Chapter 13 - Personality Flashcards
What is a personality disorder?
-A persistent pattern of emotions, thoughts, and behaviors causing significant distress or functional impairment, as listed in the DSM-5-TR with 10 specific disorders.
Why is the category of personality disorders controversial?
-It involves debate between categorical (type) and dimensional (degree) models, with the Five-Factor Model used to measure “normal” personality traits for better understanding.
How are personality disorders categorized in the DSM-5-TR?
Into three clusters:
Cluster A: Odd or eccentric
Cluster B: Dramatic, emotional, erratic
Cluster C: Anxious, fearful
What is the worldwide prevalence of personality disorders?
-7.8% (higher in high-income countries).
How does gender bias affect personality disorder diagnoses?
-Histrionic Personality Disorder: Biased against females.
-Antisocial Personality Disorder: Biased against males.
What is comorbidity in the context of personality disorders?
-The presence of more than one disorder or disease in the same person.
What are the three personality disorders in Cluster A?
-Paranoid Personality Disorder
-Schizoid Personality Disorder
-Schizotypal Personality Disorder
What is Paranoid Personality Disorder?
-A disorder characterized by mistrust and suspicion of others without justification, often leading to hostility, argumentativeness, or social withdrawal.
What causes Paranoid Personality Disorder, and how is it treated?
-Causes: Genetics, relatives with schizophrenia, childhood trauma, or cognitive cultural factors.
-Treatment: Cognitive therapy to change mistaken assumptions about others.
What is Schizoid Personality Disorder?
-detachment, no desire for relationships, emotionally cold
What causes Schizoid Personality Disorder, and how is it treated?
-Causes: Childhood shyness, abuse, neglect, or biological factors like low dopamine receptor density.
Treatment: Social skills training (e.g., role-playing), though outcomes are often limited.
What is Schizotypal Personality Disorder?
-odd or eccentric behaviours, paranoia, unusual beliefs
What causes Schizotypal Personality Disorder, and how is it treated?
-Causes: Genetics, brain abnormalities, left hemisphere damage, and issues in semantic association abilities (linked to magical ideation).
Treatment: Antipsychotic medication, community treatment, social skills training, CBT, and treatment for depression.
What are the four personality disorders in Cluster B?
-Antisocial Personality Disorder
-Borderline Personality Disorder
-Histrionic Personality Disorder
-Narcissistic Personality Disorder
What is Antisocial Personality Disorder?
-A disorder marked by aggressive, deceitful behavior, lack of remorse, substance abuse, and risk-taking, often beginning as conduct disorder in children.
What causes ASPD?
-Genetics: Gene-environment interaction, chronic family stress.
-Neurobiology: Low cortical arousal, fearlessness, deficient MAOA gene.
-Social/Psychological Factors: Inept parental discipline, abuse, and failure to abandon unattainable goals.
How is ASPD treated and prevented?
-Treatment: Parent training, CBT, and multifaceted programs for juvenile offenders.
Prevention: Preschool programs combining good parenting skills and family support.
What is Borderline Personality Disorder?
-A disorder characterized by unstable relationships, fear of abandonment, emotional dysregulation, self-mutilating behaviors, and high suicide risk.
What causes BPD?
-Biology: Genetics and mood disorder links.
-Trauma: Childhood abuse, early trauma, and PTSD-like experiences.
-Cognition: Negative memory biases.
How is BPD treated?
-Medications: Antipsychotics and antidepressants.
Therapies: Dialectical behavior therapy (DBT), PTSD-based approaches, and couples therapy in some cases.
What is Histrionic Personality Disorder?
-A disorder involving dramatic, theatrical behavior, self-centeredness, impulsivity, and excessive concern with physical appearance, often overdiagnosed in women.
What causes Histrionic Personality Disorder, and how is it treated?
-Causes: Co-occurs with Antisocial Personality Disorder.
Treatment: Focus on improving interpersonal relationships and teaching appropriate ways to meet needs.
What is Narcissistic Personality Disorder?
-A disorder characterized by an exaggerated sense of self-importance, lack of compassion, arrogance, envy, and frequent depression.
What causes NPD, and how is it treated?
Causes: Failure of parental empathetic “mirroring,” leading to fixation at a self-centered developmental stage.
Treatment: CBT, coping strategies (e.g., relaxation training, accepting criticism), fostering empathy, and treating depression.
What are the three personality disorders in Cluster C?
-Avoidant Personality Disorder
Dependent Personality Disorder
Obsessive-Compulsive Personality Disorder
What is Avoidant Personality Disorder?
-A disorder marked by interpersonal anxiety, fear of rejection, pessimism, and social alienation often stemming from low self-esteem.
What causes Avoidant Personality Disorder, and how is it treated?
-Causes: Difficult temperament, parental rejection, uncritical love, and an overactive behavioral inhibition system.
Treatment:
Social skills training
CBT with gradual exposure to fears
Systematic desensitization
Behavioral rehearsal
Anxiety-related medical interventions
What is Dependent Personality Disorder?
-A disorder involving interpersonal dependence, anxiety, submissiveness, sensitivity to criticism, and a strong need for reassurance and relationships.
What causes Dependent Personality Disorder, and how is it treated?
-Causes: Early childhood disruptions leading to fears of abandonment, high sociotropic traits, and low individualistic achievement traits.
Treatment: Building confidence and ensuring the patient does not over-rely on the therapist.
What is Obsessive-Compulsive Personality Disorder?
-A disorder characterized by rigidity, poor interpersonal relationships, and a relentless pursuit of perfectionism.
What causes OCPD, and how is it treated?
-Causes: Genetic predisposition.
Treatment: Relaxation techniques and CBT to reframe compulsive thoughts.
What is Sadistic Personality Disorder?
- A proposed disorder where individuals gain pleasure from inflicting pain on others.
What is Passive-Aggressive Personality Disorder?
-A proposed disorder involving defiance and refusal to cooperate with requests.
Why are Sadistic and Passive-Aggressive Personality Disorders not in the DSM-5 or DSM-5-TR?
-Their existence is still controversial, so they are not officially recognized.
