Ep 36: Schizoid Personality vs Autism | Are They the Same?

In this episode of The Personality Couch, we (licensed clinical psychologists Doc Bok and Doc Fish) unpack the differences and similarities between schizoid personality disorder and autism spectrum disorder, and whether you can be diagnosed with both. We start by discussing the limitations of current research before investigating the underlying causes of social withdrawal seen in both conditions. We conclude by emphasizing that while they may share observable traits, their origins and implications are fundamentally different.

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Chapters

• 00:00 Introduction to Schizoid & Autism
• 00:58 Problems with ASD & SzPD research
• 04:42 Autistic Thinking Defined
• 05:26 Autistic Fantasy Defined
• 05:54 Autism Name Origins
• 06:25 Autistic Contiguous Position Defined
• 08:22 Similarities b/w Autism & Schizoid
• 10:54 Genetics & Etiological Differences
  • 11:40 Schizophrenia’s Genetics
  • 12:37 Autism Genetics
• 14:50 Can Schizoid and Autism Co-Occur?
• 17:58 Development of ASD vs SzPD
  • 18:46 Imagination in Schizoid vs ASD
• 19:08 Late Diagnosing of ASD + Cultural Trends
• 21:24 Viewer Question: Phantasy of the Schizoid
• 25:18 Mirror Neurons in ASD vs SzPD
• 28:05 Our Thoughts About Dual ASD & SzPD Diagnoses
• 36:05 Summary & Conclusion