Christ’s Achievers Montessori

Block 23 Lots 1-3 Graceville Subd., Barangay Muzon,

City of San Jose del Monte, Bulacan

ANTISOCIAL PERSONALITY DISORDER

Nature, Etiology, Prevalence,
Prevention & Intervention

Presented to:
Mr. Oscar Godes Jr.

Presented by:

Ancheta, Seth Patrick Datangel Li, Maron James Licudo

Arias, Kenneth Bocatija Torno, Rudolph Christen Cabanatan
Baggay, Isagani Genesis Gabitan Tuboro, Wilfred Jefferson Dollete
Luñeza, Miguel Archer De Arroz Vinluan, Zuegfred Santiago
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Nature of the Disorder

Antisocial Personality Disorder is a challenging chronic mental health condition
and personal condition in which a person consistently shows no regard and respect and
exploits or ignores the rights and sentiments of others. It is associated with co-occurring
mental health and addictive disorder and medical comorbidity including major depressive
disorders from bipolar disorder and anxiety disorder to substance usage disorders and
sexual disorders. While AsPD is chronic and lifelong for most individuals with AsPD, it
tends to improve and worsen with advancing age. An individual with AsPD has a long-term
pattern, and will in general, antagonize, manipulate or treat others cruelly or with callous
indifference and hard lack of interest. Some will normally be deceitful and neglectful. They
exhibit no guilt or remorse for their behavior and are characterized by way of impulsive,
irresponsible and often crooked conduct.

Like other types of personality disorders, antisocial personality disorder is on a

spectrum, which means it can vary in severity from occasional horrific behavior to
repeatedly violating the law and perpetrating genuine crimes. The more egregious, harmful,
and dangerous behavior patterns are referred to as sociopathic or psychopathic. There have
been difficulties between the distinctions of the two. But psychopathy can be thought of as
a more severe form of sociopathy with more symptoms. Therefore, all psychopaths are
sociopaths but sociopaths are not necessarily psychopaths. Some doctors believe that
psychopathic personality (psychopathy) is the same disorder.

People with this illness may also seem charming and witty on the surface but they
are in all likelihood to be irritable and aggressive as well as irresponsible. They may also
have several somatic complaints and possibly attempt committing suicide. Because of their
manipulative tendencies and nature, it is challenging whether or not people with this
disorder are lying or telling the truth. Because of these characteristics, individuals with this
disorder may fail and typically can’t fulfill responsibilities related to family, work or
school.

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Etiology of the Disorder

The precise cause or causes of antisocial personality disorder are unknown. Like
many mental health issues, evidence points to inherited traits which are why genetic factors
are suspected since the incidence of antisocial behavior is much higher in people with a
biological parent who displays antisocial characteristics. Genes may make you vulnerable
to developing antisocial personality disorder and life situations may trigger its
development. But, dysfunctional family lifestyles also increase the likelihood of having
AsPD. So, even though AsPD can also have a hereditary basis, environmental factors make
a contribution to its development.

Social and home environment also contribute to the development of antisocial

behavior. Antisocial behaviors typically have their onset before the age of 8 years. Parents
of troubled children frequently show a high level of antisocial behavior themselves. They
develop various antisocial behaviors that are repeated with success, the gravity of violent
behavior tends to increase and they have problems with the law. Nevertheless, people with
AsPD at one point were children, without diagnosis of Psychopathic Personality; as such a
diagnosis is not appropriate at early childhood or adolescence. Psychopathic or/and
antisocial tendencies sometimes are recognized in children and early adolescent age. In one
large study, the parents of delinquent boys were more often alcoholic or criminal, and their
homes were frequently disrupted by divorce, separation, or the absence of a parent. Boys
develop symptoms of AsPD earlier than girls, who may or may not be exhibiting antisocial
behaviors until puberty. Diagnosed as conduct disorder in childhood, the diagnosis coverts
to AsPD at age 18 if antisocial behaviors have persisted. A subset of antisocial adults has
no history of childhood conduct disorder but appear to meet adult criteria for AsPD; these
people tend to have the milder syndromes. Such behaviors lead usually to the diagnosis of
Conduct Disorder or Oppositional Defiant Disorder or Attention Deficit and Hyperactivity
Disorder in early years of life and increase the possibility to have a diagnosis of Antisocial
Personality Disorder or Psychopathic Personality as an adult. 

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There are many studies on the underlying risk factors for psychopathic personality,
focusing in genetic, neurobiological, developmental, environmental, social and other
factors. Other investigators have also reported that the presence of CD in childhood is a
robust predictor of ASPD in adulthood. The parents are educated to supervise their
children, to overlook annoying behaviors and to encourage the positive ones. The
punishments do not seem to attribute. On the contrary, it strengthens undesirable and
unwanted behaviors.

It has been argued that early abuse (such as vigorously shaking a child) is
particularly harmful, because it can result in brain injury. Traumatic events can disrupt
normal development of the central nervous system, a process that continues through the
adolescent years. By triggering a release of hormones and other brain chemicals, stressful
events could alter the pattern of normal development. It may result to the child’s lack of
consistent discipline and failure to develop empathy and concern for those around him.

