Exam 3
Personality Disorders
● Personality- the totality of emotional and behavioral characteristics that are
particular to a specific person and that remain somewhat stable and predictable
over time; either adaptive or maladaptive
● Personality Disorder- occur when these traits become inflexible and maladaptive
and cause either significant functional impairment or subjective distress
● Personality Development- occurs in response to biological and psychological
influences-
○ Heredity
○ Temperament
○ Experiential learning
○ Social interaction
○ Personality development (Sullivan, Erikson, and Mahler)
Erikson
● 0-18 months- develop basic trust
● 18 months-3 years- gain self control and independence
● 3-6 years- develop sense of purpose
● 6-12 years- achieve self confidence
● 12-20 years- secure sense of self
● 20-30 years- form an intense, lasting relationship
● 30-65 years- achieve life goals
● 65-death- review one’s life
Cluster A ODD or Eccentric
● May be on antipsychotics; however since they are personality disorder it takes
long term therapy to see improvement, generally improvement is minimal
● Paranoid Personality Disorder:
○ A persistent, inappropriate mistrust of others
○ Predisposing factors-
■ Hereditary link
■ Subjected to parental antagonism/harassment
■ Scapegoats- always takes the blame
■ Perceive world as harsh/ unkind
■ Rejection from others- anticipate betrayal
○ Constantly on guard
○ Hypervigilant, tense, irritable
○ “Hard exterior”- immune or insensitive to feelings of others
○ Avoid interactions with other people- feel others always want to take
advantage of them
○ Oversensitive; misinterpret environment (magnifying, distorting) things
into deception
● Schizoid
, ○ Defect in ability to form personal relationships in a meaningful way
○ Predisposing factors:
■ Early interactions cold and unsatisfying
■ Childhood cold
■ Lack of empathy and nurturing
■ Early temperament is shy, anxious, introverted
○ Cold and aloof
○ Indifferent to others
○ Prefer to work in isolation
○ Unsociable
○ Little need or desire for emotional ties
○ Shy, anxious, uneasy
○ Serious about everything (not spontaneous)
○ Shows emotional coldness, detachment, or flattened affect
○ TX- therapy
● Schizotypal
○ Predisposing factors:
■ Common among 1st degree relatives; family with schizophrenia
■ Early family dynamics
■ Indifferent, passive, overlooked, rejecte
■ Became withdrawn and reduction of contact with “outside world”
occurred
○ They are odd and eccentric but their level of decompensation doesn’t
occur to the level of schizophrenics
○ Aloof and isolated
○ Bland and apathetic
○ Magical thinking, illusions, depersonalization
Cluster B Dramatic, Emotional, or Erratic
● Antisocial Personality Disorder
○ Individual is at least 18 years old, before age 15 evidence of conduct
disorder
○ Predisposing factors:
■ Chaotic
■ Parental deprivation or removal from home
■ Inconsistent parenting patterns/ discipline
■ Physical abuse
■ Poverty
■ Being “rescued”
■ Extreme tantrums
■ Bullying other children
■ Unmanageable
■ Daring and not phased by punishment
■ ADHD/ conduct disorder
, ○ More common in men
○ General Features:
■ Manipulative
■ Unstable relationships
■ Difficulty sustaining employment
■ No remorse
■ Irritable and aggressive
○ Indicated by 3 or more of the following:
■ Failure to conform to social norms
■ Deceitfulness, repeated lying, conning others to get personal profit
■ Impulsivity or failure to plan ahead
■ Irritability and aggressiveness, repeated physical fights
■ Reckless disregard for safety of self or others
■ Consistent irresponsibility
■ Lack or remorse
○ Goals: the client will…
■ Discuss angry feelings
■ Not harmed self or others
■ Rechannels hostility into acceptable ways
■ Follows rules/regulations
■ Verbalize and demonstrate behaviors not acceptable
■ Shows respect/ regard for rights of others
■ Does not manipulate in an attempt to increase self- worth
● Borderline Personality Disorder
○ Instability of interpersonal relationships, self-image, and affects, and
marked impulsivity beginning by early adulthood and present in a variety
of contexts, as indicated by five or more of the following:
■ Frantic efforts to avoid real or imagined abandonment
■ Pattern of unstable and intense interpersonal relationships
characterized by alternating extremes of idealization and
devaluation
■ Identity disturbance: markedly and persistently unstable self
image or sense of self
■ Impulsivity
■ Recurrent suicidal behavior, gestures, or threats or self-mutilating
behavior
■ Overdoses, cutting
■ Chronic feelings of emptiness
■ Inappropriate, intense anger or difficulty controlling anger
■ Transient, stress-related paranoid ideation or severe dissociate
symptoms
○ Predisposing factors:
■ Childhood trauma
■ Biochemical (depression common- lack of serotonin)
