1. Section 5 at a Glance Personality Disorders
Personality disorders are patterns of inflexible traits that disrupt social life or work and may distress the affected individual.
Four common personality disorders are paranoid, schizoid, antisocial, and avoidant.

2. Personality Disorders
Main Idea
Personality disorders are characterized by patterns of unchanging personality traits that disrupt people’s social lives and work lives.
Reading Focus
What are personality disorders, and how do they differ from other psychological disorders?
What are ten types of personality disorders?
How do psychological and biological views explain the origins of antisocial personality disorder?

3. Why does Lisa demand so much attention?

4. What Are Personality Disorders?
Personality disorders: patterns of inflexible traits that disrupt social life or work and may distress the affected individual
An enduring pattern of inner experience and behavior that deviates markedly from the expectations of the culture of the individual who exhibits it
Usually show up by late adolescence
Psychological disorders are illnesses that an individual experiences as episodes. In contrast, personality disorders are enduring traits that are major components of the individual’s personality.

5. Reading Check
Contrast
How are personality disorders different from other disorders that they may resemble?
Answer: Personality disorders are patterns of inflexible, enduring traits, not episodes of illness.

7. What are some ways that personality disorders can make life difficult?
Reading Check
Analyze
What are some ways that personality disorders can make life difficult?
Answer: Individuals with personality disorders have great difficulty making friends and developing lasting relationships with others, and it is difficult for them to retain or achieve success in a job, which can lead to further isolation or financial hardship.

8. Explaining Personality Disorders
Both psychological and biological theories have been suggested to explain some of them.
Psychoanalytic theory suggests a lack of guilt underlies the antisocial personality.
Learning theorists suggest children who are not reinforced for good behavior learn antisocial behavior.
Cognitive theorists argue antisocial teens use a faulty view of others’ actions.
Psychological Views
Antisocial personality disorder appears to run in families.
Some evidence suggests that antisocial people have less developed emotional centers in their brains.
Biological factor by itself is unlikely to cause the development of antisocial personality disorder.
Biological Views –

10. Reading Check
Analyze
How may childrearing affect the development of antisocial personality disorder?
Answer: If rejected, punished harshly, raised with a lack of affection, or lack appropriate role models, children may develop an antisocial personality disorder.