Schizoid Personality Disorder (SPD)

DSM-IV-TR Criteria for Schizoid Personality Disorder (SPD)

Schizoid Personality Disorder (SPD) is listed in the DSM-IV-TR as a "Cluster A" (odd or eccentric) Personality Disorder.

Text in Bold Italics is quoted from the American Psychiatric Association’s Diagnostic & Statistical Manual (DSM-IV)

Schizoid Personality Disorder (SPD) is defined as:

A pervasive pattern of detachment from social relationships and a restricted range of expression of emotions in interpersonal settings, beginning by early adulthood and present in a variety of contexts, as indicated by four (or more) of the following:

1. Neither desires, nor enjoys, close relationships, including being part of a family.
2. Almost always chooses solitary activities.
3. Has little, if any, interest in having sexual experiences with another person.
4. Takes pleasure in few, if any, activities.
5. Lacks close friends or confidants, other than first-degree relatives.
6. Appears indifferent to the praise or criticism of others.
7. Shows emotional coldness, detachment, or flattened affectivity.

Does not occur exclusively during the course of schizophrenia, a mood disorder with psychotic features, another psychotic disorder or a pervasive developmental disorder and is not due to the direct physiological effects of a general medical condition.

Despite the name similarity, Schizoid Personality Disorder is different from Schizophrenia.

A formal diagnosis of SPD requires a mental health professional to identify 4 out of the above 7 criteria as positive. Some people with SPD may exhibit all 7, most will exhibit only a few.

Nobody’s perfect. Even normal healthy people will experience or exhibit a few of the above criteria from time to time. This does not make a person SPD.

Understanding the clinical criteria for Schizoid Personality Disorder (SPD) is helpful but learning how to cope with having a loved-one who suffers from SPD is quite different and is not covered in any psychological manual.

One of the most effective ways we have found to deal with that is to get support from people who understand what it feels like to be in a relationship or be a family member of someone who suffers from a personality disorder and have learned how to cope. You can find people like that at our Support Forum.

For More Information & Support...

If you suspect you may have a family member or partner who suffers from a personality disorder, we encourage you to learn all you can and surround yourself with support as you learn how to cope.

• Support Forum - Read real stories. Ask questions.
• Behaviors & Traits of people with PD's.
• Non-PD Toolbox - Coping ideas. Common mistakes.
• Personality Disorder Glossary - Learn the lingo.
• Links to PD- related sites.
• Books about personality disorders.

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