Personality disorders form a class of mental disorders that are defined by long-lasting, rigid patterns of thought and behavior. Because of the inflexibility and pervasiveness of these patterns, they typically cause serious problems and issues in a person’s life from time to time. According to the American Psychiatric Association, personality disorders have clusters of characteristics that share common themes or elements. While most people recognize traits of themselves in many different personality disorders, a person who qualifies for a personality disorder diagnosis will exhibit most such traits of a disorder, and these traits cause significant issues in the person’s life.
