Episode 008 - Personality Disorder through an Interpersonal Lens – Validating Lorna Benjamin’s Approach
🎙️ Episode Overview:
In this episode of the Loving Differently Podcast, we (Dr. Ken Critchfield and Dr. Eliza Stucker-Rozovsky) dive into a newly accepted paper examining the interpersonal diagnosis of personality disorders through the lens of Interpersonal Reconstructive Therapy (IRT). Using the SASB model, we explore how longstanding debates in the DSM-5—categorical versus dimensional models of personality disorder—can be reframed through interpersonal patterns and developmental histories.
We discuss how personality disorders are best understood not as fixed traits, but as learned relational strategies that once served adaptive purposes in difficult environments. Drawing on empirical findings from Panizo et al. (2025), we examine interpersonal hostility, comorbidity, and how overlapping personality disorder features emerge naturally when viewed dimensionally. We also explore how interpersonal case formulation offers clinicians greater empathy, specificity, and hope for change.
Throughout the episode, we connect theory to clinical practice—highlighting how IRT helps clinicians move beyond symptom management toward helping patients reconstruct deeply ingrained relational patterns rooted in developmental trauma. We also preview an upcoming series focused on specific personality disorder prototypes and their interpersonal harmonics.
(00:00) – Introduction and context for the Panizo et al. paper
(02:30) – Why personality disorders remain a central clinical challenge
(05:00) – Categorical vs dimensional models in the DSM-5
(08:30) – How SASB conceptualizes interpersonal patterns
(12:00) – Developmental trauma and adaptive origins of personality patterns
(16:00) – Interpersonal hostility as a core feature of personality disorders
(20:00) – Understanding comorbidity through interpersonal overlap
(25:00) – Five interpersonal clusters identified in the research
(32:00) – Clinical implications of interpersonal diagnosis
(40:00) – Hope, change, and reconstruction in IRT
(48:00) – Bridging DSM language with interpersonal case formulation
(55:00) – Preview of upcoming personality disorder series
(63:00) – Final reflections on empathy and clinical relevance
🧩 Major Themes and Discussion Points:
Categorical versus dimensional models of personality disorder
Interpersonal patterns as the core of personality pathology
Developmental trauma and adaptive origins of symptoms
Comorbidity explained through interpersonal overlap
Empathy and hope in personality disorder treatment
Clinical relevance of IRT and SASB
Reconstruction and long-term change in therapy
📚 References (click for the file):