Developmental Personality Styles: An Attachment Theory Conceptualization of Personality Disorders (original) (raw)

2001, Journal of Counseling & Development

Attachment theory, as a developmentally based theory of personality formation, provides a viable framework for understanding the development and maintenance of personality disorders, or what A. E. Ivey and M. B. Ivey (1998) have referred to as "developmental personality styles." Using K. Bartholomew's (1990) 4-dimensional model of adult attachment as an organizational framework, 10 developmental personality styles are differentiated regarding their unique attachment experiences, working models of self and other, and feedforward beliefs. Implications of an attachment theory framework for counseling clients with problematic developmental personality styles are discussed. A ccording to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, fourth edition (DSM-IV; American Psychiatric Association [APA], 1994), a personality disorder is characterized by pervasive and inflexible patterns of inner experience and distorted perceptions that dcviate significantly from behaviors most frequently found in most social or cultural groups. Characteristic features of personality disorders usually emerge during adolescence or early adulthood, tend to remain stable over time, and often lead to serious distress or impairment for the individual (APA, 1994, p. 630). Over the years, etiological understandings of personality disorders have evolved from an almost exclusive focus on the internal characteristics of the person to a greater emphasis on developmental influences (Millon, 1994). Central to many developmental approaches is the idea that formative experiences with primary caregivers and significant others not only provide the foundation for a person's basic sense of self but also influence the way he or she subsequently navigates various life span developmental challenges and issues (Kegan, 1982; Mahoney, 1991). From a developmental perspective, one of the most important developmental challenges is constructing an integrated personal identity balanced with a capacity to maintain healthy connections with one's social world (Mahoney, 1991).In the case of most personality disorders, however, interpersonal problems are often a defining feature of the disorder. As Widiger and Frances (1985) pointed out: An interpersonal nosology is particularly relevant to personality disorders. Each personality disorder has a characteristic and dysfunctional interpersonal style that is often a central feature of the disorder. There is also some empirical support for the hypothesis that a personality disorder is essentially a disorder of interpersonal relatedness. (p. ti20)