996.

    Google Scholar 

  15. Tasca GA, Wood J, Demidenko N, et al. Using the PAI with an eating disordered population: scale characteristics, factor structure, and differences among diagnostic groups. J Pers Assess. 2002;79:337–56.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  16. Karlin BE, Creech SK, Grimes JS, et al. The Personality Assessment Inventory with chronic pain patients: psychometric properties and clinical utility. J Clin Psychology. 2005;61:1571–85.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  17. Schinka JA. Personality Assessment Inventory scale characteristics and factor structure in the assessment of alcohol dependency. J Pers Assess. 1995;64:101–11.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  18. Tabatchnik BG, Fidell LS. Using multivariate statistics. 2nd ed. NY: HarperCollins; 1989.

    Google Scholar 

  19. Costello AB, Osborne JW. Best practices in exploratory factor analysis: four recommendations for getting the most from your analysis. Pract Assess Res Eval. 2005;10:1–9.

    Google Scholar 

  20. Streiner DL, Norman GR. Health measurement scales: a practical guide to their construction and use. 4th ed. Oxford: Oxford University Press; 2008.

    Google Scholar 

  21. Clark LA, Watson D. Constructing validity: basic issues in objective scale development. Psychol Assess. 1995;7:309–19. Special issue: Methodological issues in psychological assessment research.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  22. Morey LC. Personality Assessment Inventory Professional Manual. 2nd ed. Odessa: Psychological Assessment Resources; 2007.

    Google Scholar 

  23. Hoelzle JB, Meyer GJ. The invariant component structure of the Personality Assessment Inventory full scales. J Pers Assess. 2009;91:175–86.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  24. Todd WR. Race/ethnicity and the Personality Assessment Inventory (PAI): the impact of culture on diagnostic testing in a college counseling center (Doctoral dissertation, Temple University). Diss Abstr Int. 2005;65:5425.

    Google Scholar 

  25. Kleiner K, Gold M, Frost-Pineda K, et al. Body mass index and alcohol use. J Addict Dis. 2003;23:105–18.

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Behavioral Sciences, Rush University Medical Center, 1653 W. Congress Pkwy, Chicago, IL, 60612, USA

    Joyce A. Corsica, Leila Azarbad, Kamara McGill, Laura Wool & Megan Hood

Authors
  1. Joyce A. Corsica
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Leila Azarbad
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Kamara McGill
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Laura Wool
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Megan Hood
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Joyce A. Corsica.

Additional information

The authors report no commercial interest associated with this study.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Corsica, J.A., Azarbad, L., McGill, K. et al. The Personality Assessment Inventory: Clinical Utility, Psychometric Properties, and Normative Data for Bariatric Surgery Candidates. OBES SURG 20, 722–731 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11695-009-0004-7

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11695-009-0004-7

Keywords

Search

Navigation