Personality Disorders Flashcards
1
Q
intro to personality & personality disorders
A
- Some people say personality doesn’t exist (just responses to stimuli), whereas others argue it’s one of the most important things about being human
- Anxiety and somatoform disorders can go away, but personality disorders share characteristics with interpersonal styles
- Personality = behavioural patterns/characteristics & coping styles
- We can use it to predict how people will respond in certain contexts
- Personality disorders = when people behave inflexibly and maladaptively
- PDM includes all personality disorders found in DSM, including additional ones
2
Q
what influences personality?
A
- genetics
- temperament
- environment
3
Q
personality disorders
A
- When behaviour patterns become inflexible and maladaptive to the point of causing distress or social/occupation impairment (self-defeating)
- Don’t stem from reactions to stress; actually from gradual development of inflexible and distorted personality -> have always been there
- Maladaptive ways of perceiving, thinking, and relating to the world
- Can be mild or severe:
- Mild disorders: people function reasonably well, viewed as troublesome, eccentric, etc.
- Severe disorders: extreme or unethical behaviour, may be incarcerated
- Trait pattern examples: suspiciousness in every context, excessive self-regard, profound fear of rejection, repetitive maladaptive behaviour
4
Q
DSM Clinical Syndrome vs. Personality Disorders
A
- Clinical syndrome: specific symptom clusters, time limited, ego-dystonic (viewed as separate from self, unacceptable, objectionable and alien)
- Ie. Depression, anxiety, psychotic disorders
- Personality disorder: individual with personality disorder is perceived as ego-syntonic (eg. Personality issues are acceptable, unobjectionable, and part of the self); tend to blame others for problems in their lives
5
Q
Difficulties Diagnosing Personality Disorder
A
- Need to infer traits to make diagnosis, do not have specific behaviours clinician can judge
- Disorders and criteria are relatively new, therefore not as much research has been done on them
- Great deal of overlap among the disorders
- Hard to draw a line between disorder and normal behaviour
6
Q
DSM Personality Disorder Clusters
A
- Cluster 1: Odd/Eccentric
- behaviours similar to schizophrenia, suspiciousness, withdrawal, peculiar thinking
- Paranoid, Schizoid, Schizotypal
- Cluster 2: Dramatic/Emotional
- most commonly diagnosed disorders; behaviours are so dramatic, emotional, or erratic that it’s almost impossible to maintain satisfying relationships
- Antisocial, Histrionic, Narcissistic, Borderline
- Cluster 3: Anxious-Fearful
- typically display anxiety and fear, similar to anxiety and depressive disorders but no real connection
- Avoidant, Dependent, Obsessive-Compulsive
7
Q
Paranoid Personality Disorder
A
- Cluster 1
- suspicious of other’s motives
- interprets actions of others as deliberately demeaning/threatening
- expectation of being exploited
- see hidden messages in benign comments
- easily insulted/bears grudges
- appear cold and serious
- ex. Rev. Jim Jones; student that followed
8
Q
Schizoid Personality Disorder
A
- Cluster 1
- don’t interact with others (no desire to)
- indifferent to relationships
- limited social range (some are hermits)
- aloof, detached, “loners”
- no apparent need of friends, sex, etc.
- solitary activities
- seem to be missing the “human” part
- Ex. Ted Kaczynski (Unabomber)
9
Q
Schizotypal Personality Disorder
A
- Strange thoughts; makes people uncomfortable; conspiracies
- Peculiar patterns of thinking and behaviour
- Perceptual and cognitive disturbances
- Magical thinking
- Not psychotic, but perhaps a distant cousin of schizophrenia
- highly comorbid
10
Q
Antisocial/Dissocial Personality Disorder
A
- Cluster 2
- Pattern of irresponsibility, recklessness, impulsivity beginning in childhood or adolescence (e.g., lying, truancy)
- In adulthood:
- criminal behaviour
- little adherence to societal norms
- little anxiety
- conflicts with others
- callous/exploitive
- Difficulties in establishing secure identity
- Distrust
- Impulsive and self‐destructive behavior
- Difficulty in controlling anger and other emotions
11
Q
Histrionic Personality Disorder
A
- Cluster 2
- Excessive emotional displays/ dramatic behaviour
- Attention‐seeking, victim stance
- Seek reassurance, praise
- Shallow emotions, flamboyant, self‐centred
- Very seductive, “life of the party”
- previously called “hysterical personality disorder”
12
Q
Narcissistic Personality Disorder
A
- Cluster 2
- Grandiose, sense of self‐importance
- Lack of empathy
- Hypersensitive to criticism
- Exaggerate accomplishments/abilities
- Special and unique
- Entitlement
- But, below surface is fragile self‐esteem
- Narcissistic injury leads to narcissistic rage
- Ex. Armand Hammer
13
Q
Borderline Personality Disorder
A
- Cluster 2
- Broad range, but DSM focuses on narrow aspect (one type of borderline disorder)
- Marked instability of mood, relationships, self‐ image
- Intense, unstable relationships
- Uncertainty about sexuality/identity (borrowing identity of others) -> like a lack of object permanence
- Everything is “good” or “bad”
- Chronic feeling of emptiness
- Recurrent threats of self‐harm/ “slashers”
- Self-destructive behaviour -> Drug abuse
- Suicide threats
- Lots of promiscuity
- Therapist “killers” (not really killers) -> very difficult to treat
- Tend to be avoided by many clinicians
- Takes lots of training and experience to treat effectively
- Lots of turmoil in treatment
14
Q
4 core elements of Borderline Personality Disorder
A
- Difficulties in establishing secure self‐ identity
- Distrust & Splitting (over-idealizing someone and then tearing them down)
- Impulsive and Self-Destructive Behaviour
- Difficulty in controlling anger and other emotions
15
Q
Avoidant Personality Disorder
A
- overriding sense of social discomfort
- easily hurt by criticism
- always need emotional support
- occasionally try to socialize –so distressing they retreat into loneliness
