Antisocial Personality Disorder

1 Antisocial Personality Disorder Personality disorders are mental conditions that negatively affect the way a person thinks, behaves or functions. The resultant maladaptive behavioral patterns are considered socially and culturally unacceptable according to the individual’s societal norms (Derefinko & Widiger, 2016). The DSM-5 recognizes antisocial behavioral disorder as one of the ten personality disorders.

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2 According to the DSM-5 diagnostic criterion, antisocial personality disorder is characterized by persistent disregard and violation of other people’s rights. This is evident by the presence of three or more of the following behaviors, “failure to follow to social norms on lawful behaviors, deceitfulness for pleasure or personal profit, impulsivity or failure to plan, irritability and aggressiveness, reckless disregard for the safety of self or others, consistent irresponsibility and lack of remorse having hurt, mistreated, or stolen from someone else” (American Psychiatric Association, 2013, p. 15). To fit in this criteria, the individual has to be at least 18 years and has shown the above characteristics before the age of 15.

Antisocial personality disorder lacks sufficient evidence for psychological treatment with no pharmacological intervention proven or recommended by the FDA for its treatment (Hatchett, 2015). Drugs are often used to treat co-occurring symptoms, including antipsychotics and mood stabilizers in aggressive behavior and bipolar disorder, respectively (Hatchett, 2015). Patients could also benefit from group psychotherapy, cognitive and behavioral therapy to influence change in unwanted behaviors, thought patterns and promote good behavior.

A 23-year-old had been convicted after being found guilty of assault. It is reported that he had always had a problematic past with a history of stealing and causing trouble among friends since his high school years. He is also known to con others of their money and valuables through his witty, treacherous ways. From these behaviors, he fits the clinical features for antisocial personality disorder due to his deceitful character, violation of other people’s rights, lack of remorse and failure to follow societal norms.

3 References American Psychiatric Association (2013). Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (5th ed.). American Psychiatric Publishing.

Derefinko, K. J., & Widiger, T. A. (2016). Antisocial personality disorder. In The medical basis of psychiatry (pp. 229-245). Springer, New York, NY. Hatchett, G. (2015). Treatment guidelines for clients with antisocial personality disorder. Journal of Mental Health Counseling, 37(1), 15-27. https://doi.org/10.17744/mehc.37.1.52g325w385556315