THOMAS F. OLTMANNS, PH.D.
Edgar James Swift Professor of Psychology in Arts and Sciences
and Professor of Psychiatry
Director of Clinical Training in Psychology
Research Interests
1) assessment of personality disorders
2) self-knowledge and person perception in psychopathology
3) emotional and cognitive factors in obsessive compulsive disorder
Specific Research Activities
My current research is designed to examine the construct validity of personality disorders (PDs) by combining methods developed for studying the social psychology of person perception with laboratory performance measures, structured interviews, and real world data regarding social and occupational functioning. Current knowledge regarding PDs relies almost exclusively on self-report measures (questionnaires and interviews). Unfortunately, people with PDs are frequently unable to view themselves realistically and unaware of the effect their behavior has on other people. Our study compares information regarding pathological personality traits from self-report measures with peer nominations made by people who are well acquainted with each other. This work has led us to an interest in the extent of people's ability to predict what other people think of them. Our data indicate that people are at least partially aware of the ways in which other people think about them, above and beyond their views of themselves. Future studies will pursue these findings to evaluate the validity of self-report and peer-based measures and the importance of self-knowledge. These data will allow us to assess the impact of pathological personality traits on functional outcomes in people=s lives.
I am also involved in on-going studies of obsessive-compulsive disorder. My original work in this area focused on emotional responsiveness among people who show subclinical levels of OCD symptomatology. One outgrowth of that program of research has been an interest in the cross-cultural validity of self-report instruments for assessing OCD. Our data indicate that the Maudsley Obsessional Compulsive Inventory is not a valid measure with African Americans. Investigations that are currently under way will focus on the development of measures that are not culturally biased, and they will also explore the role of stereotype threats in explaining the existence of cultural bias in personality measures.
Special Populations, Data Sets and Facilities
Two sets of data comparing self- and peer-report measures of personality pathology each including more than 2,000 participants (one includes Air Force recruits, the other college students). Within these samples, many participants were interviewed using the Structured Interview for DSM Personlity (SIDP-IV).
Our lab in the Department of Psychology includes space and equipment for conducting interview studies as well as performing laboratory observations of interpersonal behavior.
Key References
Oltmanns TF, Friedman JN, Fiedler ER, Turkheimer E: Perceptions of people with personality disorders based on thin slices of behavior. Journal of Research in Personality 2004; 38, 216-229.
Fiedler ER, Oltmanns TF, Turkheimer E: Traits associated with personality disorders and adjustment to military life: Predictive validity of self and peer reports. Military Medicine 2004; 169, 32-40.
Klonsky ED, Oltmanns TF, Turkheimer E: Deliberate self-harm in a non-clinical population: Prevalence and psychological correlates. American Journal of Psychiatry 2003; 160, 1501-1508.
Thomas C, Turkheimer E, Oltmanns TF: (2003). Factorial structure of pathological personality traits as evaluated by peers. Journal of Abnormal Psychology 2003; 112:1-12.
South SC, Oltmanns TF, Turkheimer E: (2003). Personality and the derogation of others: Descriptions based on self and peer report. Journal of Research in Personality 2003; 37, 16-33.
Oltmanns TF, Melley AH, Turkheimer E: (2002). Impaired social functioning and symptoms of personality disorders in a non-clinical population. Journal of Personality Disorders 2002; 16, 438-453.
Klonsky ED, Jane JS Turkheimer E, Oltmanns TF: Gender role and personality disorders. Journal of Personality Disorders 2002; 16: 465-477.
Thomas J, Turkheimer E, Oltmanns TF: Psychometric analysis of racial differences on the Maudsley Obsessional Compulsive Inventory. Assessment 2000; 7, 247-258.
Oltmanns TF, Gibbs NA: Emotional responsiveness in people with obsessive compulsive behaviors. Cognition and Emotion 1995; 9:563-578.