Personality Disorders and Avoidant Personality Disorder
Personality disorders refer to the long-lived behavioral patterns, which cause problems with work as well as relationships. Avoidant personality disorder is a psychiatric disorder that entails lifelong patterns of extreme social inhibition, inadequacies, and sensitivity to rejection (Beeney et al., 2015). Victims of avoidant personality disorder tend to avoid working in some places due to fear of being criticized or disappointed by others. In addition, they are inhibited in social places due to reduced self-esteem and feelings of inadequacy. Such people fear loss and making them opt for loneliness rather than risk trying connecting with other people. Avoidant personality disorder impacts negatively on a person’s feelings and social aspects and although the cause is unknown, it can be managed to improve behavior.
Effects on Functioning at Work
People suffering from avoidant personality disorder can have bad feelings of inadequacy as well as sensitive to what others think about them (Moroni et al., 2016). Such feelings of inadequacy cause an individual to feel socially inhibited and inept. Victims are also very anxious and many times are described as shy, timid, lonely, or isolated. The avoidant behavior can have adverse effect affect their functioning at work because these individuals try to avoid the types of social situations that may be important for meeting the basic demands of the job or for advancement (Torvik, et al., 2016). For instance, they may avoid meetings as much as possible, and any social interactions with their co-workers or boss.
Identifying and Coping with Avoidant Personality Disorder
Identifying the disorder may require psychological experts by following an individual from childhood. Some common signs and symptoms of avoidant personality disorder may include being easily hurt by criticisms from friends and other people. In addition, a person lacks close friends and is reluctant to be involved in social activities due to social phobia (Pellecchia et al., 2018). For instance, a person will avoid activities and careers that involve a lot of contact with people. Some people may also turn to drug abuse to cope with the situation and deal with fear (Dimaggio et al., 2015). Shyness in social gatherings is common as the persons have great fear doing things the wrong way. Being in intimate relationship is difficult and a person may tend to restrain, as they feel inferior or unappealing to others. Taking risks of doing new things is close to impossible in these people, as they fear embarrassment.
Causes and Treatment
The cause of the disorder is not known although genetics and environmental factors that include rejection by a parent or friends play a role. Social and psychological factors play a big role in making a person fearful. Emotional abuse, being criticized, ridiculed, or lack of nurturing by parents during childhood can lead to the development avoidant personality disorder (Eikenaes, Egeland, Hummelen & Wilberg, 2015). The disorder begins during infancy or early childhood with great shyness, isolation, and avoiding strangers or new places. Most people who are shy in their early years tend to grow out of this behavior, which later develops to timid behavior during adolescence and adulthood. Some drugs such as antidepressants may be used for reducing sensitivity to rejection (Drago, Marogna & Sogaard, 2016). Psychotherapy, such as cognitive or behavioral approaches, are also helpful.
Conclusion
In conclusion, avoidant personality disorder involves a lot of anxiety making an individual feel timid. A person with this condition may also suffer from social phobia or anxiety that arises when one is exposed to a social situation. The disorder develops mostly from a difficult childhood but can be managed once diagnosed through therapy and medical treatment.
References
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Dimaggio, G., D'Urzo, M., Pasinetti, M., Salvatore, G., Lysaker, P. H., Catania, D., " Popolo, R. (2015). Metacognitive Interpersonal Therapy for Co‐Occurrent Avoidant Personality Disorder and Substance Abuse. Journal of clinical psychology, 71(2), 157-166.
Drago, A., Marogna, C., " Sogaard, H. J. (2016). A review of characteristics and treatments of the Avoidant Personality Disorder. Could the DBT be an option. Int J Psychol Psychoanalysis, 2(1), 13.
Eikenaes, I., Egeland, J., Hummelen, B., " Wilberg, T. (2015). Avoidant personality disorder versus social phobia: the significance of childhood neglect. PLoS One, 10(3), e0122846.
Moroni, F., Procacci, M., Pellecchia, G., Semerari, A., Nicolò, G., Carcione, A., ... " Colle, L. (2016). Mindreading dysfunction in avoidant personality disorder compared with other personality disorders. The Journal of nervous and mental disease, 204(10), 752-757.
Pellecchia, G., Moroni, F., Colle, L., Semerari, A., Carcione, A., Fera, T., ... " Procacci, M. (2018). Avoidant personality disorder and social phobia: Does mindreading make the difference?. Comprehensive psychiatry, 80, 163-169.
Torvik, F. A., Welander-Vatn, A., Ystrom, E., Knudsen, G. P., Czajkowski, N., Kendler, K. S., " Reichborn-Kjennerud, T. (2016). Longitudinal associations between social anxiety disorder and avoidant personality disorder: A twin study. Journal of abnormal psychology, 125(1), 114.
