Personality disorders are
characterized by patterns of perceiving, reacting, and relating that are
relatively fixed, inflexible, and socially maladaptive across a variety of
situations.
Everyone has characteristics
patterns of perceiving and relating to other people and events (personality traits). In other words,
all people tend to cope with stresses in an individual but repetitive style.
For example, some people always respond to troubling situations by seeking
someone else’s help. Others always assume that they can deal with problems on
their own. Some people minimize problems; others exaggerate them.
Although people tend to
always respond to a difficult situation in the same way, most are likely to try
another approach if their first response is ineffective. In contrast, people
with personality disorders are so rigid that they can’t to reality, which
impairs their ability to function. Their maladaptive patterns of thinking and
behaving become evident by early adulthood, often earlier, and tend to persist
throughout life. They are likely to have trouble in their social and
interpersonal relationships and at work.
People with personality
disorders are not usually aware that their behaviour or thought patterns are
inappropriate; on the contrary, they often believe their patterns are normal
and right.
When people with personality
disorders do seek help on their own, maybe out of frustration, they tend to
believe their problems are caused by other people or a particular difficult
situation.
Personality disorders include
the following types:
·
Paranoid
·
Schizoid
·
Schizotypal
·
Histrionic
·
Narcissistic
·
Antisocial
·
Borderline
·
Avoidant
·
Dependent
·
Obsessive-compulsive and
·
Passive-aggressive
Paranoid Personality
People with a paranoid
personality project their own conflicts and hostilities unto others. They are
generally cold and distant in their relationships. They tend to find hostile
and malevolent intentions behind other people’s trivial, innocent, or even positive
acts and react with suspicion to changes in situations. Often, the suspicions
lead to aggressive behaviours or rejection by others—results that seem to
justify their original feelings.
People with paranoid
personality often take legal actions against others, especially if they feel
righteously indignant. They are unable to see their own roles in a conflict.
At times people who already
feel alienated because of a defect or handicap are more vulnerable to
developing paranoid ideas.
Schizoid Personality
People with a schizoid
personality are introverted, withdrawn, and solitary. They are emotionally cold
and socially distant. They are mostly absorbed with their own thoughts and
feelings and are fearful of closeness and intimacy with others. They talk little;
they often daydream, and prefer theoretical speculation to practical action.
They fantasize all the time as a coping mechanism.
Schizotypal Personality
People with a schizotypal
personality, like those with a schizoid personality, are socially and
emotionally detached. In addition, they display peculiarities of thinking,
perceiving, and communicating. Some people with schizotypal personality often
show signs of magical thinking, thinking that a particular action can control
something completely unrelated. For example, a person may believe that a
misfortune can occur if he walks under a ladder or that he can cause harm to
others if they entertain angry thoughts against them.
Histrionic Personality
People with histrionic
(hysterical) personality conspicuously seek attention and behave dramatically.
Their lively expressive manner results in easily established but often
superficial relationships. Emotions often seem exaggerated, childish, and
affected to evoke sympathy or attention (often erotic or sexual) from others.
People with a histrionic personality are prone to sexually provocative
behaviour or to sexualizing nonsexual relationships. Their seductive behaviours
often mask their wish to be dependent and protected. They often tend to
exaggerate their problem to get the attention they need.
Narcissistic Personality
People with a narcissistic personality have a
sense of superiority and an exaggerated believe in their own value, or
importance, which psychiatrists call ‘’grandiosity.’’ People with this
personality type may be extremely sensitive to failure, defeat, or criticism
and, when confronted by a failure to fulfil their high opinion of themselves,
they can easily become enraged, or severely depressed. Because they believe
they are superior to other people, they expect to be admired, and often suspect
that others envy them. They feel they are entitled to have their needs attended
to without waiting, so they tend to exploit others. Their behaviour is usually
offensive to others, who view them as being self-centred, arrogant, or selfish.
Antisocial Personality
People with an antisocial
personality (previously called psychopathic
or sociopathic personality), most of
whom are male, show callous disregard for the rights and feelings of others.
They exploit others for material gain or personal gratification (unlike
narcissistic people who think they are better than others). They tolerate
frustration poorly, and sometimes they are hostile or violent. Despite the
problems or harm they cause others by their antisocial behaviours, they
typically don’t feel regret or guilt. Rather they blame it on others. Dishonesty
and deceit pervades their relationships.
People with an antisocial
personality are often prone to alcoholism, drug addiction, sexual deviation,
promiscuity, and imprisonment. They are likely to fail at their jobs and move
from one area to another. They often have a family history of antisocial
behaviour, substance abuse, divorce, and physical abuse. As children, they were
usually emotionally neglected and often physically abused during their
formative years. People with antisocial personality have shorter life
expectancies than average, but among those who survive, they tend to stabilize
with age.
Borderline Personality
People with a borderline
personality, most of whom are women, are unstable in their self-image, moods,
behaviour, and interpersonal relationships (which are often stormy and
intense). Borderline personality becomes evident in early adulthood, but it diminishes
with age. People with a borderline personality have often been deprived of
adequate care during childhood. Consequently they feel empty, angry, and
deserving of nurturing.
People with borderline
personality who feel abandoned and alone may wonder whether they actually exist.
They don’t feel real. They can become desperately impulsive, engaging in reckless
promiscuity or substance abuse. At times they are so out of touch with reality
that they have brief episodes of psychotic thinking, paranoia, and
hallucinations.
Avoidant Personality
People with an avoidant
personality are oversensitive to rejection, and they fear starting
relationships or anything else new because of the possibility of rejection or disappointment.
People with this disorder have a strong desire for affection and acceptance. They
are openly distressed by their isolation and inability to relate comfortably to
others. Unlike people with borderline personality, people with an avoidant
personality don’t respond to rejection with anger, instead they appear shy and
timid.
Dependent Personality
People with a dependent
personality surrender major decisions and responsibilities to others and permit
the needs of those they depend on to supersede their own. They lack
self-confidence and feel intensely insecure about their ability to take care of
themselves. They often protest that they can’t make decisions and don’t know what
to do or how to do it. They are reluctant to express opinion even when they
have them, for fear of offending people they need.
Obsessive-Compulsive Personality
People with an
obsessive-compulsive personality are reliable, dependable, orderly and
methodical, but often cannot adapt to change. They are cautious, and analyse
all aspect of a problem, which prejudices decision making. People with this
disorder take their responsibilities so seriously that they can’t tolerate
mistakes and pay so much attention to details that they don’t complete their
tasks. Consequently, such people can become entangled with the means of
accomplishing a task.
Passive-Aggressive Personality
The behaviours of a person
with passive-aggressive (negativistic) personality are covertly designed to
control or punish others. Passive-aggressive behaviour is often displayed as procrastination,
inefficiency, and sullenness. Frequently people with passive-aggressive
personality disorder agree to perform tasks that they usually don’t want to do,
and then proceed to subtly undermine completion of those tasks. Such behaviour usually
serves to express concealed hostility.
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