Distinguishing Personality Functioning, Normal range Traits, and Maladaptive Traits in Offenders

The Alternative Model of Personality Disorders (AMPD) has gained widespread recognition, yet the extent of overlap between personality functioning, maladaptive traits, and normal-range traits—and its implications for clinical practice—remains debated. Existing evidence is largely based on cross-sectional designs and Western convenience samples. In this registered report, we tested 11 preregistered hypotheses examining associations and distinctions among personality functioning, normal-range traits, and maladaptive traits in two Chinese offender samples (N₁ = 1,395; N₂ = 1,017 at T1) using four waves of data collected over one year. Results revealed notable differences in the distributions and longitudinal properties of personality functioning and traits. Moreover, maladaptive traits were partly jointly predicted by personality functioning and normal-range traits. This study provides the most comprehensive longitudinal test to date of similarities and differences between personality functioning and traits, and extends the AMPD literature to a non-Western offender population in which personality assessment may be particularly informative.