Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- List of contributors
- Preface
- 1 Treatability in severe personality disorders: how far do the science and art of psychotherapy carry us?
- 2 The treatment of choice: what method fits whom?
- 3 Countertransference: recent developments and technical implications for the treatment of patients with severe personality disorders
- 4 Beyond management to cure: enhancing the positive dimensions of personality
- 5 Personality disorders from the perspective of child and adolescent psychiatry
- 6 Disruptions in the course of psychotherapy and psychoanalysis
- 7 Managing suicidal crises in patients with severe personality disorders
- 8 Borderline personality disorder, day hospitals, and mentalization
- 9 Pharmacotherapy of severe personality disorders: a critical review
- 10 Severe cases: management of the refractory borderline patient
- 11 Dangerous cases: when treatment is not an option
- 12 Stalking of therapists
- 13 Common elements of effective treatments
- Index
- References
5 - Personality disorders from the perspective of child and adolescent psychiatry
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 14 August 2009
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- List of contributors
- Preface
- 1 Treatability in severe personality disorders: how far do the science and art of psychotherapy carry us?
- 2 The treatment of choice: what method fits whom?
- 3 Countertransference: recent developments and technical implications for the treatment of patients with severe personality disorders
- 4 Beyond management to cure: enhancing the positive dimensions of personality
- 5 Personality disorders from the perspective of child and adolescent psychiatry
- 6 Disruptions in the course of psychotherapy and psychoanalysis
- 7 Managing suicidal crises in patients with severe personality disorders
- 8 Borderline personality disorder, day hospitals, and mentalization
- 9 Pharmacotherapy of severe personality disorders: a critical review
- 10 Severe cases: management of the refractory borderline patient
- 11 Dangerous cases: when treatment is not an option
- 12 Stalking of therapists
- 13 Common elements of effective treatments
- Index
- References
Summary
When do personality disorders begin? Is personality fixed in late adolescence or early adulthood? Are personality traits distinguishable after birth or in childhood? There are no definitive answers to these questions as yet and there is obviously much to learn. Nevertheless, long-term studies point to considerable stability in personality even when assessed in adolescence. Moreover, as Paris (2003) noted in his excellent overview of the course of personality disorders from childhood till late adulthood, it does seem possible to identify some precursors of personality disorder in childhood and early adolescence. In this chapter, we highlight some developmental aspects of personality and personality disorders from the perspective of child and adolescent psychiatry.
Developmental aspects of personality disorders
Developmental psychopathology is the study of the developmental processes that contribute to the formation of, or resistance to, psychopathology (Wenar and Kerig, 2000). Many studies from this field suggest that vulnerability – adversities and psychopathology in infancy and early childhood – may lead to chronic and profound psychopathology in later life. In this section, we discuss five topics that are relevant in the development of psychopathology, especially personality disorders, in infants and young children: heredity, prenatal issues, attachment, temperament, and maltreatment.
Heredity
Twin and family studies show that genes influence the susceptibility to acquire a personality disorder. For example, a Norwegian twin study by Torgersen and colleagues showed that personality disorders generally were 60% heritable (Torgersen et al., 2000).
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- Severe Personality Disorders , pp. 79 - 92Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2007
References
- 1
- Cited by