Use of the SIPP

Clinical assessment
Despite the fast growth of the number of diagnostic instruments for personality disorders, and despite the availability of several tests that measure personality traits in the normal population, diagnostic tools tailored to evaluate the severity of personality in patients that is generic to all personality disorders are still not common. The SIPP seems a promising instrument for focusing on the changeable aspects of personality pathology among patients with personality disorders.

For the SIPP-118, norm scores are available from two groups: patients with personality disorders who are seeking treatment, and individuals from the general population. For each participant, standardised t-scores comparing the individual’s score to patients seeking treatment and to individuals from the general population can be computed.

Evaluating outcome of psychotherapeutic treatment
As the SIPP focuses on the changeability of personality pathology, the questionnaire is suited to be administered before and after psychotherapeutic interventions. The SIPP-SF is specifically developed for treatment outcome research.

Whereas the SIPP-scores seem to be stable in the short run (good test-retest reliability), research focusing on the predictive and construct validity of the SIPP is still in progress.

Research
The SIPP is currently under study as a research tool in diagnostic and psychotherapy treatment studies among patients with personality disorders, in particular in the Netherlands, the United Kingdom and in Argentinia. Submission of an article about the development and background of the SIPP is in preparation.