Avoidant Personality Disorder

Glossary Anhedonia A mental health symptom, commonly seen in mood disorders and schizophrenia-related disorders, involving the inability to experience pleasure from enjoyable activities. Comorbidity The presence of two or more psychiatric diagnoses found simultaneously in the same individual. Comorbidity may reflect the presence of two distinct pathologies, but may also reflect imperfect diagnostic categories. Distress disorders A higher order classification of the broad range of anxiety and depressive disorders. DSM The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (current version: Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 4th revision, text revision, or DSM-IV-TR) is published by the American Psychiatric Association and provides a multiaxial classification system for mental disorders, with personality disorders such as APD listed under Axis II disorders. FFM The Five Factor Model of personality describes five broad personality domains: openness, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, and neuroticism. Each domain has six facets descriptive of lower-order personality traits. Generalized social phobia A subtype of social phobia marked by a fear of social situations across all aspects of the social world. GSP is very closely linked to APD. Modification, or ICD-10-CM) is published by the World Health Organization and provides a classification system for a broad range of medical symptoms and conditions, including mental health diagnoses. It is widely used internationally but is less common within the United States. SASB Structural Analysis of Social Behavior, a model of personality based on interpersonal theory that describes patterns of behavior, suggests origins of maladaptive interpersonal behavior, and guides psychotherapy process. Social anxiety disorder The term introduced in the DSM-IV as an alternative name for social phobia. Social phobia A disorder marked by an enduring fear of social situations and the embarrassment that may result from participation in social interactions.