15.2 Personality and Dissociative Disorders

Question 1

Personality disorders

Answer 1

Particularly unusual patterns of behaviour (relative to one’s cultural context) that are maladaptive, distressing to oneself or others, and resistant to change

Question 2

Paranoid personality disorder (PPD)

Answer 2

individuals are consistently preoccupied by the belief that other people are attempting to harm or deceive them; they often react with anger to these imagined social or physical threats
*A

Question 3

Schizoid personality disorder (SPD)

Answer 3

individuals are socially detached; they do not desire close relationships, including being part of a family, and take little pleasure in most activities
*A

Question 4

Schizotypal personality disorder (STPD)

Answer 4

consists of both a discomfort with close relationships as well as unusual or eccentric thoughts and behaviours
*A

Question 5

Borderline personality disorder (BPD)

Answer 5

characterized by intense extremes between positive and negative emotions, an unstable sense of self, impulsivity, and difficult social relationships
*B

Question 6

Narcissistic personality disorder (NPD)

Answer 6

characterized by an inflated sense of self-importance and an excessive need for attention and admiration, as well as intense self-doubt and fear of abandonment
*B

Question 7

Histrionic personality disorder (HPD)

Answer 7

characterized by excessive attention seeking and dramatic behaviour
*B

Question 8

Antisocial personality disorder (APD)

Answer 8

a profound lack of empathy or emotional connection with others, a disregard for others’ rights or preferences, and a tendency toward imposing their own desires, often violently, onto others regardless of the consequences for other people
*B

Question 9

Avoidant personality disorder (AvPD)

Answer 9

individuals avoid social interactions including those at school or work, because they feel inadequate and are deeply afraid of being rejected
*C

Question 10

Dependent personality disorder (DPD)

Answer 10

an excessive need to be taken care of, often requiring frequent assurance form others and help with everyday decision making
*C

Question 11

Obsessive-compulsive personality disorder (OCPD)

Answer 11

a disorder in which individuals are perfectionists who are unusually focused on details, organization, and productivity; these individuals also tend to avoid spending money or throwing out old, worthless objects
*C

Question 12

Dissociative disorder

Answer 12

a category of mental disorders characterized by a split between a person’s conscious awareness and their feelings, cognitions, memory, and identity

Question 13

Dissociative identity disorder (DID)

Answer 13

aka multiple personality disorder - a person experiences a split in identity such that they feel different aspects of themselves as thought they were separated from each other. This can be severe enough that the person constructs entirely separate personalities, only one of which will generally be in control at one time