Personality Disorders
● Personality- the totality of emotional and behavioral characteristics that are
particular to a specific person and that remain somewhat stable and predictable
over time; either adaptive or maladaptive
● Personality Disorder- occur when these traits become inflexible and maladaptive
and cause either significant functional impairment or subjective distress
● Personality Development- occurs in response to biological and psychological
influences-
○ Heredity
○ Temperament
○ Experiential learning
○ Social interaction
○ Personality development (Sullivan, Erikson, and Mahler)
Erikson
● 0-18 months- develop basic trust
● 18 months-3 years- gain self control and independence
● 3-6 years- develop sense of purpose
● 6-12 years- achieve self confidence
● 12-20 years- secure sense of self
● 20-30 years- form an intense, lasting relationship
● 30-65 years- achieve life goals
● 65-death- review one’s life
Cluster A ODD or Eccentric
● May be on antipsychotics; however since they are personality disorder it takes
long term therapy to see improvement, generally improvement is minimal
● Paranoid Personality Disorder:
○ A persistent, inappropriate mistrust of others
○ Predisposing factors-
■ Hereditary link
■ Subjected to parental antagonism/harassment
■ Scapegoats- always takes the blame
■ Perceive world as harsh/ unkind
■ Rejection from others- anticipate betrayal
○ Constantly on guard
○ Hypervigilant, tense, irritable
○ “Hard exterior”- immune or insensitive to feelings of others
○ Avoid interactions with other people- feel others always want to take
advantage of them
○ Oversensitive; misinterpret environment (magnifying, distorting) things
into deception
● Schizoid
, ○ Defect in ability to form personal relationships in a meaningful way
○ Predisposing factors:
■ Early interactions cold and unsatisfying
■ Childhood cold
■ Lack of empathy and nurturing
■ Early temperament is shy, anxious, introverted
○ Cold and aloof
○ Indifferent to others
○ Prefer to work in isolation
○ Unsociable
○ Little need or desire for emotional ties
○ Shy, anxious, uneasy
○ Serious about everything (not spontaneous)
○ Shows emotional coldness, detachment, or flattened affect
○ TX- therapy
● Schizotypal
○ Predisposing factors:
■ Common among 1st degree relatives; family with schizophrenia
■ Early family dynamics
■ Indifferent, passive, overlooked, rejecte
■ Became withdrawn and reduction of contact with “outside world”
occurred
○ They are odd and eccentric but their level of decompensation doesn’t
occur to the level of schizophrenics
○ Aloof and isolated
○ Bland and apathetic
○ Magical thinking, illusions, depersonalization
Cluster B Dramatic, Emotional, or Erratic
● Antisocial Personality Disorder
○ Individual is at least 18 years old, before age 15 evidence of conduct
disorder
○ Predisposing factors:
■ Chaotic
■ Parental deprivation or removal from home
■ Inconsistent parenting patterns/ discipline
■ Physical abuse
■ Poverty
■ Being “rescued”
■ Extreme tantrums
■ Bullying other children
■ Unmanageable
■ Daring and not phased by punishment
■ ADHD/ conduct disorder
, ○ More common in men
○ General Features:
■ Manipulative
■ Unstable relationships
■ Difficulty sustaining employment
■ No remorse
■ Irritable and aggressive
○ Indicated by 3 or more of the following:
■ Failure to conform to social norms
■ Deceitfulness, repeated lying, conning others to get personal profit
■ Impulsivity or failure to plan ahead
■ Irritability and aggressiveness, repeated physical fights
■ Reckless disregard for safety of self or others
■ Consistent irresponsibility
■ Lack or remorse
○ Goals: the client will…
■ Discuss angry feelings
■ Not harmed self or others
■ Rechannels hostility into acceptable ways
■ Follows rules/regulations
■ Verbalize and demonstrate behaviors not acceptable
■ Shows respect/ regard for rights of others
■ Does not manipulate in an attempt to increase self- worth
● Borderline Personality Disorder
○ Instability of interpersonal relationships, self-image, and affects, and
marked impulsivity beginning by early adulthood and present in a variety
of contexts, as indicated by five or more of the following:
■ Frantic efforts to avoid real or imagined abandonment
■ Pattern of unstable and intense interpersonal relationships
characterized by alternating extremes of idealization and
devaluation
■ Identity disturbance: markedly and persistently unstable self
image or sense of self
■ Impulsivity
■ Recurrent suicidal behavior, gestures, or threats or self-mutilating
behavior
■ Overdoses, cutting
■ Chronic feelings of emptiness
■ Inappropriate, intense anger or difficulty controlling anger
■ Transient, stress-related paranoid ideation or severe dissociate
symptoms
○ Predisposing factors:
■ Childhood trauma
■ Biochemical (depression common- lack of serotonin)