Prevalence of the Disorder

Prevalence peaks in people age 24 to 44 years and drops off in people 45 to 65
years. This is particularly true for children with conduct disorder who are abused or
neglected. Researchers estimate that 25% of girls and 40% of boys with conduct disorder
will have antisocial personality disorder as adults. The disorder occurs in men 6 times more
often than in women. 80% of people with the disorder will have developed symptoms by
the age of 11. Though typically antisocial personality disorder isn’t diagnosed before age
18, some signs of symptoms may occur in childhood on the early teen years. This condition
is common among people who are in prison. About 3% of men and about 1% of women in
the world have antisocial personality disorder. The male-to-female ratio is estimated
between 2:1 and 6:1. The prevalence varies with the setting but could reach up to 80% in
correctional settings.

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Prevention and Intervention

It is used to be thought that personality disorders were incurable and untreatable.
Both of these assumptions turned out to be wrong. Patients with different types of
personality disorder usually improve with time. Antisocial personality disorder is a
condition that leads to persistent rule-breaking, criminality, and drug or alcohol misuse
which makes it one of the hardest disorders to treat. It causes a great deal of hardship for
the person concerned, as well as for the person’s immediate family and society in general.
People with this condition usually don’t seek treatment on their own. They may only start
therapy when required to by a court. First, people with AsPD should feel they are loved.

Treatment for antisocial personality disorder may prove challenging. Because the
symptoms of the disorder tend to peak in a person’s early 20s, people may find that
symptoms improve on their own as a person reaches their 40s and beyond. Medications
which include mood stabilizers and antidepressants may sometimes be prescribed to help
reduce aggressive or impulsive behaviors. But, patients with a personal disorder have a
better prognosis than many patients with mood disorders. This suggests that the practice of
targeting mood symptoms, while failing to make personal disorder diagnoses is profoundly
mistaken. This is a particular problem in adolescence, a stage at which most persona
disorders are diagnosable. The exception is AsPD, but the Diagnostic and Statistical
Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition, rules to only make this diagnosis after the age
of 18 are arbitrary.

Both psychological and pharmacological interventions for people with Asp are
poorly researched and direct evidence on the treatment is scarce. But, there have been
examinations whether if psychological treatments can help people with antisocial
personality disorder. There has been little to no formal development of psychological
interventions specifically for the treatment of antisocial personality disorder with
considerably more emphasis placed on the psychological treatment. Psychotherapy, or talk
therapy, is usually the treatment recommended for antisocial personality disorder.

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A therapist can help a person manage negative behaviors and build interpersonal
skills they may lack. Often, the first goal is simply to reduce impulsive behaviors they can
lead to arrest or physical harm. It usually depends on each person’s particular situation,
their willingness to participate in treatment and the severity of symptoms.

If a loved one has antisocial personality disorder, it’s common to feel discouraged.
Remembering that lack of remorse or empathy is a symptom of the condition can help you
set realistic expectations for how your loved one can improve. With treatment, some people
with AsPD do from positive relationships, be more responsible, and respect the boundaries
of others. Others will not, and family members will have to consider how they want to
respond to this challenge. One interesting fact is that people with AsPD who are married
tend to improve over time compared to a single people. Spouses, partners, and others close
to the person play an important role in urging therapy, and improvement often comes when
one has a source of personal support and motivation. These are largely consistent with the
findings that linked job stability and marital attachment with improvement. Each of these
situations – from brief incarcerations to relative success with marriage and family life –
could easily be the result of improvement rather than its cause.

Further research is urgently needed to clarify which psychological treatments are

effective for people with this disorder. Nonetheless, there was some evidence that a type of
treatment known as contingency management could help people with antisocial personality
disorder to reduce their misuse of drugs or alcohol. Such trials should focus on the key
features of antisocial personality disorder and the behaviors of people with this chronic
mental health condition.

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Appendices
A. Interview Consent Forms

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B. Interview Guide

Antisocial Personality Disorder

A Case Study

Interview Guide
Purpose of Interview
Antisocial Personality Disorder is one of the most difficult mental disorders an individual can have
and it can be very hard to deal with. We, the presenters of this case study, and the case study itself, wish to
thoroughly understand antisocial personality disorder and individuals with this particular type of disorder. This
is why your background, experiences, ideas, perception, and understanding, as a psychologist and as an
individual with AsPD, regarding the said disorder will be undeniably helpful and would be greatly appreciated
by us.

Interview Questions
For the Psychologist

 Could you please give us a background about you being a psychologist?

o For how long have you been a psychologist?
o Do you have strengths and weaknesses as a psychologist? What are they?
o As a psychologist, what are your perceived career goals?
About Antisocial Personality Disorder

 What is AsPD or Antisocial Personality Disorder?

o How can you tell if someone has this type of personality disorder?
o Can you give us examples of the behaviors of a person with AsPD?
o What are the main causes and reasons of having AsPD?
o Can Antisocial Personality Disorder be prevented or cured?
 How often can AsPD be observed in the population?
o Who among the populace do frequently experience or have this disorder?
o How much of the populace exhibit the behaviors of having AsPD?
o How well do you think they handle this disorder?
o Can people with antisocial personality disorder affect the society? If so, how?
 Is there a difference between a psychopath and a sociopath?
o How can you tell if an individual is sociopathic?
o Is it possible to be a sociopath and exhibit its respective behaviors without knowing?
o Can sociopathic behavior be genetic?
o Could sociopaths feel love and the urge of loving someone?
For the Patient

 How do you behave as an individual with antisocial personality disorder?

o Are you an irresponsible, irritable, and aggressive person?
o Do you frequently demonstrate violent and hostile behaviors? (ex. Lying, committing
dishonest activities, etc.)
o Were there any instances where people castigated you for your lack of remorse and guilt in
what you’ve done?
o Do you feel pleasure, ecstasy, and happiness in what you do as a person with this kind of
personality disorder?

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