Overview

Personality Disorders, Cluster A, are a very complex group of mental illnesses. They are characterized by long-term patterns of eccentric thinking and behaviors that are unhealthy and inflexible. Typically, this group of mental illnesses is diagnosed in adulthood because they represent a pattern of enduring problems that are stable over time. The pattern is seen in two or more of the following areas: thoughts, feelings, interpersonal relationships, and impulse control. The pattern is pervasive, inflexible, deviates markedly from cultural norms and expectations, and leads to distress or impairment especially in activities of daily living. Personality disorders are the most common of all psychiatric diagnoses.

Four defining characteristics of all personality disorders are: 

• Distorted patterns of thinking
• Problematic emotional responses
• Interpersonal difficulties.
• Over- or under-regulated impulse control

Ten different personality disorders have been divided into three clusters:

• Cluster A – the odd, eccentric cluster
• Cluster B – the dramatic, emotional, erratic cluster
• Cluster C – the anxious, fearful cluster 

Those diagnosed with a Personality Disorder, Cluster A, find it hard to relate to others. They tend to exhibit some common features including social awkwardness, social withdrawal, a tendency to behave in a way that others consider unusual or eccentric, and distorted thinking

Personality Disorders, Cluster A, presents information on four types of disorders, one type each day for four days. These are:  

1. Paranoid Personality Disorder          
2. Schizoid Personality Disorder           
3. Schizotypal Personality Disorder      
4. Due to a Medical Condition               

On the fifth day, the Team reviews each of the Personality Disorders in Cluster A, helping you to fix the information in your memory and to reaffirm the strategies for dealing with each type. Typically, the average person needs to review information three or four times to move it from short-term memory into long-term memory. 

This is the end of the Overview for Personality Disorders Cluster A.