Ep 46: Did the DSM Get it Wrong? | A New Perspective on Avoidant Personality

In this episode of the Personality Couch Podcast, licensed clinical psychologist Doc Bok unpacks the historical context of Avoidant Personality Disorder (APD), exploring the ongoing debate about its classification in the DSM. This episode discusses the contributions of Theodore Millon, the controversies that arose during the introduction of APD, and the implications of trauma and sociopolitical culture on personality development. The episode concludes with proposing alternative classification systems, including the Enneagram, the psychodynamic phobic character, and avoidant personality as a problematic trait versus a disorder.

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Chapters

• 00:00 Introduction to Avoidant Personality Disorder
• 02:32 Millon, the DSM, and Controversy
• 05:47 The 1960s & Personality Development
• 09:37 Avoidant Traits, Trauma, & Alternative Views
• 18:08 Summary & Conclusion

Additional Podcast References

• American Psychiatric Association. (2022). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders: DSM-5-TR (5th edition, text revision.). https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.books.9780890425787
• McWilliams, N. (2011). Psychoanalytic diagnosis: Understanding personality structure in the clinical process (2nd ed.). Guilford Press.