TY - JOUR
T1 - The Relation Between Self-Event Connections and Personality Functioning in Youth with Severe Psychopathology
AU - Moor, Elisabeth L de
AU - Graaff, Jolien Van der
AU - Koster, Nagila
AU - Laceulle, Odilia M
AU - Branje, Susan
N1 - Funding Information:
De Moor and Branje were supported by a grant of the European Research Council (ERC‐2017‐CoG‐773023 INTRANSITION)
Publisher Copyright:
© 2022 The Authors. Journal of Personality published by Wiley Periodicals LLC.
PY - 2022/10
Y1 - 2022/10
N2 - OBJECTIVE: One way in which individuals construct their narrative identity is by making self-event connections, which are often linked to better functioning. Being unable to make connections is related to identity discontinuity and psychopathology. Work in the general population corroborates this association, but also highlights the importance of focusing on specific aspects of these connections and on vulnerable populations.METHOD: We examined the association of self-event connections with personality functioning in youth with severe psychopathology (cross-sectional N = 228, Mage = 19.5, longitudinal N = 84), and the role of event and connection valence in the subsample of youth who made a connection (n = 188 and n = 68). Negative affectivity was controlled for in all models.RESULTS: We found no evidence that self-event connections, nor connection valence and its interaction with event valence, are related to functioning. Positive event valence was associated with better functioning. Higher negative affectivity was strongly linked to lower functioning and explained the relation between event valence and functioning. No longitudinal associations emerged.CONCLUSIONS: These findings show that for youth with severe psychopathology making self-event connections may not be associated with better functioning. Moreover, negative affectivity may be a distal predictor of both event valence and functioning.
AB - OBJECTIVE: One way in which individuals construct their narrative identity is by making self-event connections, which are often linked to better functioning. Being unable to make connections is related to identity discontinuity and psychopathology. Work in the general population corroborates this association, but also highlights the importance of focusing on specific aspects of these connections and on vulnerable populations.METHOD: We examined the association of self-event connections with personality functioning in youth with severe psychopathology (cross-sectional N = 228, Mage = 19.5, longitudinal N = 84), and the role of event and connection valence in the subsample of youth who made a connection (n = 188 and n = 68). Negative affectivity was controlled for in all models.RESULTS: We found no evidence that self-event connections, nor connection valence and its interaction with event valence, are related to functioning. Positive event valence was associated with better functioning. Higher negative affectivity was strongly linked to lower functioning and explained the relation between event valence and functioning. No longitudinal associations emerged.CONCLUSIONS: These findings show that for youth with severe psychopathology making self-event connections may not be associated with better functioning. Moreover, negative affectivity may be a distal predictor of both event valence and functioning.
KW - event and connection valence
KW - narrative identity
KW - negative affectivity
KW - personality functioning
KW - self-event connections
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85122248495&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1111/jopy.12697
DO - 10.1111/jopy.12697
M3 - Article
C2 - 34932230
SN - 0022-3506
VL - 90
SP - 799
EP - 816
JO - Journal of Personality
JF - Journal of Personality
IS - 5
ER -