5.4 Selection of Categories of Psychological Disorders
Personality Disorders
• Personality: A person’s characteristic patterns of thinking, feeling, and behaving.
• Anxiety: A feeling of worry, nervousness, or unease, often about an imminent event or uncertain outcome.
• Schizophrenia: A severe mental disorder characterized by distortions in thinking, perception, emotions, language, sense of self, and behavior.
• Antisocial personality disorder: A personality disorder marked by a disregard for and violation of the rights of others, often involving deceit, manipulation, and lack of remorse.
• Avoidant personality disorder: A disorder characterized by extreme social inhibition, feelings of inadequacy, and sensitivity to negative evaluation.
• Borderline personality disorder: A personality disorder characterized by unstable relationships, self-image, and emotions, along with impulsivity and self-destructive behavior.
• Cluster A: A group of personality disorders marked by odd or eccentric behaviors (paranoid, schizoid, schizotypal).
• Cluster B: A group of personality disorders characterized by dramatic, emotional, or erratic behaviors (antisocial, borderline, histrionic, narcissistic).
• Cluster C: A group of personality disorders marked by anxious and fearful behaviors (avoidant, dependent, obsessive-compulsive).
• Dependent personality disorder: A disorder characterized by excessive need to be taken care of, leading to submissive and clingy behavior.
• Histrionic personality disorder: A disorder involving excessive emotionality, attention-seeking, and a need for approval.
• Narcissistic personality disorder: A disorder characterized by grandiosity, a need for admiration, and a lack of empathy.
• Obsessive-compulsive personality disorder: A personality disorder marked by a preoccupation with orderliness, perfectionism, and control.
• Paranoid personality disorder: A disorder characterized by distrust and suspicion of others.
• Personality disorders: A group of mental disorders characterized by inflexible and maladaptive personality traits that impair functioning.
• Schizoid personality disorder: A disorder characterized by detachment from social relationships and a limited range of emotional expression.
• Schizotypal personality disorder: A disorder involving social and interpersonal deficits, eccentric behavior, and cognitive distortions.
Anxiety Disorders
• Acrophobia: An intense fear of heights.
• Agoraphobia: A fear of situations where escape might be difficult, such as open spaces or crowded places.
• Anxiety disorders: A category of disorders characterized by excessive fear and anxiety, along with related behavioral disturbances.
• Arachnophobia: An intense fear of spiders.
• Ataque de nervios: A culturally specific syndrome seen in Latin America involving uncontrollable shouting, crying, trembling, and sometimes aggressive behavior.
• Generalized anxiety disorder: A disorder marked by persistent and excessive worry about multiple aspects of life.
• Panic attack: A sudden episode of intense fear that triggers severe physical reactions without apparent cause.
• Panic disorder: A disorder characterized by recurrent and unexpected panic attacks.
• Phobia: An excessive, irrational fear of a specific object, situation, or activity.
• Social anxiety disorder: A disorder marked by extreme fear of social situations and being judged by others.
• Taijin kyofusho: A Japanese culture-specific disorder marked by fear of offending or embarrassing others.
Schizophrenia Spectrum Disorders
• Catatonia: A state of unresponsiveness, including rigidity, mutism, or purposeless movement.
• Catatonic stupor: A condition in which a person is unresponsive and appears to be in a daze.
• Delusions: Strongly held false beliefs that persist despite evidence to the contrary.
• Delusions of grandeur: False beliefs that one has exceptional abilities, wealth, or fame.
• Delusions of persecution: False beliefs that one is being harassed, cheated, or plotted against.
• Disorganized motor behavior: Unusual movements, including agitation, rigidity, or aimless activity.
• Disorganized speech: Speech that is incoherent, tangential, or illogical.
• Dopamine hypothesis: The theory that schizophrenia is linked to excess dopamine activity in the brain.
• Hallucinations: Sensory experiences that occur without external stimuli, most commonly auditory.
• Negative symptoms: Symptoms that reflect a loss of normal functioning, such as reduced emotional expression.
• Positive symptoms: Symptoms that add abnormal experiences, such as hallucinations or delusions.
• Schizophrenia spectrum disorders: A range of disorders characterized by psychotic symptoms, such as schizophrenia and schizoaffective disorder.
• Word salad: Incoherent and disorganized speech that lacks logical connection.
Neurodevelopmental and Mood Disorders
• Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD): A disorder marked by inattention, hyperactivity, and impulsivity.
• Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD): A developmental disorder characterized by difficulties with social interaction, communication, and repetitive behaviors.
• Neurodevelopmental disorders: A group of disorders that affect brain development, causing difficulties with learning, communication, and behavior.
• Bipolar disorders: A category of mood disorders involving extreme mood swings between mania and depression.
• Bipolar I Disorder: A disorder characterized by at least one manic episode, which may be followed by depressive episodes.
• Bipolar II Disorder: A disorder involving hypomanic episodes and depressive episodes, but no full manic episodes.
• Cycling: The rapid switching between manic and depressive episodes in bipolar disorder.
• Mania: A state of heightened energy, euphoria, and impulsivity.
• Depression: A prolonged state of sadness and hopelessness.
• Depressive disorders: A category of disorders involving persistent feelings of sadness and loss of interest.
• Major Depressive Disorder: A severe form of depression lasting at least two weeks.
• Persistent Depressive Disorder: A chronic, less severe form of depression lasting at least two years.
Obsessive-Compulsive, Dissociative, and Trauma-Related Disorders
• Compulsions: Repetitive behaviors performed to reduce anxiety caused by obsessions.
• Hoarding disorder: A disorder marked by excessive collecting and difficulty discarding possessions.
• Obsessions: Intrusive, unwanted thoughts that cause anxiety.
• Obsessive-compulsive and related disorders: Disorders involving repetitive thoughts and behaviors, such as OCD.
• Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD): A disorder involving persistent obsessions and compulsions.
• Dissociation: A disconnection between thoughts, identity, consciousness, and memory.
• Dissociative amnesia: A disorder characterized by memory loss of important personal information due to stress or trauma.
• Dissociative disorders: Disorders involving disruptions in identity, memory, or consciousness.
• Dissociative identity disorder (DID): A disorder where a person exhibits multiple distinct identities or personalities.
• Emotional detachment: A lack of emotional responsiveness.
• Flat affect: A lack of emotional expression.
• Flashbacks: Vivid re-experiences of traumatic events.
• Hostility: Aggressive or antagonistic behavior.
• Hypervigilance: An enhanced state of sensory sensitivity and alertness.
• Insomnia: Difficulty falling or staying asleep.
• Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD): A disorder characterized by flashbacks, avoidance, and heightened arousal following trauma.
• Trauma and stressor-related disorders: A category of disorders caused by exposure to stressful or traumatic events.
Feeding and Eating Disorders
• Anorexia nervosa: An eating disorder marked by extreme weight loss due to self-starvation and fear of gaining weight.
• Bulimia nervosa: An eating disorder characterized by binge eating followed by purging.
• Feeding and eating disorders: Disorders characterized by abnormal eating behaviors that negatively impact physical health.