by Sunayana Sibal
Remedial for missed quiz 10
The term
“personality disorders” may be used to refer to significantly distressing
thought, affective and behavioral patterns that are consistent across
situations, persistent and relatively enduring. Personality disorders are
generally long term, with onset during childhood and presence during adulthood.
Personality disorders are also extremely pervasive, affecting multiple facets
of the individual’s life. Although some individuals with personality disorders
such as obsessive-compulsive personality disorder may experience distress, many
individuals who have personality disorders may not experience distress in a
subjective manner. Rather, their friends, family or members of their society
may experience distress due to the behavior of these individuals. 1/10th
of the adult population in the United States of America suffers from a
diagnosable personality disorder, which points towards the prevalence of these
disorders.
The
comorbidity for personality disorders is very prevalent, due to which there is
considerable difficulty in clear cut categorization of personality disorders.
Yet, at present 10 personality disorders have been classified into three
clusters called Cluster A, Cluster B and Cluster C personality disorders
respectively.
Cluster A Personality
Disorders or Odd/Eccentric Personality Disorders consists of Paranoid, Schizoid
and Schizotypal Personality Disorder. People suffering from Paranoid
Personality Disorder consider other people with extreme suspicion and
anticipate being harmed by others even if they have no reason to do so. People
suffering from Paranoid Personality Disorder are very unlikely to receive
treatment, since they have a hard time trusting other people and hence may not
reach out for help. It is generally the appearance of a crisis in their lives,
that drives them to seek help. People suffering from Schizoid Personality
Disorder elude inter-personal relationships and are able to express a
restricted range of emotions. They seem distant and/or detached to other
people. Such people often have a history of childhood abuse and/or neglect and
social skills training is considered an important part of their treatment.
People suffering from Schizotypal Personality Disorder are aloof in social
circumstances and display normatively deviant behavior. Like people with
Paranoid Personality Disorder, people with Schizotypal Personality Disorder
also tend to be suspicious but their suspicion is not limited to people.
Rather, this suspicion extends to the world at large and is accompanied by
unusual opinions about the world.
Cluster B
Personality Disorders or Dramatic/Emotional/Erratic Disorders consist of
Antisocial Personality Disorder, Borderline Personality Disorder, Histrionic
Personality Disorder and Narcissistic Personality Disorder. An extreme and
distressing non-compliance of various norms that society upholds in general is
characteristic of Antisocial Personality Disorder. Most people in society would
not find the behavior of people with Antisocial Personality Disorder acceptable,
for example: stealing or shoplifting. Rather, the behavior of people with
Antisocial Personality Disorder is seen by society as large as driven by
impulsivity and reckless. People with Borderline Personality Disorder
experience instability in their moods and/or relationships accompanied by low
self-esteem. They often experience emptiness/numbness and are at an alarmingly
high risk for suicide. People who suffer from Histrionic Personality Disorder have
very exaggerated patterns of behavior, to the extent that at times it may seem
like they are acting. Narcissistic Personality Disorder is characterized by an
overly high self-esteem and often low empathy. They believe they are special
and worthy of special treatment.
Cluster C Personality
Disorders or Anxious/Fearful Personality Disorders consists of Avoidant
Personality Disorder, Dependent Personality Disorder and Obsessive-Compulsive
Personality Disorder. People suffering from Avoidant Personality Disorder are extremely
affected by the views of others. As a result, they steer away from interpersonal
relationships and social encounters. They also have very low self-esteem and a strong
fear of rejection. Dependent Personality Disorder is characterized by an
extreme reliance on other people in everyday decision making and consequently
developing a fear of abandonment. People who suffer from Obsessive-Compulsive
Personality Disorder tend to be highly focused on things being done in a
particular way, to the extent that it becomes unhealthy. Their extreme focus on
certain elements hinders their ability to function in their daily lives.
One
interesting factor that affects the prognosis for people with personality
disorders is countertransference, i.e., the therapist’s feelings with regard to
the client. These feelings are generally negative in the case of therapists
whose clients have personality disorders.
Treatment
for people with personality disorders can be particularly challenging since those
who are suffering from personality disorders do not generally see their
challenges as a consequence of the manner in which they identify with others.
Further, personality disorders may also hinder the treatment of specific parts
of other mental health disorders or symptoms such as substance abuse. What
makes matter worse is that the concurrent occurrence of multiple personality
disorders is linked to positively correlated with poor treatment outcomes.
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