ABSTRACT
Despite the predominance of a categorical approach when dealing with Axis II issues in eating disorders (EDs), a dimensional approach to the study of personality disorders is particularly interesting and fruitful. A categorical approach is often recommended for a variety of reasons. In particular, it facilitates scientific communication and is more in tune with the medical tradition. However, the variation within diagnostic categories, the presence of symptoms that are characteristic of more than one category, and the influence of Axis I disorders on the clinical manifestations of personality disorders (Rø et al., 2005; Sansone, Levitt, & Sansone, 2006) are good reasons to consider the use of a dimensional approach in the study and clinical assessment of Axis II features in these patients.
