Chapter 6: Personality Disorders Flashcards
Personality Disorders
Types of enduring patterns of inner experience and behaviour that deviate markedly from the expectations of the individual’s culture and lead to distress of impairment. Enduring pattern of behaviour and inner experiences that deviates significantly from the individual’s cultural standards
* Are ego-syntonic and alloplastic
* Are rigidly pervasive
* Onset in late adolescence or early adulthood
* Are stable through time
* Leads to unhappiness and impairment
* Manifests in multiple areas
Ego Syntonic
Behaviour or feelings that are perceived as natural or compatible parts of the self.
For a person who is a thief, stealing would be considered ego-syntonic, meaning that it comes naturally, there is unlikely to be any conflict about the act of stealing, and there is little or no guilt, as a result. For most people, stealing would be ego-dystonic, which is probably why we don’t do it.
Ego Dystonic
Behaviour or feelings that are perceived to be foreign or alien to one’s self-identity.
With regards to substance abuse, ego-dystonic behaviors can include stealing money to buy drugs, lying to a physician in order to get a prescription for painkillers and engaging in actions that simply don’t fit with your values and beliefs.
Paranoid Personality Disorder
Type of personality disorder characterized by persistent distrust and suspiciousness of the motives of others. People with disorder are difficult to get along with; rarely have close relationships
* Suspiciousness can be expressed by being argumentative, hostile, aloof, or complaining.
* Part of the odd or eccentric behavioural cluster.
* Display a labile range of affect, with hostile, stubborn, and sarcastic
expressions predominating
* Lack trust in others so need a high level of control
* Rigid and critical of others
* Blame others for their own shortcomings
* Can adopt negative stereotypes of others
Paranoid Personality Disorder Treatment
- Therapists must be straightforward and consistent
- Accusations better met with honesty and an apology than a defensive explanation (if appropriate)
- A professional demeanour may be more effective than an overly warm style
- Remain considerate of their struggles with trust and intimacy
What does a differential diagnosis mean?
A differential diagnosis looks at the possible disorders that could be causing your symptoms. It often involves several tests. These tests can rule out conditions and/or determine if you need more testing.
Schizoid Personality Disorder
Type of personality Disorder characterized by detachment from social relationships and a restricted range of emotional expression.
* social withdrawal
* introverted
* “loners”
* discomfort with human interaction
* bland, constricted affect
* react passively to adverse experiences
* don’t care what others think of them
Schizoid Personality Disorder Treatment
- May need to discuss the value of social relationships
- Social skills training, particularly with emotional identification and empathy
Schizotypal Personality Disorder
Type of personality disorder characterized by acute discomfort in close relationships, cognitive or perceptual distortions, and eccentricities of behaviour.
People with schizotypal personality disorder are often described as odd or eccentric and usually have few, if any, close relationships. They generally don’t understand how relationships form or the impact of their behaviour on others.
* Strikingly odd
* Idiosyncratic language or way of speaking
* Can be overly abstract or very concrete
* Limited affect
* Can appear inappropriate or stiff
* Unusual mannerisms
* Odd appearance
* Unkempt clothes don’t quite fit together
* Disjointed way of interacting
* Can feel like they don’t fit in socially
Schizotypal Personality Disorder Treatment
- 30-50% who request help also meet criteria for MDD
- Social skills training
Ideas of Reference
Form of delusional thinking in which a person reads personal meaning into the behaviours of others or external events that are completely independent of the person.
Ideas of reference are false beliefs that random or irrelevant occurrences in the world directly relate to a person. When someone believes their thoughts, actions, or presence caused something to occur, irrational thoughts are considered ideas of reference.
Antisocial Personality Disorder (APD)
Type of personality disorder characterized by a chronic pattern of disregard for, and violation of the rights of others.
Antisocial personality disorder is a particularly challenging type of personality disorder characterised by impulsive, irresponsible and often criminal behaviour. Someone with antisocial personality disorder will typically be manipulative, deceitful and reckless, and will not care for other people’s feelings.
* Prevalence is estimated to be around 40-70% in prison settings
* Below average intelligence
* Inflated and arrogant self-appraisal
* Lack of emotional responsiveness; low empathy
* Sensation-seeking behaviour
* Can sometimes “burn out” after the age of 40
Psychopathy
A person who is manipulative, dishonest, narcissistic, unremorseful, non-empathetic, and exploitative may be a psychopath. Criminality, promiscuity, and lack of responsibility are also common traits associated with psychopathy. Example: Patrick Bateman
Type of personality pattern characterized by affective and interpersonal traits, such as shallow emotions, selfishness, arrogance, superficial charm, deceitfulness, manipulativeness, irresponsibility, sensation seeking, and a lack of empathy, anxiety, and remorse, combined with persistent violations of social norms, a socially deviant and nomadic lifestyle, and impulsiveness.
Optimum Level of Arousal
Level of arousal associated with peak performance and maximum feelings of well-being.
Psychophysiological & biological factors that are related to antisocial personality and psychopathy:
- Lack of emotional responsiveness: passive to adverse situations, failure to learn through punishment because of it
- The craving-for-stimulation-model: they have exaggerated cravings for stimulation and tend to gravitate towards dangerous activities
- Lack of restraint on impulsivity:there is a decrease in the frontal lobes of the cerebral cortex
- Limbic abnormalities: there is less brain activity in the emotional parts of the brain found within the limbic system; at te same time, there is overstimulation in the area of the front-temporal lobes that are associated with processing and regulating emotional information.
Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD)
Type of personality disorder characterized by instability in interpersonal relationships and self-image, and affects and marked impulsivity.
* The border between neurosis and psychosis
* Common to have histories of trauma
* Higher risk of suicide
* Intolerant of being alone
* Can engage in self-sabatoging behaviour
* Emotions are overwhelming and painful
* Hold negative self-appraisals
Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) Treatment
Dialectical behaviour therapy (DBT) is a type of talking therapy. It’s based on cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT), but it’s specially adapted for people who feel emotions very intensely. The aim of DBT is to help you: Understand and accept your difficult feelings.
* Mindfulness
* Distress tolerance
* Emotional regulation
* Interpersonal effectiveness
Splitting
A term describing the inability of some people (especially people with borderline personalities/) to reconcile the positive and negative aspects of themselves and others into a cohesive integration, resulting in sudden radical shifts between strongling positive and strongly negative feelings.
