Psychopathy as an Emergent Interpersonal Syndrome: What Is the Function of Fearlessness?

2019 ◽  
Vol 33 (5) ◽  
pp. 633-639 ◽  
Author(s):  
Susan C. South
Keyword(s):  
Personality Disorders ◽  
Quantitative Data ◽  
Personality Pathology ◽  
Symptom Dimensions ◽  
Statistical Interaction ◽  
Statistical Interactions ◽  
The Individual

Lilienfeld and colleagues (this issue) propose that some personality disorders can be conceptualized as emergent interpersonal syndromes (EIS). An EIS elicits negative interpersonal reactions in others. Further, an EIS results from statistical interactions between symptom dimensions that are uncorrelated. As a prototypical EIS, psychopathy is an interaction between boldness (or fearlessness) and interpersonal antagonism. The authors marshal many threads of research to develop an intriguing idea that suggests the “whole” of psychopathy is more than the sum of its parts. Unfortunately, the authors focus primarily on psychopathy, and fail to provide convincing quantitative data for the statistical interaction that forms the basis for their theory. Also missing from this model of personality pathology is a consideration of what function boldness serves; viewing boldness as a means to accomplish the (maladaptive) rewarding goals that motivate the individual high in antagonism and disinhibition may serve to flesh out this theory and our conceptualization of personality pathology more broadly.

Kernberg's Object-Relations Theory and the Group Psychotherapy of Psychosis

1994 ◽  
Vol 27 (4) ◽  
pp. 419-432 ◽  
Author(s):  
Charles F.A. Milders
Keyword(s):  
Object Relations ◽  
Personality Disorders ◽  
Group Process ◽  
Psychotic Disorders ◽  
Personality Pathology ◽  
Object Relations Theory ◽  
Individual Group ◽  
Psychotherapeutic Process ◽  
Psychic Process ◽  
The Individual

The application of object-relations theory to the psychotherapy of severe personality disorders owes much to the writings of Otto Kernberg. According to Kernberg, object-relations theory facilitates analysis of the psychotherapeutic process and the clarification of personality pathology. It is a concept that integrates theories of psychic process in the individual, group process and the organization of the clinical setting, and has found general support among Dutch (group) psychotherapists treating patients with borderline and psychotic disorders. However, the scope of object-relations theory is seldom addressed. When object-relations theory is separated from clinical psychiatry it can be overvalued as a universal explanatory model.

scholarly journals Towards a contemporary approach for understanding personality pathology in developmental context: An integrative model

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-10
Author(s):  
Melody R. Altschuler ◽  
Robert F. Krueger
Keyword(s):  
Personality Disorders ◽  
Personality Pathology ◽  
Integrative Model ◽  
Research Domain Criteria ◽  
Developmental Context ◽  
Dimensional Classification ◽  
Developmental Theories ◽  
Underlying Mechanisms ◽  
Research Domain

Abstract Traditional categorical approaches to classifying personality disorders are limited in important ways, leading to a shift in the field to dimensional approaches to conceptualizing personality pathology. Different areas of psychology – personality, developmental, and psychopathology – can be leveraged to understand personality pathology by examining its structure, development, and underlying mechanisms. However, an integrative model that encompasses these distinct lines of inquiry has not yet been proposed. In order to address this gap, we review the latest evidence for dimensional classification of personality disorders based on structural models of maladaptive personality traits, provide an overview of developmental theories of pathological personality, and summarize the Research Domain Criteria (RDoC) initiative, which seeks to understand underlying mechanisms of psychopathology. We conclude by proposing an integrative model of personality pathology development that aims to elucidate the developmental pathways of personality pathology and its underlying mechanisms.

scholarly journals Three Dimensional Approaches to Personality Disorders: a Review on Personality Functioning, Personality Structure, and Personality Organization

2021 ◽  
Vol 23 (7) ◽  
Author(s):  
Susanne Hörz-Sagstetter ◽  
Ludwig Ohse ◽  
Leonie Kampe
Keyword(s):  
Personality Disorders ◽  
Empirical Studies ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Personality Pathology ◽  
Personality Structure ◽  
Assessment Instruments ◽  
Personality Organization ◽  
Personality Functioning ◽  
Clinical Observations ◽  
Categorical Classification

Abstract Purpose of Review The concept of personality functioning (Alternative DSM-5 Model of Personality Disorders) has led to increased interest in dimensional personality disorder diagnosis. While differing markedly from the current categorical classification, it is closely related to the psychodynamic concepts of personality structure and personality organization. In this review, the three dimensional approaches, their underlying models, and common instruments are introduced, and empirical studies on similarities and differences between the concepts and the categorical classification are summarized. Additionally, a case example illustrates the clinical application. Recent Findings Numerous studies demonstrate the broad empirical basis, validated assessment instruments and clinical usefulness of the dimensional concepts. Their advantages compared to the categorical approach, but also the respective differences, have been demonstrated empirically, in line with clinical observations. Summary Evidence supports the three dimensional concepts, which share conceptual overlap, but also entail unique aspects of personality pathology, respectively.

Managing Countertransference in the Treatment of Personality Disorders

2021 ◽  
Vol 49 (2) ◽  
pp. 339-360
Author(s):  
Monica Carsky
Keyword(s):  
Object Relations ◽  
Personality Disorders ◽  
Emotional Reactions ◽  
Personality Pathology ◽  
Clinical Process ◽  
Internal Object ◽  
Personality Disordered ◽  
Representational World ◽  
Transference Focused Psychotherapy

The clinical and technical difficulties presented by patients with personality disorders are well documented. This article focuses on the challenges faced by therapists when managing their emotional reactions, that is, their countertransferences, to patients with personality disorders. While leaving room for therapists' unique and idiosyncratic countertransferences to the patient with personality pathology, Kernberg emphasized the role of a more general form of countertransference, one reflective largely of the patient's conflicts and defenses, in the treatments of personality disordered individuals. Here, the nature of the patient's internal and external functioning can be seen to lead to similar reactions among different therapists, opening the possibility of utilizing countertransference to better understand the patient's difficulties. In transference-focused psychotherapy (TFP), countertransferences arising in the patient–therapist interaction are first identified and contained by the therapist and then utilized to clarify and explore how the patient's internal object relations are being enacted in the clinical process. This article describes this process and how TFP therapists work with their countertransference to help illuminate the patient's split representational world, paving the way for interpretation and integration.

scholarly journals The Association between DSM-5 Personality Pathology Traits and Violence

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marissa Jennings
Keyword(s):  
Personality Disorders ◽  
Personality Pathology ◽  
Dimensional Model ◽  
Dsm 5 ◽  
Categorical Model ◽  
Trait Model ◽  
The Many

The recently published DSM-5 included a dimensional model of personality pathology, which includes pathological traits. This model is a response to the many criticisms and problems documented with the traditional categorical modal of personality disorders. To date, numerous studies have demonstrated that the trait model is more valid and reliable than the traditional categorical model (Krueger and Markon 2013). This study expands research on the trait model by assessing the association between the DSM-5 traits and propensity for, or attitudes about, violence.

Does Childhood Trauma Cause Personality Disorders in Adults?

1998 ◽  
Vol 43 (2) ◽  
pp. 148-153 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joel Paris
Keyword(s):  
Personality Disorders ◽  
Childhood Trauma ◽  
Personality Pathology ◽  
Traumatic Experiences ◽  
Review Of The Literature ◽  
Gene Environment ◽  
Research Findings ◽  
The Relationship

Objective: To examine the relationship between trauma in childhood and personality disorders in adulthood. Method: A review of the literature was conducted. Results: The reported associations between trauma and personality pathology are illuminated by the following research findings: 1) personality is heritable; 2) only a minority of patients with severe personality disorders report childhood trauma; and 3) children are generally resilient, and traumatic experiences do not consistently lead to psychopathology. Conclusions: The role of trauma in the personality disorders is best understood in the context of gene–environment interactions.

The Online Adult Learner

2009 ◽  
pp. 737-746 ◽  
Author(s):  
Judith Parker
Keyword(s):  
Adult Learners ◽  
Current Literature ◽  
Quantitative Data ◽  
Adult Learner ◽  
Online Courses ◽  
Online Course ◽  
Attitudes Toward Technology ◽  
Qualitative And Quantitative ◽  
The Individual ◽  
Student Reflections

While the online adult learners are growing in numbers, the diversity in what motivates them and what they expect from an online course has grown as well. This chapter explores the current literature as well as qualitative and quantitative data from course surveys and student reflections in online courses taught by the author in an attempt to profile these learners, determine why they are taking online courses and investigate their evolving attitudes toward technology. It includes summaries and student quotes to portray the individual thoughts of online adult learners.

Personality Disorders in Adult Female Child Sexual Abuse Survivors: Dimensions of Personality Pathology and Characteristics of Abuse

2020 ◽  
pp. 088626052090313 ◽  
Author(s):  
Agnieszka Izdebska
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Abuse ◽  
Child Sexual Abuse ◽  
Personality Disorders ◽  
Physical Contact ◽  
Personality Pathology ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Abuse Survivors ◽  
Sexual Abuse Survivors ◽  
Personality Organization ◽  
The Impact

The relationship between child sexual abuse (CSA) and later personality disorders (PDs) has been established in numerous studies. However, there are still a number of uncertainties about the specifics of this association. This study further explored the child sexual abuse survivors’ (CSASs) vulnerability to PDs by introducing the variable of personality organization (PO) and dimensions of personality pathology as conceptualized by Kernberg, and by including additional variables of CSA characteristics. It was hypothesized that in the CSA group, the occurrence of borderline personality organization (BPO) would be significantly higher than in the non-CSA group and that characteristics of abuse associated with its higher severity would prevail in individuals with BPO. The study group consisted of 329 women who completed measures of PO and experiences of CSA. The results were consistent with formulated hypotheses. Significantly more CSASs than those who did not experience CSA were characterized by close to BPO (cBPO). Moreover, CSASs group differed from the group without the CSA experience with regard to all BPO dimensions. The biggest difference between the CSA and the control group concerned the dimension referring to the difficulties in creating close, intimate relationships. With regard to CSA features, women characterized by cBPO, in contrast to those characterized by neurotic personality organization (NPO), significantly more often reported having experienced CSA more than once, involving physical contact, from more than one offender and from the offender they previously known. The findings of the study support the idea that the optimal treatment approach for CSASs should address both the personality structure and the specificity of the impact of CSA along with its characteristics.

Behavior and Molecular Genetics of Personality Disorders

2012 ◽  
pp. 142-165
Author(s):  
Susan C. South ◽  
Ted Reichborn-Kjennerud ◽  
Nicholas R. Eaton ◽  
Robert F. Krueger
Keyword(s):  
Personality Disorder ◽  
Personality Disorders ◽  
Molecular Genetics ◽  
Behavior Genetics ◽  
Association Studies ◽  
Molecular Genetic ◽  
Genetic Research ◽  
Twin Studies ◽  
Personality Pathology ◽  
Genome Wide Association Studies

The purpose of this chapter is to provide an overview of the behavior and molecular genetics of personality disorder. We begin with a thorough review of findings from the field of behavior genetics of personality pathology, including univariate twin studies, multivariate twin studies, and new models of gene–environment interplay. We then discuss the molecular genetics of personality pathology, including a consideration of candidate gene analysis, linkage analysis, and genome-wide association studies. We focus in particular on research concerning antisocial personality disorder (including antisociality and aggression), borderline personality disorder, schizotypal personality disorder, Cluster B and C personality disorders, and normal personality traits. We then provide a discussion of challenges and future directions with respect to behavior and molecular genetic research. We conclude the chapter with a discussion of the implications of this research for the forthcoming fifth edition of the American Psychiatric Association’s diagnostic manual.

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