Prevalence of DSM-III-R and ICD-10 personality disorders among military conscripts suffering from homesickness

This study compares the prevalence of DSM-III-R and ICD-10 personality disorders and personality disorder traits among a group of soldiers suffering from homesickness (HS), a group of soldiers suffering from psychological problems of a different nature (PP) and a healthy control group (HC). Approximately 58% of Homesick subjects suffer from one or more personality disorders according to DSM-III-R and ICD-10. The prevalence of the DSM-III-R dependent, avoidant and obsessive-compulsive PD and PD traits and the ICD-10 anankastic PD as well as the ICD-10 paranoid, anankastic, anxious and dependent PD traits is significantly higher among the HS-group than among both the PP and the HC groups. Moreover, the prevalence of the antisocial PD is significantly higher among the PP group, than among both the HS and the HC subjects, whereas, both problematic groups score higher than the HC subjects on the ICD-10 dyssocial PD. Multivariate analysis (PRINCALS) revealed that Homesickness is most strongly associated with high scores on the DSM-III-R/ICD-10 obsessive-compulsive/anankastic, dependent and avoidant/anxious personality disorders and with low scores or the antisocial personality disorder scale. It is proposed that for a majority of homesick subjects the vulnerability to develop home-sickness is linked to enduring disturbances of personality owing to early developmental factors.