A prospective examination of the stability of hostile-dominance and its relationship to paranoia over a one-year follow-up

A hostile-dominant interpersonal style and paranoia increase the risk of aggression in psychiatric inpatients. Paranoia is also associated with hostile-dominance; however, the nature of this relationship is unclear. This study evaluated the relationship between hostile-dominance and paranoia over a oneyear period. One hundred and twenty-two patients admitted to hospital for psychiatric treatment were recruited, 43 were available for follow-up. Forty-two participants provided usable data, including 20 men and 22 women, with an age range of 18–63 (M = 41.02 years, SD = 13.00 years). At recruitment and follow-up, the psychiatric symptomatology and interpersonal style of each patient was assessed using the Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale-18 and the Impact Message Inventory-Circumplex. Results showed that hostile-dominance was relatively stable over time even though symptoms of paranoia subsided. Higher levels of hostile-dominance were associated with higher levels of paranoia at both recruitment and follow-up. The implications of this research for understanding the relationship between interpersonal style, paranoia and aggression during psychiatric hospitalisation are discussed. Crown Copyright 2011 Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.