The fascinating and controversial history of personality disorders.
The concept of personality disorders rose to prominence in the early
twentieth century and has consistently caused controversy among
psychiatrists, psychologists, and social scientists. In Personality
Disorders, Allan V. Horwitz traces the evolution of defining these
disorders and the historical dilemmas of attempting to mold them into
traditional medical conceptions of disorder.
Using the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, or
DSM, as a guide, Horwitz explores the group of conditions that make up
personality disorders and considers when they have been tied to or
separated from other types of mental illnesses. He also examines how
these disorders have often entailed negative moral and cultural
evaluations more focused on perceived social deviance than on actual
medical conditions.
Deep conflicts exist in a variety of disciplines in determining the
nature of these disorders. During the twentieth century, a particularly
sharp division arose between researchers who study personality disorders
and the clinicians who treat them. Because researchers strive to develop
general laws and clinicians attempt to understand individuals' specific
problems, their values, methods, and goals often conflict. Synthesizing
historical and contemporary scholarship, Horwitz examines controversies
over the definitions and diagnoses of personality disorders and how the
perception of these illnesses has changed over time.
