PSYB32H3 Chapter 13: Chapter_13_-_Personality_Disorders.doc
Document Summary
Chapter 13 personality disorders personality disorders a heterogeneous group of disorders, listed separately on axis ii, regarded as long-lasting, inflexible, and maladaptive personality traits that impair social and occupational functioning. Some, but not all pds, can cause emotional distress. An actual pd is defined by the extremes of several traits and by the inflexible way these traits are expressed. People with pds are often rigid in their behavior and cannot change it in response to changes in the situations they experience. As with other diagnoses, the publication of dsm-iii began a trend toward improve reliability. Beginning with dsm-iii, pds were also placed on a separate axis, axis ii, to ensure that diagnosticians would pay attention to their possible presence. The reliability of pd diagnoses has improved because of 2 developments: (1) the publication of specific diagnostic criteria (2) the development of structured interviews specially designed for assessing pds. Data now indicate that good reliability can be achieved, even across cultures.
