personality disorders Flashcards
Match each disorder with a symptom from the options above. You may use each symptom
more than once
Options
1. Memory impairment
2. Bizarre delusions
3. Recurrent self-damaging acts
4. Perfectionism
5. Pathological jealousy
a) Paranoid personality disorder
b) Borderline personality disorder
c) Dementia
d) Schizophrenia
e) Obsessive-compulsive personality disorder
a) Paranoid personality disorder → 5. Pathological jealousy
b) Borderline personality disorder → 3. Recurrent self-damaging acts
c) Dementia → 1. Memory impairment
d) Schizophrenia → 2. Bizarre delusions
e) Obsessive-compulsive personality disorder → 4. Perfectionism
True statements about personality traits include all the following EXCEPT: (CHOOSE ONE)
A. they are synonyms with habits
B. they are subject to assessment by psychological testing
C. their distribution in a population approximates a bell-curve
D. they are relatively enduring features that characterize the person
E. they are tendencies to show consistent patterns of thoughts, feelings, and actions
A. they are synonyms with habits
(Personality traits are not synonymous with habits. Personality traits are enduring characteristics that influence behavior across situations, while habits are learned, repetitive behaviors)
A 25-year-old man is brought reluctantly to a psychiatrist by his parents, who are concerned
about his inability to hold a job. They state that since adolescence, he has been impulsive,
constantly in conflict in all his interpersonal relationships, and always sees the world and
himself differently than do other people. He states he does not use drugs and has no
psychiatric symptoms. The mental status examination shows no cognitive deficits and no
abnormality of mood, affect, or thinking.
The most likely diagnosis is (CHOOSE ONE)
A. personality disorder
B. posttraumatic stress disorder
C. schizophrenia
D. obsessive-compulsive disorder
E. major depression
A. personality disorder
In patients who have a paranoid personality disorder; which ONE of the following is true:
A. often have a preoccupation with helping the weak and the powerless
B. usually present themselves in a quiet and humble fashion
C. are often litigious
D. usually also suffer from paranoia
E. have a predisposition to develop schizophrenia
C. are often litigious
(tend to be distrustful and suspicious of others, often believing that people are out to deceive or harm them. As a result, they can become litigious, frequently engaging in lawsuits to defend their perceived rights)
why not D : While they may have paranoid traits, full paranoia (delusional disorder) is not necessarily part of the personality disorder.
Estimates of the lifetime prevalence rates of all personality disorders in the general population
range from (CHOOSE ONE)
A. 6 to 10 per 100
B. 3 to 5 per 100
C. 1 to 2 per 100
D. 20 to 25 per 100
E. 0.1 to 0.5 per 100
A. 6 to 10 per 100
A 35-year-old woman appears for psychiatric consultation and demands that her husband be
present during the interview. He complains that he has trouble doing anything by himself
because of her clinging. She at times idolizes him and, at other times, denounces him as
worthless. She has a history of impulsivity with respect to spending and sexuality, and there is
a conviction for reckless driving. She acknowledges chronic feelings of emptiness, fits of
anger and rage when her husband ”abandons” her, and lability of mood.
The most likely diagnosis is (CHOOSE ONE)
A. dependent personality
B. borderline personality disorder
C. paranoid personality disorder
D. narcissistic personality disorder
E. antisocial personality disorder
B. borderline personality disorder
A 35-year-old woman appears for psychiatric consultation and demands that her husband be
present during the interview. He complains that he has trouble doing anything by himself
because of her clinging. She at times idolizes him and, at other times, denounces him as
worthless. She has a history of impulsivity with respect to spending and sexuality, and there is a conviction for reckless driving. She acknowledges chronic feelings of emptiness, fits of anger and rage when her husband ”abandons” her, and lability of mood.
All the following associated features are commonly found with this disorder EXCEPT:
(CHOOSE ONE)
A. suicide attempts
B. co-occurring axis I disorder
C. history of physical and sexual abuse
D. history of dropping out of college just before graduation
E. an absence of psychotic-like symptoms, even with stress
E. an absence of psychotic-like symptoms, even with stress
- Correct. This is a double negative question. Borderline PD’s can show psychotic-like symtoms
including hallucinations, ideas of reference and body image distoritions).
A history of deliberate self harm occurs most frequently in people with which Personality
Disorder? (CHOOSE ONE)
A. Narcissistic
B. Borderline
C. Schizotypal
D. Histrionic
E. Antisocial
B. Borderline
