schizotypal personality disorder

schizotypal personality disorder

[skit′sōtī′pəl]

Etymology: Gk, schizein + typos, mark; L, personalis, of a person, dis, opposite of, ordo, rank

a DSM-IV psychiatric disorder characterized by oddities of thought, perception, speech, and behavior that are not severe enough to meet the clinical criteria for schizophrenia. Symptoms may include magical thinking inconsistent with cultural norms, such as superstitiousness, belief in clairvoyance and telepathy, and bizarre fantasies; ideas of reference; recurrent illusions, such as sensing the presence of a force or person not actually present; social isolation; peculiar speech patterns, including ideas expressed unclearly or words used deviantly; and exaggerated anxiety or hypersensitivity to real or imagined criticism. See also schizoid personality disorder, schizophrenia.

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schizotypal personality disorder 

a personality disorder characterized by a pattern of social and interpersonal deficits with eccentricities of behavior, thought, and speech. People with schizotypal personalities may exhibit magical thinking, for example, claiming that they are clairvoyant or telepathic, may have recurrent illusions, or may exhibit derealization. Their speech is marked by vagueness, metaphors, odd usages of words, and other features that can make it difficult to understand. Persons with this disorder often are aloof and socially isolated with little capability or desire for close relationships, excessive social anxiety, suspiciousness, and disturbed affect. Although the disorder is related to schizophrenia, it differs in that any periods of psychosis are only transient.

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schizotypal personality disorder

301.22 DSM-IV Psychiatry A schizophrenia-like condition characterized by defects in interpersonal relationships and disturbed thought patterns, appearance, behavior; Pts with SPD have bizarre speech, poor social skills, strained relationships with others; it is more common in relatives of schizophrenic. See Schizophrenia.