One should also contemplate how many people one knows with a personality disorder - arguably over -generously designated by professionals as 'BORDERLINE' PERSONALITY DISORDER.
[It is essentially 'never' borderline!LINK: Borderline Personality Disorder]
GS
see also links:
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Also see NARCISSISTIC PERSONALITY DISORDER.
Sigh!
GS
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http://www.abc.net.au/science/articles/2013/02/26/3696402.htm
![Businessman]( "Businessman")
[It is essentially 'never' borderline!LINK: Borderline Personality Disorder]
GS
see also links:
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Borderline Disorder Info - SANE.org
Get the facts from SANE Australia on 1800 18 SANE (7263)www.sane.org/Reach Out Australia. - Dealing with Personality Disorder?
We can help. Visit for more infoau.reachout.com/PersonalityDisorder
Search Results
Borderline Personality Disorder | Psych Central
![John Grohol]()
The main feature of borderline personality disorder (BPD) is a pervasive pattern of instability in interpersonal relationships, self-image and emotions. People. Borderline personality disorder - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Jump to Signs and symptoms: The main features of BPD are impulsive behavior and instability of emotions, interpersonal relationships, and self-image.
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Also see NARCISSISTIC PERSONALITY DISORDER.
Sigh!
GS
Narcissistic personality disorder - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Narcissistic personality disorder (NPD) is a personality disorder in which the individual is described as being excessively preoccupied with issues of personal ...How to identify a Narcissist and how to manage narcissism in a partner
www.hartrelationshipcounselling.com.au/.../are-you-living-wit...ShareHaving to deal with a Narcissistic partner makes a relationship very difficult. We show you how to identify a Narcissist and how to manage narcissism in a ...
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http://www.abc.net.au/science/articles/2013/02/26/3696402.htm
Spot the psychopath near you
Is this a snake in a suit? (iStockphoto: creativepictures)
If somebody asked you to do a random word association on the word "psychopath", the grim words "serial killer" would probably appear somewhere on your list. But many of the characteristics of psychopaths are shared by politicians — and heroes. Yes, the psychopath who would burn down your house is in many ways similar to the hero who would rescue your loved ones from the same burning house.
One of the earliest appraisals of psychopathy was by the ancient Greek philosopher Theophrastus, about 2400 years ago. In his book The Characters he carefully lists some 30 moral temperaments. One of these he calls "The Unscrupulous Man" who will, according to Theophrastus: "go and borrow more money from a creditor he has yet to pay back".
There are many different characteristics associated with psychopathy. On one hand, they include having virtually no conscience, no impulse control, no guilt, no empathy and no remorse. On the other hand psychopaths are quite fearlesss (both mentally and physically), can focus really well, are strong-minded, and are superficially charming. As a result, they are very persuasive and are very skilled at manipulation of others. For example, psychopaths have "a great proficiency in persuading parole boards to release them into the community".
They are also very egocentric, very dishonest, as well as being both callous and ruthless, and virtually immune to anxiety. They are very happy to indulge in risk-taking behaviour, and tend to have a grandiose sense of self-worth.
About 1 per cent of us are true psychopaths, with women being represented half as often as men. Another 10 to 15 per cent of us are in the "almost psychopathic" category.
Now it's not all intangible. No, the underlying emotional deficit of psychopathy seems to be linked to some physical attributes.
For example, psychopathy is linked to a poor sense of smell. One study of 79 people (who had been diagnosed to be non-criminal psychopaths and who were living in the community) tested their sense of smell. They were offered 16 pens that carried 16 different odours such as leather, orange and coffee. Even though they could register that an odour was present, they could not easily tell the difference between one scent and another.
This poor-sense-of-smell seems to point a finger at a part of the psychopath brain called the orbito-frontal complex. Not only does it process smells, it is also involved in controlling impulses and in planning.
But what if you have some, but not all, of the characteristics of a psychopath?
One characteristic possessed by psychopaths that is very useful for political leaders is called "fearless dominance". It involves a total lack of apprehension or concern or worry about social and physical situations that would scare most of us.
Back in 1982, the psychologist, D T Lykken, said that both psychopaths and heroes are "twigs from the same branch".
The so-called "hero populations" are those who work in the military, law enforcement, rescue services and so on. On one hand, these "heroes" have some of the characteristics of psychopaths - immunity from stress, ability to focus, social dominance and fearlessness. But on the other hand, they do not carry other psychopathic tendencies such as lack of conscience, antisocial behaviour, impulsivity and narcissism.
Suppose that a person does have several psychopathic factors in their character. But to understand them more deeply, you should also factor in other characteristics such as "intelligence" and a "tendency to violence".
This gives you four possible results.
If you are not particularly smart and non-violent, you'll probably end up as some kind of petty criminal — maybe a burglar.
The second option is that you are not particularly intelligent and violent. In this scenario, you could end up as an enforcer or a low-level hood.
Things change when you add intelligence to the mix.
In the third scenario, if you are both intelligent and violent on top of your psychopathic tendencies, you could end up as a criminal mastermind or working in the special forces.
But if you're psychopathic, intelligent and non-violent, you could be a "hero", or a surgeon, a lawyer or head of a big corporation. In 2006, P Babbiak and Robert D Hare referred to psychopaths in business settings as "snakes in suits".
But now that you've finally gotten used to looking out for wolves in sheep's clothing, you have to go one step further to find the snake in a suit. But at least you'll know that the snake in a suit will be up high, not low to the ground …
Published 26 February 2013
© 2013 Karl S. Kruszelnicki Pty Ltd