Leighton's theory of sentiments: explorations and speculations on barriers to interpersonal forgiveness.

In My Name Is Legion (Leighton, 1959), the basic assumption of Alexander H. Leighton's theory of sentiment is as follows: 'A given personality exists more or less continuously throughout life in the act of striving, and interference with that striving has consequences which in turn often lead to psychiatric disorder' (p. 136).

The Objective Behavioral Index: a measure for assessing treatment response of patients with severe personality disorders.

A measure that captures the frequency and intensity of experienced dysfunctional behaviors as well as the use of mental health services was developed and tested as part of a treatment controlled trial of patients with borderline personality disorder. The Objective Behavioral Index (OBI) was completed by 136 subjects with the diagnosis of borderline personality disorder before random assignment to treatment and by 35 subjects at each follow-up point. With one exception, the OBI subindexes (Dysfunctional Behaviors and Service Utilization) were not intercorrelated nor were they associated with any of the other patient status measures.

Relationship between cognitive and social dysfunction in schizophrenia.

This cross-sectional study examined the relationships between cognitive functioning, social functioning, and social problem solving in a sample of 30 outpatients with schizophrenia. The cognitive battery included measures of verbal ability, memory, executive functioning, visual-spatial ability, and attention. Social functioning was assessed with the Social Dysfunction Index (SDI) and the Social Adjustment Scale-II (SAS-II).

The contribution of group cohesion and group alliance to the outcome of group psychotherapy.

The contribution to outcome of two group-process factors, group cohesion and group therapeutic alliance, was tested in the context of a randomized, controlled treatment trial for borderline personality disorder. Group members from four time-limited groups of an experimental model of group psychotherapy completed measures of group cohesion and group alliance at prespecified intervals across the 30-session therapy. Outcome was measured in terms of psychiatric symptoms, social adaptation, and indicators of behavioral dysfunction.

The social dysfunction index (SDI) for patients with schizophrenia and related disorders.

The social dysfunction index (SDI) is a new measure designed to assess social dysfunction in schizophrenia and other severe mental illnesses. It is intended to serve clinical and research purposes. Raters can be readily trained and there is low respondent burden with its use.