Personality Disorders Flashcards
People with schizoid personalities may develop stronger attachments to ______ than to ______.
animals; people
What are personality disorders?
Types of abnormal behaviour patterns involving excessively rigid patterns of behaviour or ways of relating to others that ultimately become self-defeating because their rigidity prevents adjustment to external demands
All of us have particular personalities. When these behaviour patterns become so ___________ or ___________ that they cause significant personal distress or impair functioning in the social or occupational realms, their behaviour pattern may be diagnosed as a personality disorder
inflexible; maladaptive
Types of personality disorders: (2)
- Ego Syntonic: behaviour or feelings that are perceived as natural or compatible parts of the self
- Ego Dystonic: behaviour or feelings that are perceived to be foreign or alien to one’s self-identity
The Three Clusters
A) Odd, eccentric behaviour “Mad”
- paranoid
- schizoid
- schizotypal
B) Dramatic, emotional, impulsive “Bad”
- borderline
- antisocial
- narcissistic
- histrionic
C) Anxious, fearful, avoidant “Sad”
- avoidant
- dependent
- obsessive-compulsive
Paranoid Personality Disorder
- Cluster A
- Personality Disorders characterized by odd or eccentric behaviour (‘mad’)
- type of personality disorder characterized by persistent suspiciousness of the motives of others, but not to the point of holding clear-cut delusions
Many (if not most) Personality Disorders are …
PDNOS - not otherwise specified
- can fluctuate in their intensity over time
- highly debilitating disorders; not just somebody choosing to be nasty (w/ possible exception of AsPD)
Core features of Cluster A
- suspiciousness without due cause
- preoccupations with unfounded concerns over lack of loyalty of friends, spouse, and family
- emotionally closed – reluctant to confide or ‘open up’
- interpretive basis that promotes perception of innocuous content as threatening
- grudging
Schizoid Personality Disorder
- type of personality disorder characterized by a persistent lack of interest in social relationships, flattened affect, and social withdrawal
- rarely express emotions and are distant and aloof ; but emotions of people with schizoid personalities are not as shallow or blunted as they are in people with schizophrenia
Core features of schizoid personality disorder
- no interest in, or enjoyment of, close relationships
- chronic loner
- no interest in sex
- seldom participates in recreational activities (esp. those that involve other people – teams like hockey, etc.)
- unaffected by praise or criticism
- emotionally cold, detached, flat
Schizotypal Personality Disorder
- type of personality disorder characterized by eccentricities or oddities of thought and behaviour but without clearly psychotic features
- Similar to Sz in many respects but without the profound impairment in reality testing
Core features of schizotypal personality disorder
- ideas of reference
- odd beliefs/magical thinking (not just superstition)
- odd perceptual experiences
- peculiar thinking and speech
- suspicious/paranoid
- social isolation (other than family)
- persistent social anxiety
Cluster B
- personality disorders characterized by dramatic, emotional, or erratic behaviour (‘Bad’)
Antisocial Personality Disorder (and Psychopathy)
Type of personality disorder characterized by a chronic pattern of antisocial and irresponsible behaviour and lack of remorse
Core features of AsPD
- failure to conform to social and legal norms
- lying/conning
- impulsivity and short-sightedness in planning
- irritability/aggressiveness; fighting (physical and verbal)
- irresponsibility
- lack of remorse
- must be 18 and have shown signs of Conduct Disorder before 15 years of age
Psychopathy
- not a separate DSM Personality Disorder
- an extreme case of AsPD
- 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, combines with persistent violations of social norms, a socially deviant and normadic lifestyle, and impulsiveness
Not all criminals show signs of ___________
psychopathy
– not all AsPD patients are psychopaths either!