Personality disorder

Personality pattern disturbance.


A disorder which affects the way a person behaves, especially in relation to other people.


A type of mental disorder in which affected people have a view of themselves and their social and personal environment that is so rigid and ill-suited as to cause them distress and to significantly impair their ability to function in society. Among the various personality disorders found among children and adolescents (and treated in this book in separate entries) are conduct disorder (in adults called antisocial personality disorder), avoidant disorder of childhood or adolescence (in adults called avoidant personality disorder), identity disorder (in adults called borderline personality disorder), and obsessive-compulsive personality disorder.


Any of a group of mental disorders (e.g., obsessive-compulsive) characterized by maladaptive and usually rigid patterns of behavior.


A deeply ingrained and maladjusted pattern of behavior, persisting through many years. It is usually manifest by the time the individual is adolescent. The abnormality of behavior must be sufficiently severe that it causes suffering, either to the patient or to other people (or to both). Some such personalities mature into happier people. Most forms of psychotherapy claim to be of therapeutic value, but the worth of any treatment remains debatable.


A condition in which the individual fails to learn from experience or to adapt to changes. The outcome is impaired social functioning and personal distress. There are three broad overlapping groups. One group is characterized by eccentric behaviour with paranoid or schizoid overtones. The second group shows dramatic and emotional behaviour, with selfcentredness and antisocial behaviour as typical components of the disorder. In the third group, anxiety and fear are the main characteristics, which are accompanied by dependency and compulsive behaviour. These disorders are not classed as illnesses; psychotherapy and behavioural therapy may help, although affected individuals affected are notoriously resistant to any help that is offered, tending to blame other people, circumstances or bad luck for their persistent difficulties.


A pathological disturbance of the patterns of perception, communication, and thinking that impairs a person’s ability to function effectively. Personality disorders are manifested in at least two of the following areas: cognition, affect, interpersonal functioning, or impulse control. Generally, the disorder is of long duration, and its onset can be traced to early adolescence.


A condition characterized by behavior that is inflexible and interferes with a person’s life.


An enduring personality pattern associated with distress or impairment.


 


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