Personality Disorders Essay example

= = = = =

Personality disorders are a category of personality types that diverge from societal expectations and norms, with inflexible and maladaptive traits of behavior, perception and interaction. Personality disorders are classified into three clusters. Cluster A includes Paranoid Personality Disorder, Schizoid Personality Disorder and Schizotypal Personality Disorder, whereas Cluster B consists of Histrionic Personality Disorder, Narcissistic Personality Disorder, Antisocial Personality Disorder and Borderline Personality Disorder and Cluster C includes Avoidant Personality Disorder, Dependent Personality Disorder and Obsessive-Compulsive Personality Disorder. This classification into clusters is based on commonalities within the disorders. Personality

= = = = =

Personality disorders are included as mental disorders on Axis II of the diagnostic manual of the American Psychiatric Association and in the mental and behavioral disorders section of the ICD manual of the World Health Organization Personality disorders are conditions in which an individual differs significantly from an average person, in terms of how they think, perceive, feel or relate to others. Changes in how a person feels and distorted beliefs about other people can lead to odd behavior, which can be distressing and may upset others There are three recognized personality disorder clusters, cluster A odd and eccentric, Paranoid Personality Disorder Schizoid Personality Disorder Schizotypal Personality Disorder dramatic and emotional, Borderline Personality Disorder Histrionic Personality Disorder Narcissistic Personality Disorder and anxious and fearful Avoidant Personality Disorder Dependent Personality Disorder Obsessive-Compulsive Personality Disorder Personality Disorders: Management

== = = = =

== == == == ==

A personality disorder is defined as ‘an enduring pattern of inner experience and behaviour that deviates markedly from the expectations of the individuals culture as manifested in two (or more) of the following areas; cognition, affectivity, interpersonal functioning and impulse control’ (Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders, 2013). There are three categories that personality disorders are split into. Cluster A – Odd or eccentric behaviour, cluster

There are ten personality disorders, each of which describes different malfunctions in the person’s characteristic combination. These disorders are categorized into three clusters; cluster A, cluster B, and cluster C. Disorders are placed into the cluster with other similar disorders. Cluster A is the “odd, eccentric” cluster, so paranoid personality disorder, schizoid personality disorder, and schizotypal personality disorder fit into this group. Cluster B is the “dramatic, emotional, erratic” cluster; it contains antisocial personality disorder, borderline personality disorder, histrionic personality disorder, and narcissistic personality disorder. And lastly, cluster C is the “anxious, fearful” group, in which avoidant personality disorder, dependant personality disorder, and obsessive-compulsive disorder are placed (Hoermann).

The human mind is a mysterious and complex enigma. Neurologists and psychiatrists are still on the verge of understanding behavioral patterns to the fullest extent. There are many behavior patterns that people are not fully aware of most of the time. However, some people have behavior patterns that affect their daily lives. These patterns are ingrained into their personality and can prevent them from reaching life goals. These traits are some of the fundamentals of personality disorders. Psychiatrist Alexander L. Chapman describes them as, “a long-lasting pattern of relating to the world that doesn’t work well.” (Chapman and Gratz) Personality disorders affect socializing and basic relationship skills that disrupt friendships and daily interactions; a better understanding of these disorders will help those who face similar problems to get diagnosed and further the research of these disorders; the top four most commonly diagnosed personality disorders in the U.S. are Borderline Personality Disorder, Antisocial Personality Disorder, Narcissistic Personality Disorder, and Schizoid Personality Disorder.

The measuring of personality traits has been the subject of debates between many researchers over the past 45 years. In the past, theorists believed that there were many personality traits that a person could be measured on. Today, it is widely accepted that there are only 5 dominant traits personality can be measured upon (Feist, Feist & Roberts, 2013). Before there were 5 personality factors found, McCrae and Costa were determined focus on the three-factor model. The three “dimensions” that they were focusing on were neuroticism, extraversion, and openness. McCrae and Costa then started to report on the five factors of personality in 1985. These five factors of personality were neuroticism, extraversion, openness, agreeableness, and conscientiousness. Personality traits are bipolar, and follow a bell shaped distribution according to McCrae and Costa (Feist, Feist, & Roberts, 2013). Not many people will score at the extreme of any of the traits, with most people scoring near the middle. According to the research article “An Alternative “Description of Personality”. The Big- Five Factor Structure”, because the 5 traits were discovered using Cattell's 35 variables, some argue that the current 5 factors have not been generalized anymore than the set of initial variables (Goldberg, 1990).The two main personality traits in the big five are neuroticism and extraversion. These traits are found everywhere and are very strong. Someone who scores high on neuroticism are usually

Although the acceptance of classification cannot reach universal, in the theories about personality, Big Five Personality probably is most well-established one with the most widely accepted conceptual structure. The five dimensions of individual personality which are: Openness, Conscientious, Extraversion, Agreeableness and Emotionally stability, and based on these dimensions, Costa and McCrae (1992) constructed the Five-factor model (FFM). According to Barrick et al. (2013), these personality traits can be formulated as “Psychological mechanisms” which are significant to individuals’ ideas, feelings and mood, and behaviors. There are a considerable number of studies on the link of the Big Five traits to variety of

As part of the study of mind and behavior in humans, psychology has expanded the comprehension of personality traits by dividing the most important into five characteristics known as the “big five.” The big five personality traits consist of extraversion, agreeableness, openness, conscientiousness, and neuroticism. Throughout the investigation of personality traits in young men and women, researchers found the persistent changes to be a product of psychiatric and anxiety disorders developed in college students. The study mainly focuses on extroversion or sociability skills and neuroticism, the tendency to negativity and being in a long-term anxious state. The results of multiple studies on neuroticism “[confirmed] the strong association between

A person’s character or personality is made up of various traits (Hertz, 2011). Some of those traits can be adaptive and useful in one situation yet dysfunctional in another (Hertz, 2011). A person is diagnosed with a personality disorder when these character traits become so maladaptive and inflexible that they begin to cause significant impairment in occupational or social functioning or cause subjective distress (Hertz, 2011). As

= = = = =

| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |