Assignment: measures of personality

Assignment: measures of personality

Assignment: measures of personality

After reading this chapter, you should be able to:

• Name and briefly describe the criteria used to differentiate normal from abnormal manifestations of behavior, thought, and affect.

• Identify the most common diagnostic system used in the United States and some of the prevalence rates for personality disorders.

• Name and define the DSM-5 personality disorders found in clusters A, B, and C.

• Discuss the different prevalence rates for the personality disorders, especially with respect to sex differences.

• Identify some of the alternative models for categorizing personality disorders, such as those proposed by the International Classification of Diseases, Millon, and the Five Factor Model.

• Name and briefly describe some measures of personality commonly used in clinical set- tings, particularly the MMPI–2.

Personality and Psychopathology 10

Chapter Outline Introduction

10.1 Defining Personality Disorders • Criteria to Define Abnormal Functioning • Criteria for Defining Problematic Functioning

in Terms of Personality • Conceptualizing Personality Disorders

10.2 Types of Personality Disorders • Cluster A Personality Disorders • Cluster B Personality Disorders • Cluster C Personality Disorders • Other Specified Personality Disorder • The Prevalence of Personality Disorders • Alternative Organizational Models for the

Personality Disorders • Questioning the Legitimacy of Mental Illness

• Explain why we need measures of response tendencies when assessing personality in clinical settings.

• Name some common validity scales used to assess over- and under-reporting tendencies.

• Read a case study and interpret some basic personality data in order to diagnose the patient, and provide a theoretical account of their etiology based on one or more of the theories presented in this text.

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CHAPTER 10

Introduction Try to recall the last time you took an exam. How many pencils did you bring with you? If you didn’t bring any, you might be considered unprepared. If you brought one, you might still be considered to be acting carelessly, given that the point might break. Perhaps you brought one extra, just in case. But what if you brought three, four, or five backup pencils? Would this suggest that you were acting in an obsessive manner, possibly demonstrating symptoms of obsessive-compulsive personality disorder? These are subtle distinctions, and it’s hard to decide at what point behavior—even a simple, mundane behavior, such as bringing pencils to a test—goes from normal to abnormal, or nonpathological to problematic.

Assignment: measures of personality

This example illustrates the complexity of differentiating subtle variations of behavior, ranging from “normal” personality functioning to personality disorders. Three extra pencils (or any particular number of pencils) doesn’t necessarily mean anything diagnostically, but it might, especially if you spent too much of your exam preparation time collecting and sharpening pencils or if you spent much of the time taking the exam worrying about the durability of your pencils and whether you brought enough.

So far we’ve explored how personality functions. In this chapter, we turn our attention to the symptoms and development of personality dysfunction. The his- tory of personality psychology developed hand in hand with clinical psychology. Therefore, it is somewhat artificial to consider these two areas as distinct. Indeed, throughout this text, there have been both implicit and explicit references to psy- chopathology (e.g., depression, anxiety, personality disorders, etc.). In this chap- ter, we will more directly deal with personality disorders, the criteria by which they are defined and diagnosed, and assessment tools commonly used to assess per- sonality disorders. We will conclude the chapter with two case studies that bring these issues together with the explanatory accounts forwarded in earlier chapters.

As we explore the current thinking regarding personality disorders, it behooves us to remember our discussion about defining “normal” from Chapter One. Much of this chapter deals with abnormal personality as it is defined by the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) published by the American Psychiatric Association (APA), and while many of the behaviors discussed in this chapter are clearly problematic, it is important to remember that “normal” is a relative, culturally defined construct. And when it comes to defining what is normal or abnormal in personality, our culture has collectively decided to let the American Psychiatric Association decide.

Assignment: measures of personality

10.3 Assessing Personality Disorders • The Minnesota Multiphasic Personality

Inventory (MMPI–2) • Personality Assessment Inventory

(PAI-) • The Millon Clinical Multiaxial Inven-

tory-III (MCMI-III/) • Common Features of Each Assessment

10.4 Case Illustrations • Case 1: Bob G. • Case 2: Samantha K.

Summary

Introduction

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CHAPTER 10

10.1 Defining Personality Disorders

Personality disorders share many of the same defining features with the concept of personal-ity; both, for example, have a stable pattern of behavior, affect, and cognition that charac-terize the individual. But to be considered a personality disorder there must also be a clear indication that a person’s behavior, affect, or cognition is problematic in some way—maladaptive or rigid, for example—and compromises the individual’s level of functioning. Personality disorders can be differentiated from clinical disorders that do not involve personality (e.g., alcohol dependence, schizophrenia, depression, anxiety, etc.), in that the former are typically more longstanding and pervasive, and they typically manifest in more subtle ways.

One of the biggest challenges to identifying and diagnosing any disorder is establishing a set of criteria that can help differentiate normal manifestations of behavior, affect, and cognition from what might be labeled as abnormal or even pathological manifestations. Over the years, a number of criteria have emerged by consensus, and some of those are briefly discussed in this section. Note that these criteria are broadly applied to abnormal behavior, and there are separate factors that will make them applicable to personality.

Criteria to Define Abnormal Functioning Four basic criteria are considered relevant to differentiating abnormal from normal functioning:

1. statistical deviance, 2. dysfunction in daily living, 3. the experience of distress, and 4. danger to self or others.

Each criterion is important in defining abnormal functioning, but none are necessary or sufficient to determine that a disorder is present. As an example, it is true that behavior that is markedly different (statistically deviant) from what most people do is more likely to be defined as abnormal, but some rare behaviors are not disorders, and in fact can be quite adaptive. For example, consider the life and behavior of Mother Teresa, which could be an extreme case of altruism, or that of Bill Gates, which could be an extreme case of financial and technological success. Neither of these would be considered maladaptive, but they are certainly deviant from a statistical standpoint.