Dependent Personality Disorder

Paper Summary:

This paper examines how the pathological manifestation of dependency is a condition that has been the focus of a long line of personality theorists since the time of Freud. It looks at how pathological dependency has also been examined quite extensively by a multitude of personality researchers, and their efforts have yielded an extensive literature on the personality correlates of persons with dependent personality disorder (DPD). It shows how current research into the personality of the dependent person emphasizes interpersonal behavior and the variation that exists within current diagnoses of DPD persons and how the role of future researchers is to further our understanding of DPD from the interpersonal perspective and to apply diverse models of personality in order to gain a truly comprehensive understanding of the personality of the DPD person. Pathological dependency is a condition that has perplexed researchers for more than a century, and further research into the underlying personality structure of the dependent personality is imperative in understanding the etiology, symptomatology, and effective treatment of this intriguing disorder.

From the Paper:

"Rather than proposing a specific course of development to explain personality development, Alfred Adler, another of Freud's successors, theorized that individuals adopt a style of life, referring to the ways in which persons pursue their goals and strive for a sense of superiority. Adler believed that individuals are motivated by feelings of inferiority, and that the path toward psychological health involves striving for superiority to attain completion, which leads to a constructive lifestyle and a sense of psychological well-being (Adler, 1930). Neurosis, on the other hand, is theorized to be the result of a striving for personal superiority, leading to the adoption of a destructive lifestyle, and consequently resulting in some form of psychopathology. Adler believed that a person develops a distinctive style of life through the culmination of the person's family experiences and their interpretations of these experiences."

More papers on Dependent Personality Disorder:

• Descriptive Essay # 104520 : "Personality Disorders"
• Essay # 49491 : "Personality Disorders"
• Case Study # 92278 : "Personality and Childhood Disorders"

APA Citation:

MLA Citation: