Antisocial, Borderline, and Avoidant Personality Disorders - Research Paper Example

? Psychology Project 5: Discussing the Childhood Maltreatment Connection to Antisocial, Borderline, and Avoidant Personality Disorders Instructors Name Course Name Due Date Introduction We live in a world of diverse personalities. In fact, each end every one of us has a personality, traits, and behaviors that are entirely unique. People have been trying for years to understand why people behave as they do; what motivates their behaviors and actions. This becomes ever more important when experts work to determine the causes of behaviors that are deviant, criminal, violent, or negligent of their own well being, as well as, others. Why do these people behave as they do? Today psychological science has identified numerous conditions, both physical and mental, that can explain abhorrent, threatening, or unhealthy behaviors. Many of these conditions can be attributed, in many cases, to the experiences of childhood, particularly, in environments where physical abuses, neglect, and verbal degradations are all too common. The combination of these verbal, mental, and physical abuses and negligence is often referred to as “child maltreatment” (Salters-Pedneault, 2013). Antisocial Personality Disorder, Borderline Personality Disorder, and Avoidant Personality Disorder all fall into this category of disorders with strong childhood associations. However, despite the commonality of the correlations there is debate in scientific circles about the certainty of this theory. All the same, the instances of child maltreatment in relation to these conditions are too common to be coincidence and well worthy of further investigation, study, and research. History In fairness it cannot be ignored that modern study of mental illness has lead to great advancements. They can now determine the differences between irreparable madness and treatable mental illness. In many cases they have developed the means of identifying genetic and inheritable traits that can lead to mental illness. These theories encourage that mental illness is a physical illness. However, the link between, these conditions and of child maltreatment is far too significant to be ignored. Instances of childhood maltreatment are equally as significant as genetics, traits, or learned behaviors (Stepp, Whalen & Levine, 2011). It is fair to assess that child maltreatment is a huge contributor to all of these conditions. Discussion The best way to understand these different personality disorders is to review each one individually. This will allow for the highlighting of the specific symptoms indicative for each disorder and their link to differing forms of child maltreatment. The evidence overall, is rather compelling. The authors make strong points that do seem to indicate that childhood experiences have a profound impact on us in our adult lives. Antisocial Personality Disorder Symptoms: A1-A7 A1: Fails to conform to norms and lawful behavior. A5: Disregard of safety for self/others. A2: Are frequently deceitful and manipulative. A6: Consistent, extreme irresponsible. A3: Pattern of impulsiveness and no future plans. A7: Little remorse for consequences. A4: Irritable, aggressive, and likely to commit acts of assault. Antisocial Personality Disorder, according to experts, seems to be most commonly associated with adults, who admitted that as children that they experienced some level of physical and, likely, sexual abuses in their home environments or within their daily life. Researchers say that the most common symptoms are reflective of logical psychological reactions to that abuse (Black, 2013). In reviewing each symptom specifically to broaden the conversation and better convey the significance of their connection will only make this clearer. Symptoms A1, A2, A3, and A7 can all be acknowledged of the many side effects experienced by many people who have been sexually or physically abused as children. The coldness, manipulation, selfish intentions, and little care of consequences all are, in many cases, indicative of the abuses mentioned. A3 and A6, regarding lack of responsibility and lack of forethought and planning are, also, indicative of sexual and physical abuses. These individuals suffer from stunted emotional and mental maturity, common among maltreated children, has not developed and unable to grasp the concepts of planning and responsibility. This is typical behavior of abused children; they are emotionally stunted at the age when the abuse was worst. A4 is the manifestation of the abuses they may have suffered. They visit those same abuses upon others. It is not uncommon for abuse children to grow up and become abusers of a sort themselves. All of these symptoms support abuse as a causative agent and have proven to be present in the majority of cases (Black, 2013). The characteristics of Antisocial Personality Disorder is that its disregard