Is the Labeling of Personalities as Disorders a Flawed Concept?

[Music Platter]

I have thought about this before, and seeing talk on the video game and violence thread made me think about it again. Are there really personality "disorders," or are these just labels stuck upon people by psychological associations?

Personally, I'm not sure how I stand on this issue. Most of the time I think of it as a type of stigmatizing by a majority, but then I think about my brother, who will sometimes just become extremely angry and paranoid. Perhaps, as George Orwell wrote in Nineteen Eighty-Four, insanity is simply a minority of one.

More Info: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Personality_disorder

 

[Second Summer]

The different terms are "just" labels, obviously, but I suppose the idea is that they help us talk about the problems in a more systematic way, and thereby help us find explanations and treatments for the behaviours of the afflicted individuals.

Back in the day they had less helpful terms, sometimes these described whole bags of unrelated issues. See e.g. "female hysteria".

I think society has a right to protect itself from potentially dangerous elements, and if we can't even talk about certain mental afflictions because we're not allowed to put labels on people, then it seems we've gone overboard in our desire to be inclusive. Of course, there are disorders that pose no threats to society, and the afflicted individuals are able to function, maybe even don't want any treatment. I suppose in those cases "disorder" is perhaps not the right term.

 

[yakherder]

As a stereotypical ADHD kid, I had and still have an abundance of energy, an inability to multitask effectively, and a trait referred to as hyperfocus which allows my to basically obsess over one thing at the expense of everything else going on around me.

In addition, I have considerably more sociopathic traits than the average person, but not enough to officially define me as being a sociopath.

Having learned to harness my strengths and minimize the negative effects of my weaknesses over time, I've been able to accomplish things I wouldn't have otherwise been able to accomplish. Society can define me however they see fit.

 

[Moll Flanders]

I have a diagnosed Personality disorder and I can see how it can seem an insulting label although the tailored treatment I received was really life changing for me. I think the general public have a warped view of people with PD's as they seem to automatically assume that the individuals are violent or dangerous in some way but there is a broad spectrum. Some people with PD's are violent though of course, just like some people are violent without suffering from any mental illness.

I was chosen by my psych to come and give a talk to students to help them see a real person with a PD but I bottled out at the end as I thought it would be too stressful to stand up in front of a lecture hall and talk about something very personal. I do think there needs to be much less stigma and ignorance surrounding mental health issues as it still seems like a subject people are uncomfortable discussing.