Dissociative Identity Disorder And Media Depictions

In chapter 15 of Exploring Psychology, the author discuss the basics of psychological disorders. Within this assignment, the psychological disorder of my choosing is Dissociative Identity Disorder. The commonality of the disorder is rare. Although we’ve disassociated ourselves in some form or the other with our ability to daydream, Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID) is more severe and is usually linked to trauma. Formerly the disorder was known as Multiple Personality Disorder (MPD). Individuals who suffer from this disorder usually have more than one aspect of themselves or personalities, whom he or she is completely unaware of. Sufferers of the disorder have to deal with a variety of symptoms such as memory loss, depression, anxiety, hallucinations, black-outs, impulsiveness, and perception of being detached from the self. The severity of the trauma is usually extreme, repetitive, and long-term. The individual may have an extensive history of physical, emotional, and/or sexual abuse.

Dissociative identity disorder (DID) is a condition where there are two or more distinct identities that are and will become present in an individual. These personalities can and will eventually take control of the individual, many people consider having dissociative identity disorder an experience of being possessed. The individual can and most likely will experience memory loss that is more extensive than ordinary everyday forgetfulness (Dissociative Identity Disorder (Multiple Personality Disorder). Around two percent of people will experience dissociative disorder, women are more likely than men are to be diagnosed with DID. "Almost half of adults in the United States experience at least one depersonalization/derealization episode in their lives, with only 2% meeting the full criteria for chronic episodes” (Dissociative Disorders).

This paper discusses Dissociative Identity Disorder and the relevance and portrayal of this mental illness in the American television show, United States of Tara. Tara’s family deals with her mental illness in different ways, which is evaluated in this paper. Also discussed in detail are the characters in the show. Tara has seven separate alters; each has their own personality and characteristics. They all have a role to play in Tara’s mental illness. Additionally, each alter is useful during specific stressful situations, which is analyzed in this paper. The characteristics of Dissociative Identity Disorder are discussed, according to the findings in Comer’s 2008 publication of Fundamentals of Abnormal Psychology. Later, these findings are compared to the show and its portrayal of this Dissociative Identity Disorder.

Dissociative disorder is a disorder in which individuals feel detached from themselves or their surroundings and reality, experience and identity may disintegrate. Dissociative identity disorder, formerly known as multiple personality disorder, is characterized as a disorder in which up to 100 personalities or fragments of personalities coexist within one body and mind (Barlow). The client was diagnosed and given an assessment with the goal of determining the factors. In many cases, only a few characteristics are distinct, because the identities are only partially independent. DSM-5 criteria for DID include amnesia, as in dissociative amnesia. Dissociative amnesia occurs when a person blocks out certain information, usually associated with a stressful or traumatic event, leaving him or her unable to remember important personal information. With this disorder, the degree of memory loss goes beyond normal forgetfulness and includes gaps in memory for long periods of time or of memories involving the traumatic event. In DID, however, identity has also fragmented. How many personalities live inside one body is relatively unimportant, whether there are 3, 4, or even 100 of them. Through a process of discovery, the client's history finally revealed that the impotence was actually a result of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) caused by a past experience. People with PTSD fear re-experiencing a traumatic event and sometimes are unable to remember certain aspects (Barlow 138). However, through psychoanalytic therapy, this client illustrates a successful

Dissociative identity disorder can be diagnosed with, “the presence of two of more distinct identities or personalities states (each with its own relatively enduring pattern of perceiving, relating to, and thinking about the environment and self), b. at least two of these identities of personality states recurrently take control of the person’s behavior, c. inability to recall important personal information that is too extensive to be explained by ordinary forgetfulness, d. the disturbance is not due to the direct physiological effects of a substance or general medical condition”, (Levy & Swanson. 2008. Clinical Assessment of Dissociative Identity Disorder Among College Counseling Clients. p. 11). Physicians argue that the evidence that the patient presents is real, they are looking for something more, or rather dig deeper to diagnose each separately as its own issue. Psychiatrists also argue that criminals may “get off” due to the individual’s alters playing a role in the diagnoses’ everyday life.

Dissociative identity order Dissociative identity disorder is a fairly new diagnosis in the world of psychology, appearing first in the DSM-II as hysterical neurosis. Now, it has grown into a single disorder under an entire dissociative subtype (Spiegel et al., 2011). Of these diagnoses, dissociative identity disorder is one of the more controversial with much evidence supporting that, under the right psychological influence, certain individuals can fall into a state that resembles dissociative identity disorder. Psychologists are not in complete unison on what even causes DID making the diagnosis that much more challenging. Generally, there are three main areas where most psychologists look to diagnose DID: post-traumatic model, socio-cognitive model, and the biological model.

The most recognizable aspect of Dissociative Identity Disorder is a person's experiencing of many different personalities, or “alters”. An alter is the shortened wording for an alternate personality. One of the most common misconceptions about Dissociative Identity Disorder, or DID for short, is that the person is made up of many people, when in reality these alters are simply fragmentations of a single person. However, these alters can have distinct characteristics and preferences that are much different than the host personality’s. The “host personality” is most commonly understood to be the person’s original personality, although certain instances prove that the most dominant personality can become the host personality over time. The switching between alters is something that is uncontrollable, and commonly leaves the person with very little memory of what has happened or a blank period of time altogether when another alter has been

Psychiatrics describe “Multiple Personality Disorder [often referred to as MPD][as] a chronic and recurrent emotional illness. A person with MPD plays host to two or more personalities. Each identity has its own unique style of viewing and understanding the world and may have its own name” (“Multiple Personality Disorder”). Renamed as Dissociative Identity Disorder in 1994 by the American Psychiatric Association, this disorder has been believed to be a myth by many, especially with the idea of its rarity (Lilienfeld). However, as psychiatrics have described, the disorder includes multiple personalities which have proven to be genuine and real, not a myth. Furthermore, with the information collected, research shows that about 20,000 cases have been recorded between 1980-1990 in the United States alone. The individuals who

It is quite unfortunate that many psychological disorders are not known out there. Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID) being one of them. Of course, this disorder is said to have been discovered a long time ago. However, it was not seen as it is today. A few decades ago, most disorders were not even known how to be treated. Several before that, disorders weren’t even the first thing on people’s mind when they noticed some sort of abnormality in someone they’ve known or met. In fact, there is evidence that there are paintings that could potentially suggest DID was present in the Paleolithic era. The paintings consisted of shamans that changed into animal forms or spirits. It was also often confused with the idea that demonic possession was the most rational way to explain such an abnormal behavior (A History Of Dissociative Identity Disorder, p. 1). As time progresses, more and more information is being discovered about this interesting yet devastating disorder.

Dissociative Identity Disorder has been defined as multiple personality disorder. This disorder is the presence of two or more distinct identities or personality states that take control of behavior. Dissociative Identity Disorder reflects a failure to integrate various aspects of identity, memory, and consciousness. (Frances, 1994) Each personality state may be experienced as if it has a distinct personal history, self-image, and identity, including a separate name. (Frances, 1994) Individuals with this disorder have a primary identity that carries the individual’s given name and is passive, dependent, guilty, and depressed. The alternate identities frequently have different names and characteristics that contrast with the primary identity. (Frances, 1994) Some identities may emerge in specific

Dissociative identity disorder (DID) is characterized by the apparent emergence of one or more personalities within a single person. Since its first entry in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual, the home of every psychological disorder, psychologists have argued whether or not this disorder exists. Due to this disorder being a homegrown culture syndrome, having inconsistencies in diagnosis, and suggestive techniques used by therapists during the diagnostic process, dissociative identity disorder does not exist. Instead of therapists diagnosing their patients with DID, they should look into different psychological disorders so that their patients can receive the treatment that is needed.

Dissociative Identity Disorder (D.I.D.), or what was previously known as Multiple Personality Disorder is one of the hottest debate topics in the world of psychology and medicine. DID is defined by the presence of two or more distinct personalities that alternatively affect and control the behavior of an individual. The first ever documented case occurred in 1646, when it was originally seen as a form of possession. But with the surge of even more diagnosis came after popular films such as ‘Three Faces of Eve’ and ‘Sybil’, the disorder has made itself an impossible thing to ignore. Although, unlike many other mental disorders discussed today, there is still a huge split in opinion on whether the disorder even truly exists. Despite this, the

Movies and films has played a role in the broadcasting the dissociative identity disorders. But in the movies such as “split” and the “three faces of Eve” do hurt are understanding of dissociative disorders because of the fact that it tends to portrays only the most extreme aspects of this disorder. That it can sometimes be misrepresent a form of mental illness that is not well understood by the public. Some people with this disorder say that movies that portray the disorder often only produce gruesome part of the disorder. Which unfortunately makes them feel that they are being discriminated against because of the horror/ thriller type of themes in these types of movies.

The presence of dissociative identity disorder in the media is more common than one may presume. In the media, the portrayal of the disorder is very negative. The way the media shows the disorder only builds on the stigmatization already made for the disorder which is harmful and negative towards the people diagnosed with the disorder. Some of these portrayals include the movie Split and the television show Criminal Minds. Both of these and many other films show negative portrayals of people diagnosed with dissociative identity disorder.

This research paper aims to explore the mental disease known as Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID), previously known as multiple personality disorder. I explore the meaning, symptoms, and effects of DID. My research describes those diagnosed with DID and the probable reasons of why they have the disorder. This study also explains the many different treatments and the effects those treatments might have on a person that has the disorder. I include a research study done on someone diagnosed with DID, the method used to help treat her, and the results of her treatment. Lastly, I state my opinion on DID and the methods I believe with help people prevent, treat, and cope with