for others is also, termed, psychopathy, sociopathy, and dissocial. Regardless of the name, the hardening of emotions and lack of empathy is a reflection of the lack of emotion and feeling that was missing in their childhood. As children, Conduct Disorder will be recognized in these individuals as children. When parents and guardians are abusive or are excessive disciplinarians it is more likely that disorder will evolve into Antisocial Personality Disorder as they become adults. Under most circumstances evidence of disregard will be evident no later than 15 years of age and be accompanied by at least 3 of the 7 common symptoms (American Psychiatric Association, 2000). Which may make it early enough to intercede on the child’s behalf and curb the undesirable behaviors and side effects much sooner. Borderline Personality Disorder Symptoms C1-C9 C1: Great efforts to avoid real/perceived abandonment C6: instability of mood or anxiety C2: unstable intense relationships. C7: chronic feelings of emptiness. C3: identity disturbance C8: Difficulty controlling anger. C4: impulsive in self damaging ways. C9: transient paranoid ideologies C5: displays suicidal, threatens suicidal self mutilation. Borderline Personality Disorder is most often associated with individuals who experienced severe neglect or abandonment as children (Madden, 2013). It is the most tangible common experiences expressed by people presently seeking treatment for Borderline Personality Disorder; other variables were interchangeable but neglect and abandonment were consistent. In fact, 40% to 60% of individuals studied confirmed neglect and abandonment as the most closely associated with adult sufferers of Borderline Personality Disorder (Salters-Pedneault, 2013). Symptoms C1 and C2 are personifications of the fear of early abandonment, which likely assist in creating the unstable relationships. They desperately fear feeling that same abandonment that they felt when they were children; it motivates these behaviors. C3, C4, and C5 represent the feelings of abandonment that are directly linked to their self image. It is their fault that people leave them and the reason that it keeps happening in their lives, at least as they perceive it. This can lead to the dangerous impulsivity and then, when most vulnerable, can lead to thoughts of suicide or self injury. They will do whatever is necessary to avoid abandonment. C6, C7, C8 relate to the anxieties, mood swings, and difficulty with controlling emotions, All of which can be related to the childhood damage of neglect and abandonment. It is like they are always on edge looking for that moment of abandonment that is inevitable; as it was in their childhood. A pattern they are desperate to avoid in adulthood. C9 is just the heightened state of fear, anxiety, and psychological consequences of the fears of abandonment. It requires a person to be possessing of at least, 5 of the 9, aforementioned symptoms simultaneously, to be considered for a diagnosis of Borderline Personality Disorder. Of these the major percentage shared an admitted history of parental or guardian abandonment or neglect (American Psychiatric Association, 2000). Avoidant Personality Disorder Symptoms: C1-C7 C1:Avoids activities; fears rejection. C5: inhibited;self inadequacy;low self-esteem C2: Avoids making new friends. C6: see themselves socially inept and inferior. C3: fear of discussing self, fear rejection C7: against new things; fear of embarrassment. C4: Throw threshold for rejection in social situations. Avoidant Personality Disorder is associated with adults who have admitted to experiencing regular ridicule and humiliation in their childhood. Many experts feel that he symptoms of this disorder are highly reflective of their experiences of emotion was met by parent or guardians impartiality, criticism, or punishment may then become reluctant to share their feelings and not express them. It is easy to see how this could cause difficulties in future and adult relationships. This can only become even more intensified and likely to result in psychological damage when this humiliation, ridicule, and criticism are also present among peer groups (Baier-Barth & Crawford, 2010). Each of the symptoms of Avoidant Personality Disorder is clearly interconnected. C1 and C7 reflect a learned reaction to avoid new situations and experiences that may place them in a position to be ridiculed or mocked. C2, C3, C5, and C6 all involve the difficulty of interpersonal relationships, getting to know new people, and the fears of discussing themselves; all of this helps them avoid situations of ridicule that reminds them of childhood. If all you know is ridicule you are not going to look forward to it a second time. The self deprecating mentality justifies the mocking and ridicule as deserved. After all that is all they have known since childhood. C4 reflects their heightened sensitivity to what is perceived as