Abnormal Psychology Chapter Ten Notes Introduction page 337 o Personality set of unique traits and behavior that characterize the individual o Five basic personality trait dimensions neuroticism extraversion openness to experience agreeableness and conscientiousness Clinical Features of Personality Disorders page 337 339 o Personality disorder people who have certain traits that are so inflexible and maladaptive that they are unable to perform adequately at least some of the varied roles expected of them by their society two general features are chronic interpersonal difficulties and problems with one s identity or sense of self o Do be diagnosed with a personality disorder the person s behavior must be pervasive and inflexible as well as stable and of long duration and must cause either clinically significant distress of impairment in functioning and be manifested in at least two of the following areas cognition affectivity interpersonal functioning or impulse control o PDs stem largely from the gradual development of inflexible and distorted personality and behavioral patterns that result in persistently maladaptive ways of perceiving thinking about and relating to the world o Cluster A people with these disorders often seem odd or eccentric with unusual behavior ranging from distrust and suspiciousness to social detachment includes paranoid schizoid and schizotypal PDs more males than females for all three o Cluster B People with these disorders share a tendency to be dramatic emotional and erratic includes histrionic narcissistic antisocial and borderline PDs more males than females for narcissistic and antisocial males and females are equal for histrionic and more females than male for borderline o Cluster C people with these disorders often show anxiety and fearfulness includes avoidant dependent and obsessive compulsive PDs males and female equal for avoidant and dependent more males than female for obsessive compulsive o About 13 of the population meets criteria for at least one personality disorder at some point in their lives Difficulties Doing Research on Personality Disorders page 339 341 o Difficulties in Diagnosing Personality Disorders Because the criteria for PDs are defined by inferred traits or consistent patterns of behavior rather than by more objective behavioral standards they are hard to diagnose o Difficulties in Studying the Causes of Personality Disorders Hard to study causes of PDs because of their high comorbidity rates Possible biological factors may be that infants temperament may predispose them to the development of particular personality traits and disorders Studies have also suggested that early emotional physical and sexual abuse may be important factors in a subset of cases for several different personality disorders Cluster A Personality Disorders page 341 345 o Paranoid Personality Disorder Paranoid PD have a pervasive suspiciousness and distrust of others leading to numerous interpersonal difficulties tend to see themselves as blameless instead of blaming others for their own mistakes and failures even to the point of ascribing evil motives to others May consist of elements of both suspiciousness and hostility People are usually not psychotic but may experience transient psychotic symptoms during periods of stress At higher risk for schizophrenia o Schizoid Personality Disorder Schizoid personality disorder individuals are usually unable to form social relationships and usually lack much interest in doing so unable able to express feelings and are seen as cold and distant by others Show high levels of introversion and low on openness to feelings Only have a modest heritability Severe disruption in sociability may be due to severe impairment in an underlying affiliative system o Schizotypal Personality Disorder Schizotypal personality disorder excessively introverted have pervasive social and interpersonal deficits and have cognitive and perceptual distortions as well as oddities and eccentricities in their communication and behavior Contact with reality is usually maintained but highly personalized and superstitious thinking is likely and under extreme stress they may experience transient psychotic symptoms often believe they have magical powers and may engage in magical rituals Oddities in thinking speech and other behaviors are the most stable characteristics and are similar to those often seen in schizophrenic patients Prevalence is 2 Mild impairments in cognitive functioning including deficits in their ability to sustain attention and deficits in working memory Teenagers with it have higher risk of developing schizophrenia Cluster B Personality Disorders page 345 353 o Histrionic Personality Disorder Histrionic personality disorder excessive attention seeking behavior and emotionality are the key characteristics of individuals tend to feel unappreciated if they are not the center of attention Prevalence is 2 3 occurs more often in women than in men Highly comorbid with borderline antisocial narcissistic and dependent personality disorder diagnoses o Narcissistic Personality Disorder Narcissistic personality disorder individuals show an exaggerated sense of self importance a preoccupation with being admired and a lack of empathy for the feelings of others Two subtypes grandiose and vulnerable narcissism More frequently observed in men than women 1 prevalence rate Grandiose narcissism has not generally been associated with childhood abuse neglect or poor parenting associated with parental overvaluation Vulnerable narcissism has been associated with emotional physical and sexual abuse as well as parenting styles characterized as intrusive controlling and cold o Antisocial Personality Disorder Individuals continually violate and show disregard for the rights of others through deceitful aggressive or antisocial behavior typically without remorse or loyalty to anyone tend to be impulsive irritable and aggressive and irresponsible behavior Symptoms must occur before the age of 15 and conduct disorder must have been present o Borderline Personality Disorder BPD show a pattern of behavior characterized by impulsivity and instability in interpersonal relationships self image and moods Central feature is instability impulsivity and have highly unstable self image 8 to 10 commit suicide self mutilation is common as well as analgesia the absence of the absence of the experience of pain in the presence of a theoretically painful stimulus Only 1 to 2