PSY 350: Personality Disorders

flashcards for exam 3

personality disorder

reflection of a ‘pervasive pattern of inner experience and behavior’, deviant from norms

cluster A PD

odd or eccentric cluster; includes paranoid, schizoid, and schizotypal

cluster B PD

dramatic, emotional, erratic cluster; includes antisocial, borderline, histrionic, and narcissistic 

cluster C PD

anxious or fearful cluster; includes avoidant, dependent, and obsessive-compulsive

PD traits

traits expressed across many situations, usually involve problems relating to others, about 2/3 of people with one PD also have a second

PD controversy

Szazs says they are “problems in living”, some overlap with other disorders (OCD, OCPD), substantial comorbidity calls into question discrete constructs

ego dystonic

OCD, behavior part of identity

ego systonic

OCPD, behavior part of identify

personality disorders DSM

presence of pathological personality traits, and trait is relatively stable across time 

PD category

criticized as lacking scientific rigor, a function of Freudian roots

personality functioning

impairment in personality functioning as rated along a continuum, along elements of Identity, Self-direction, Empathy, and Intimacy

pathological personality traits

25 trais within 5 broad domains, parallel to Big Five

Big Five traits

negative affectivity vs emotional stability, detachment vs extraversion, antagonism vs agreeableness, disinhibition vs conscientiousness, psychoticism vs lucidity

Hierarchical Taxonomy of Psychopathology

HiTOP; proposed dimensional alternative to DSM/ ICD codes; identifies where people fall on various spectra of pathology, provides possible long-term alt to DSM

antisocial PD

persistently violate the rights of others and break the law, disregard social norms, lack guilt and remorse, estimated 3-6% of men and 1% of women

antisocial PD DSM

since the age of 15, be at least 18 at time of diagnosis, evidence of conduct disorder before the age of 15

antisocial PD risk factors

more common in lower SES, the downward drift hypothesis may be an artifact of focus on criminal behavior

borderline PD

intensive, unstable relationships; self destructive, possible overdiagnosis

borderline PD comorbidity

PTSD, MDD, substance abuse, ED, schizotypal PD

narcissistic PD

inflated self esteem, difficulity taking critisism, problems with lack of recognition, difficulty in relationships

schizotypal PD

difficulty forming relationships, eccentric thoughts of behavior (not quite schizofrenia)

Dark triad

Narcissism, machiavellianism, psychopathy

narcissim

associated with higher salaries

machiavellianism

manipulative, correlated with positions of leadership

psychopathy

lacking empathy, often agressive

psychodynamic perspective in PDs

Hans Kohuts Self Psychology, Otto Kernberg, Margaret Mahler

Hans Kohout’s Self Psychology

following childhood period of healthy narcissism, adults mount narcissism to cover inadequacy

Otto Kernberg

borderline PD reflects a splitting of the self after early failure to develop holistic sense of self (Erikson)

Margaret Mahler

early symbiotic relationship with mothers, process of separation-individualism fails, leading to borderline PD

cognitive-learning perspective of PDs

focuses on childhood reinforcement of negative behaviors

cognitive-learning therapies in PDs

problem sovling therapy, dialetical-behavior therapy

problem solving therapy

trains antisocial adolescents to view negative social interactions as problems to be solved rather than threats to manhood

dialectical behavior therapy

analysis of behaviors and responses, exploration of what might have been done better; synthesizes thoughts and ideal actions to come to a middle ground

biological perspective of PDs

personality traits have strong genetic basis, hard to separate influence of environment

bio lack of emotion in antisocial PD

low epinephrine and lack of anxiety

biological treatment in PDs

antidepressants may remove anxiety symptoms

sociocultural perspective in PDs

treatments seek to make characteristics as expected in local culture