Think for a minute about high school acquaintances whose personalities made them stand out. Was there an odd person who didn’t seem to make sense, wore strange outfits, and sometimes wouldn’t respond in conversation? Or perhaps a drama queen, whose theatrics and exaggerated emotions turned everything into a big deal? And don’t forget the neat freak, who had the perfectly organized locker, precisely arranged hair, and sweater with zero lint balls. One way to describe such people is to say they simply have personalities, the unique patterns of traits we explored in the Personality chapter. But sometimes, personality traits can become so rigid and confining that they blend into mental disorders. Personality disorders are enduring patterns of thinking, feeling, or relating to others or controlling impulses that deviate from cultural expectations and cause distress or impaired functioning. Personality disorders begin in adolescence or early adulthood and are relatively stable over time.
Enduring patterns of thinking, feeling, or relating to others or controlling impulses that deviate from cultural expectations and cause distress or impaired functioning.
The DSM-
Cluster |
Personality Disorder |
Characteristics |
---|---|---|
A. Odd/Eccentric |
Paranoid |
Distrust in others, suspicion that people have sinister motives. Apt to challenge the loyalties of friends and read hostile intentions into others’ actions. Prone to anger and aggressive outbursts but otherwise emotionally cold. Often jealous, guarded, secretive, overly serious. |
|
Schizoid |
Extreme introversion and withdrawal from relationships. Prefers to be alone, little interest in others. Humorless, distant, often absorbed with own thoughts and feelings, a daydreamer. Fearful of closeness, with poor social skills, often seen as a “loner.” |
|
Schizotypal |
Peculiar or eccentric manners of speaking or dressing. Strange beliefs. “Magical thinking” such as beliefs in ESP or telepathy. Difficulty forming relationships. May react oddly in conversation, not respond, or talk to self. Speech elaborate and difficult to follow. (Possibly a mild form of schizophrenia.) |
B. Dramatic/Erratic |
Antisocial |
Impoverished moral sense or “conscience.” History of deception, crime, legal problems, impulsive and aggressive or violent behavior. Little emotional empathy or remorse for hurting others. Manipulative, careless, callous. At high risk for substance abuse and alcoholism |
|
Borderline |
Unstable moods and intense, stormy personal relationships. Frequent mood changes and anger, unpredictable impulses. Self- |
|
Histrionic |
Constant attention seeking. Grandiose language, provocative dress, exaggerated illness, all to gain attention. Believes that everyone loves them. Emotional, lively, overly dramatic, enthusiastic, and excessively flirtatious. Shallow and labile emotions. “Onstage.” |
|
Narcissistic |
Inflated sense of self- |
C. Anxious/Inhibited |
Avoidant |
Socially anxious and uncomfortable unless they are confident of being liked. In contrast with schizoid person, yearns for social contact. Fears criticism and worries about being embarrassed in front of others. Avoids social situations due to fear of rejection. |
|
Dependent |
Submissive, dependent, requiring excessive approval, reassurance, and advice. Clings to people and fears losing them. Lacking self- |
|
Obsessive- |
Conscientious, orderly, perfectionist. Excessive need to do everything “right.” Inflexibly high standards and caution can interfere with their productivity. Fear of errors can make them strict and controlling. Poor expression of emotions. (Not the same as obsessive- |
Source: Information from American Psychiatric Association, 2013. |
Personality disorders have been a bit controversial for several reasons. First, critics question whether having a problematic personality is really a disorder. Given that approximately 15% of the U.S. population has a personality disorder according to the DSM–
One of the most well-
A pervasive pattern of disregard for and violation of the rights of others that begins in childhood or early adolescence and continues into adulthood.
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What are some of the factors that contribute to APD?
Adults with an APD diagnosis typically have a history of conduct disorder before the age of 15. In adulthood, a diagnosis of APD is given to individuals who show three or more of a set of seven diagnostic signs: illegal behavior, deception, impulsivity, physical aggression, recklessness, irresponsibility, and a lack of remorse for wrongdoing. About 3.6% of the general population has APD, and the rate of occurrence in men is 3 times the rate in women (Grant et al., 2004). Evidence of brain abnormalities in people with APD is also accumulating (Blair, Peschardt, & Mitchell, 2005). For example, criminal psychopaths who are shown negative emotional words such as hate or corpse exhibit less activity in the amygdala and hippocampus than do noncriminals (Kiehl et al., 2001). The two brain areas are involved in the process of fear conditioning (Patrick, Cuthbert, & Lang, 1994), so their relative inactivity suggests that psychopaths are less sensitive to fear than are other people. It might seem peaceful to go through life “without fear,” but perhaps fear is useful in keeping people from the extremes of antisocial behavior.
1. | Which of the following is a common feature of personality disorders? |
a.
2. | Jim was diagnosed as having antisocial personality disorder based on the fact that he |
d.