Print: Definition of a Personality Disorder, List of Psychological Disorders

Definition of a Personality Disorder, List of Psychological Disorders

Written by: Martin Winkler

First version: 22 Jul 2008. Latest version: 31 Jul 2008.

Abstract:
Short definition of a personality disorder: A personality disorder is a personality trait that is pervasive and intrusive and leads to distress and impairment.

Question:

What is a personality Disorder? How is personality disorder different from other mental disorders? Give a list of personality disorders.

Answer:

Personality disorders are mental disorder with inflexible, enduring, maladaptive patterns of adjustment to life that cause either subjective distress or significant impairment of adaptive functioning.

The DSM-IV: Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (American Psychiatric Association) defines a personality disorder as an enduring pattern of inner experience and behavior that

deviates markedly from the expectation of the individual's culture,
is pervasive and inflexible,
has an onset in adolescence or early adulthood,
is stable over time, and
leads to distress or impairment.

More information

More about personality disorders List of articles about personality disorders Imagined body defects ADHD diagnostic criteria Autism and other social communication disorders Sexual problems Schizophrenia and Psychosis Information on Depression Symptoms of depression Neurosis Personality disorders overview Articles about mood swings Articles about children Articles about personality disorders Articles about life and relations

Sources, references: http://web4health.info/en/answers/source/border-personality-disorder.htm



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