Table of Contents
Overview – Personality Disorders
Personality disorders are enduring patterns of inner experience and behaviour that deviate markedly from cultural expectations, are inflexible, and lead to significant distress or impairment. These disorders are typically recognisable by adolescence or early adulthood and persist across many life areas. While some individuals may excel in isolated contexts, personality disorders often result in substantial dysfunction in interpersonal relationships, work, and daily life. This page outlines the diagnostic clusters and key features of each disorder.
Definition
- Lifelong maladaptive patterns of thinking, feeling, and relating to others.
- Cause pervasive impairment in social, occupational, and personal functioning.
- Patterns are typically ego-syntonic (i.e. individuals do not see them as problematic).
Classification – The 3 Clusters
Cluster A – “Mad” (Odd or Eccentric)
These individuals often appear peculiar or detached, and their behaviours are socially withdrawn or suspicious.
- Paranoid Personality Disorder
- Distrustful, secretive, constantly suspicious
- Interprets others’ motives as hostile
- Bears grudges; “with me or against me” mindset
- Schizoid Personality Disorder
- Detached and solitary
- Emotionally cold, indifferent to praise or criticism
- Lacks desire for social relationships
- Schizotypal Personality Disorder
- Odd beliefs or magical thinking
- Social anxiety, eccentric speech and behaviour
- May appear similar to schizophrenia, but no frank psychosis
Cluster B – “Bad” (Dramatic, Emotional, Erratic)
This group is characterised by emotional dysregulation, impulsivity, and interpersonal chaos.
- Antisocial Personality Disorder
- Manipulative, deceitful, criminal behaviours
- Impulsive, aggressive, lacks empathy or remorse
- Commonly associated with conduct disorder in youth
- Borderline Personality Disorder
- Intense emotional instability and identity disturbance
- Unstable interpersonal relationships, fear of abandonment
- Impulsive self-harm, suicidal behaviours, substance misuse
- Histrionic Personality Disorder
- Excessively emotional, attention-seeking
- Seductive, theatrical, shallow relationships
- Needs constant approval
- Narcissistic Personality Disorder
- Grandiose sense of self-importance
- Preoccupied with fantasies of power or success
- Requires admiration, lacks empathy
Cluster C – “Sad” (Anxious or Fearful)
These individuals present with pervasive anxiety, insecurity, or fearfulness in social and occupational settings.
- Avoidant Personality Disorder
- Hypersensitive to criticism or rejection
- Socially inhibited, avoids risk and responsibility
- Desires relationships but avoids them due to fear
- Dependent Personality Disorder
- Excessive need to be taken care of
- Submissive, fears separation
- Struggles with decision-making and asserting opinions
- Obsessive-Compulsive Personality Disorder (OCPD)
- Preoccupied with orderliness, perfectionism, and control
- Inflexible, unable to delegate, resistant to change
- Distinct from OCD: no intrusive thoughts or compulsions
Summary – Personality Disorders
Personality disorders are chronic mental health conditions defined by enduring maladaptive patterns in behaviour, cognition, and interpersonal functioning. They are grouped into three diagnostic clusters: Cluster A (odd/eccentric), Cluster B (dramatic/emotional), and Cluster C (anxious/fearful). Recognising the core features of each is essential for diagnosis and management. For a broader context, see our Psychiatry & Mental Health Overview page.