Rep36 Understanding Personality Disorder

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Preface
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People with personality disorder need a multidisciplinary and multi-agency service. Sharing of ideas
and expertise between psychologists in forensic and general mental health services would enhance
service development.
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Personality disorder is a problem that affects individuals across the lifecycle; to identify problems
early, good communication between agencies is essential.
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Clinical supervision of staff working with individuals with personality disorder is essential to
maintain the emotional health of staff. 
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There is an urgent need for good quality research to inform service development.
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The views of service users should inform service development.

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Executive Summary ...........................................................................................................................................1
Preface................................................................................................................................................................2
1. Understanding personality disorder...........................................................................................................4
1.1 What is personality disorder? ...............................................................................................................4
1.2 Prevalence of personality disorder ....................................................................................................10
2. Origins of personality disorder .................................................................................................................15
2.1 Psychological approaches to personality disorder...........................................................................15
2.2 Causes of personality disorder ..........................................................................................................22
3. Psychological interventions with individuals with personality disorder.................................................29
3.1Assessment and formulation .....................................................................................................................29
3.2 Psychological interventions in health service settings .....................................................................35
3.3 Psychological interventions in forensic settings ...............................................................................43
4. Recommendations .....................................................................................................................................50
References........................................................................................................................................................55