8/11/2019 Early Life Experiences and the Development of Personality Disorders

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Early life Experiences and the Development of Personality Disorders(Nurture):Simone Hoermann, Ph.D., Corinne E. Zupanick, Psy.D. & Mark Dombeck, Ph.D.

Updated: Dec 6th 2013

As mentioned in the prior section, babies' temperaments are generally assumed tobe genetically determined. However, babies' biologically determined temperamentsare just a starting point. Clearly, babies do not grow up independently. Instead,babies are quite dependent upon their caregivers for their very survival. Thesefrequent interactions with parents or other caregivers have special significance. Itis the emotional tone of these social interactions with caregivers, shaped by the"fit" between babies' temperaments and parents' personalities, that further

influences the development of babies' personalities. This interaction between babyand caregiver provides a good example of how natural and nurturant forces interactwith one another to influence personality development. Let's examine this bi-directional interaction a little more closely.

Infants demonstrate different temperaments from the moment they are born. Someinfants are highly sensitive. They react swiftly and sharply to environmental stimuli,such as a bright light in their eyes, or a loud noise. Other infants react to thesesame stimuli more slowly, and without much interest. It is these sorts of differencesthat enable researchers to conclude that babies are born with different, genetically-determined, temperaments.

Children's temperaments will also influence how their caregivers respond to them.You can imagine that the highly sensitive, reactant babies will elicit a differentresponse from their environment (caregivers) than will less reactant, more even-tempered babies. For example, a calm and placid baby is more likely to get pickedup and cuddled more affectionately than an anxious and irritable baby. Of course,these different environmental responses will, in turn, affect the emotionaldevelopment of each child. Many child development specialists agree that healthypersonality development has a lot to do with the match between infants'temperaments and their caregivers' dispositions.

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8/11/2019 Early Life Experiences and the Development of Personality Disorders

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Well-matched sets of infants and caregivers are characterized by an abundance ofpositively-toned interactions between caregiver and child. These pleasant emotionalexchanges are thought to produce fewer negative personality outcomes. Incontrast, poorly-matched sets, characterized by an abundance of negatively-toned

interactions, with unpleasant emotional exchanges, predict a more negative effecton personality development.

A large body of research and clinical observation additionally supports the idea thatchildhood experiences play an important role in the development of personalitytraits and personality disorders. Traumatic childhood experiences, such as physical,sexual, or emotional abuse and neglect, have been identified as risk factors thatincrease the likelihood a personality disorder may develop (Johnson, Bromley, &McGeoch, 2005). Other adverse experiences in childhood may also heightenpeople's risk for developing features of a personality disorder. Some examples are:the death of a parent; the separation or divorce of parents; the lack of parentalaffection; poor family communication; a harsh and controlling parenting style; orexposure to assaultive bullying.

The relationship between adverse childhood experiences and personality disordersis complex. While exposure to these events does heighten the likelihood that apersonality disorder will develop, it is not the case that all abused, or otherwisestressed children go on to develop personality disorders. This observation suggeststhat multiple risk factors (both genetic and environmental) must occur in somespecific combination so as to overwhelm a child's system and cause them to laterdevelop a personality disorder. It also suggests that various protective factors mayexist that function to limit the negative effects of significant trauma and adversity.Access to social support and social involvement are the primary factors that appearto serve this protective function (Johnson, Bromley, & McGeoch, 2005). Generallyspeaking, abused or otherwise stressed children tend to have better outcomeswhen they have access to nurturing and supportive relationships with secondarycaregivers who demonstrate the affection, warmth, and empathy that is lacking intheir home (e.g., grandparents, neighbors, teachers, coaches, clergy, etc.).