criticism or rejection, primarily, because it is feared and anticipated. Avoidant Personality Disorder is diagnosed when an individual displays at least 5 of the potential symptoms simultaneously. However, research supports that the most consistent commonality between sufferers of Avoidant Personality Disorder is the instances of admitted childhood humiliations, excessive criticisms, and unending ridicule. It is natural that when unkindness and ridicule regularly awaits you at every turn wanting to hide is understandable (Schwartz, 2013). Issues/Solutions Despite correlations that make the connections between early childhood maltreatment and the particular personality disorders, there are still “exceptions that prove the rule,” so to speak. There are instances of individuals being diagnosed with these conditions who relay no history of abuses, neglect, or humiliations in childhood. There are, also, a number of adult individuals who survived childhood maltreatments and did not develop any personality disorders of any kind. Others blame the instances more on learned behaviors than mental illness; still others insist that biological contributory components must be involved. Because there is consistent disagreement as to the universal causes that a definitive explanation has yet to be reached in any of these considered conditions. Further study into the instances of thee conditions are warranted. These disorders are primarily indicative of childhood abuses then studying more intently may be overly beneficial to all of those who research, as well as, suffer from these disorders (Salters-Pedneault, 2013). There is, also, a significant implication of these studies concerning the identification of the warning signs in children that may likely lead to a diagnosis of one of these conditions as adults (Hill, 2003). For example, if Conduct Disorder can be identified as a precursor of these conditions and we know that one of the greatest contributors is child maltreatment; therefore would it not also be indicative of child abuses and neglect. Would this not give people the opportunity to intervene on these children’s behalves and get them out of unhealthy environments? Doing this could result in limiting the instances of childhood abuse, in affect diminishing the number of individuals who may someday be diagnosed with any of these conditions. This, in turn, would serve to, both, defend the viability of the presence of child maltreatment having an impact on diagnosis, as well as, making a difference in the lives of abused, neglected, and mistreated children. Conclusion In the end, the purpose of understanding these disorders is a means for knowing how to diagnose them, treat them, and, in a perfect world, prevent them. In order to attain such hefty goals successfully it will require researchers to take more seriously the correlations of adults who are suffering from these conditions and the experiencing of child maltreatment in their youth. If these disorders can easily be predicted then preventing, preempting, and successfully treating these conditions would change the lives of many sufferers. It may very well prove that there are combinations of components that must be present. Together the abuse, genetic factors, and learned behaviors create a recipe for personality disorders. However, that does not negate the significance of child maltreatment and the resulting personality disorders. If such discoveries can improve the lives of a few then it is worthwhile in the grand scheme of things. References Baier-Barth, L., & Crawford, A. (2010). Avoidant personality disorder avpd/apd. Retrieved from http://www.avoidantpersonality.com/yahoogroupfiles/ExtensiveExplanation2AvPD.htm Black, D. (2013, January 30). What causes antisocial personality disorder?. Psych Central, 1. Retrieved from http://psychcentral.com/lib/what-causes-antisocial-personality-disorder/000652 Hill, J. (2003). Early identification of individuals at risk for antisocial personality disorder. The British Journal of Psychiatry, 182(14), Retrieved from http://bjp.rcpsych.org/content/182/44/s11.full Madden, S. L. (2013, August). Borderline personality disorder. Retrieved from http://www.med.nyu.edu/content?ChunkIID=96547 Salters-Pedneault, K. (2013). The relationship between child abuse and bpd. Retrieved from http://bpd.about.com/od/causesofbpd/a/Abuse_ar.htm Schwartz, A. N. (2013). Shame and avoidant personality disorder. Retrieved from http://sevencounties.org/poc/view_doc.php?id=10284 Stepp, S. D., Whalen, D. J., & Levine, M. D. (2011). Children of mothers with borderline personality disorder: Identifying parenting behaviors as potential targets for intervention. Personality Disorders, 3(1), 78-91. Retrieved from http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3268672/ American Psychiatric Association, (2000). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders, 4th ed., text revision, Washington, DC Read More