Personality Disorders

Question 1

What are three of the important factors associated with the development of personality?

Answer 1

Where does the child develop

What does the child bring to the process (predisposing genes / nature)

What do others bring to the process (parents / friends / etc.)

Question 2

What are the five factors that are often used to describe someones personality?

Answer 2

Extraversion

Neuroticism (prone to being stressed / feeling unsafe)

Openess to experience

Agreeableness

Conscientiousness (carefulness / diligence)

Question 3

What are the characteristics of borderline personality disorder?

Answer 3

Tends to be people who become very neurotic and illogical when relationships are strained.

• Fear of abandonment usually stems from early age trauma
• May see self harm in attempt to regulate feelings

Question 4

How is borderline personality disorder treated?

Answer 4

Psychotherapy:

• Mentalizaton based treatment: work on capacity to keep reflective function in times of distress
• Dialectal behavioural therapy: improving skills for distress tolerance and make behaviour more predictable

Question 5

What is antisocial personality disorder characterized by?

Answer 5

Tendency towards offending behaviour

• Difficulty with empathic concern for others
• Difficulties with impulse control and anger

If there is significant psychopathy (disregard for the feelings / opinions of others) the condition can be impossible to treat