Encountering difficult personality styles in the

workplace: strategies for coping

Dr Richard Evans, BA, MA, PhD, VetMB, MSc, PGDip; Dip.Int.Psych; Dip. Supervision; MBACP (Senior Accredited); UKCP-Registered Psychotherapist;

UKCP (HIPS)-Registered Supervisor

Senior Lecturer, Counselling Psychology

Dr Kerry Spencer, BA, BSc, PGCE, PGCIMH, DClinPsy, MBpS, CPsychol,

HCPC registered – Applied Psychologist

Lecturer, Counselling Psychology

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Contents• What is a personality style / disorder – a brief

orientation– Narcissistic personality style – an overview– Sociopathic personality style – an overview– Borderline personality style – an overview

• The psychodynamic psychological processes underlying difficult personality styles OR Why do they behave like this?

• Management strategies OR What can we help you to do?

Definition of personality

• Personality refers to enduring patterns of cognition, emotion, motivation, and behaviour that are activated in particular circumstances (see Mischel and Shoda 1995; Westen 1995).

• Two important aspects of personality: – its dynamic nature (that personality reflects an ongoing interaction of

mental, behavioural, and environmental events) – the potential for variation and flexibility of responding (activation of

specific processes under particular circumstances).

How common are personality disorders?

• 30-40% of psychiatric patients being treated in the community by a psychiatric service will have a personality disorder.

• Around 10-30% of patients who see their GP will have a personality disorder. www.rcpsych.ac.uk/mentalhealthinfoforall/problems/personalitydisorders/pd.aspx

• About 2 million people in the UK have personality disorders most commonly borderline and antisocial (NICE, 2009).

• Many more individuals have personality styles on these spectra that aren’t at clinical levels but can still cause difficulty in the workplace

Ego-Syntonic – The problem is yours not theirs• Individuals with personality disorders “represent intriguing

and often unique individuals whose constitutional makeup and early life experiences have not only misdirected their development, but have also constructed an unsatisfying sense of self, a problematic way of expressing thoughts and feelings, as well as a troublesome manner of behaving and relating to others.”

Theodore Millon, Disorders of Personality: DSM-IV and Beyond vii (2d ed. 1996)

Cluster B personalities :  'Emotional and impulsive‘ or Dramatic

Antisocial, or Dissocial (related to psychopathic/sociopathic)

– don't care about the feelings of others – are easily frustrated – tend to be aggressive – commit crimes – find it difficult to make intimate relationships – impulsive - do things on the spur of the

moment without thinking about them – don’t feel guilty – don’t learn from unpleasant experiences

Narcissistic– have a strong sense of their own self-

importance – dream of unlimited success, power and

intellectual brilliance – crave attention from other people, but show

few warm feelings in return – exploit others – ask for favours that they do not then return – narcissistic rage or– narcissitic collapse when they’re criticised or

rejected

Borderline, or Emotionally Unstable– impulsive – find it hard to control emotions – divisive– feel bad about themself – often self-harm, e.g. cutting yourself or

making suicide attempts – feel 'empty’ – make relationships quickly, but easily lose

them – can feel paranoid or depressed – when stressed, may hear noises or

voices– flip from idealising to scorn/ hatred and

back, often very rapidly

Histrionic– over-dramatise events – self-centered – show strong emotions, but which change

quickly and don't last long – can be suggestible – worry a lot about your appearance – crave new things and excitement – can be seductive

THE PSYCHODYNAMIC PSYCHOLOGICAL PROCESSES UNDERLYING DIFFICULT PERSONALITY STYLES

OR Why do they behave like this?

LEARNING MORE ABOUT THESE PERSONALITY TRAITS TO PREPARE YOU AND YOUR STAFF TO:

• Understand the specific psychological processes of these and other difficult personality styles

• Be aware why these individuals may initially be extremely difficult to spot

• Consider your recruitment methods e.g. psychometrics• Have an appropriately flexible and attuned management

style, to match the personality styles• Build and maintain staff relationships

Using Applied Psychology – What can we offer to help you cope?

Help for you to:

• Build and maintain staff relationships

• Make you and your staff aware of personal vulnerabilities so that they are harder to exploit

• Be ready for likely responses and behaviours from the individual.

• Build and maintain the resilience, wellbeing and capacity of other staff as good performers

Applied Psychology– What can we offer?

• LEARN MORE ABOUT THE PERSONALITY STYLES

• Focus on appropriate limit setting, with a focus on proper workplace conduct, completion of assigned tasks, and due consideration of co-worker feelings.

• Develop approaches for dealing with problems and complaints specifically and with appropriate suggestions for improvement.

Applied Psychology – What can we offer to help you to cope?

How can we help you to do these things?

• University workshops

• Customized in-house training

• Consultancy

• Collaborative working?

References

• Coid, J, Yang, M, Tyrer, P, Roberts, A and Ullrich, S (2006). Prevalence and correlates of personality disorder in Great Britain. British Journal of Psychiatry, 188, 423-431

• Millon, T. (1998) “DSM Narcissistic Personality Disorder” in Elsa F. Ronningstam, (ed.), Disorders of Narcissism 75, 84.

• Millon, T. et al. (2000) Personality Disorders in Modern Life, Second Edition. John Wiley and Sons; New Jersey.

• National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (2009). New NICE guidelines set to improve treatment and management of people with borderline personality disorder.

• National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (2009). Borderline personality disorder

• Perry, J., Presniak, M. D., & Olson, T. R. (2013). Defense Mechanisms in Schizotypal, Borderline, Antisocial, and Narcissistic Personality Disorders. Psychiatry: Interpersonal & Biological Processes, 76(1), 32-52. doi:10.1521/psyc.2013.76.1.32