Hierarchical models of personality and psychopathology: the case of self-criticism, neuroticism, and depression

Using exploratory factor analysis, Bagby and Rector (1998) found evidence to suggest that the personality constructs of Neuroticism and self-criticism show enough overlap to be considered redundant with each other, while Agreeableness and dependency were found to be distinct from each other. The current study assessed the redundancy versus distinctiveness issue between these constructs through the use of confirmatory factor analysis with a sample of depressed patients (N=276) and a college student sample (N=281). Support was found for the separation of Neuroticism and self-criticism in both samples. Although a high degree of covariance was found between these two constructs, self-criticism can be conceptualized as being hierarchically nested in the higher-order domain of Neuroticism. Agreeableness and dependency were found to be distinct from each other. Our findings also supported Paunonen's (1998) findings that lower-order individual difference variables have incremental predictive validity over higher-order personality traits, in this case with clinically-relevant criteria. Specifically, self-criticism accounted for a statistically significant additional amount of variance in measures of depression beyond that accounted for by Neuroticism in a clinical sample. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.