Accentuations of character.. Discussion on LiveInternet

Definition of accentuation

Excessive expression of character traits in a person is called accentuation. An accentuated personality is a person whose character is disharmonious, which manifests itself in the strengthening of certain qualities.

As a result, the person becomes more vulnerable to certain types of influence and is susceptible to manipulation. This condition makes it difficult for the individual to adapt in some situations. This is an extreme version of the norm, and not a pathology. Character accentuation often appears during puberty.

Fifth scale. Expression of male and female character traits

The fifth scale contains 59 statements relating to such areas as attitudes towards various types of professional activities, cultural needs and interests, etc. Such, for example, are the statements: “As a child, you played in “classes”; “You like to collect flowers or grow them at home”; “You would like to work as a nurse” (the typical answer for men is “false”, for women – “true”), “You like popular literature on technology”, “You would like to work as a civil engineer” (the typical answer for men is “true” ", for women - "wrong"). This is the only scale in which T-scores for different genders are counted in opposite directions: as shown in Figure 1, A and B, the scale value in T-scores for men increases and for women decreases as the primary outcome increases.

The profile level on the fifth scale for both men and women ultimately reflects the degree of identification with the traditional cultural and social role of a man or woman. A pronounced rise in the profile on the fifth scale reflects a decrease or absence of such identification; a clear decrease in the profile on this scale indicates its high level. Identification is mainly expressed in the nature of life experience, aesthetic and cultural interests, and professional aspirations. Statements directly related to the sexual sphere do not play a significant role in the scale. A decrease in the profile on the fifth scale in men thus indicates greater selectivity and a limited range of interests, enterprise, a more pronounced desire to overcome obstacles, and less sensitivity to aesthetic subtleties and shades of human relationships. A sharp decline in the profile on the fifth scale indicates dominance and a tendency to compete in interpersonal relationships. Individuals with this type of profile can demonstrate a deliberately masculine lifestyle, characterized by a demonstration of strength, endurance, and disregard for trifles. Their lack of a pronounced tendency to reflect, to analyze the shades of their behavior is associated with a feeling of the insignificance of these shades.

As the profile on the fifth scale increases, men's attention to emotional nuances and shades of relationships, sentimentality, and breadth of interests increase, while dominance and rudeness decrease. An increase in profile on the fifth scale is typical for young men who are distinguished by their rich imagination and artistic inclinations. Men with a pronounced peak on the fifth scale are characterized by sensitivity and a low level of heteroaggression. This is confirmed by studying the results of studies of large numbers of men who have committed violent acts [1]. None of these profiles showed an isolated peak at scale 5.

An increase in the profile on the fifth scale in women reflects an increase in those trends that in men are accompanied by a decrease in the profile level on this scale. As the profile on the fifth scale increases, women increase in ease and self-confidence, enterprise and consistency of internally motivated behavior, dominance and heteroaggressive tendencies. Women with pronounced profile increases on the fifth scale are characterized by differentiated interests, often in the field of science and technology, a tendency to choose male professions and occupations, determination and low sensitivity. An increase in the profile on the fifth scale was, in particular, noted among women - active members of the people's squad for the protection of public order (studied by G.Kh. Efremova) and fleet dispatchers (studied by R.M. Kalitina).

In situations that require the adoption of a traditionally female role (in particular, during heterosexual contacts), they may experience anxiety, which, however, decreases if in these situations it is possible to maintain the usual dominance of behavior. An increase in profile on the fifth scale is typical for girls who are distinguished by boyish forms of behavior and insufficiently differentiated sexuality.

A decrease in the profile level on the fifth scale in women reflects increased sensitivity to shades of emotions and relationships, curiosity, daydreaming, capriciousness, artistry, various aesthetic interests, and sentimentality. Women with a lower profile on the fifth scale are distinguished by gentleness, warmth, a desire for security, some passivity, a tendency to obey management, they are usually distinguished by somewhat restrained behavior, which does not exclude high self-esteem.

With a very low profile level on the fifth scale, the need for security is almost never fully satisfied, and therefore self-pity or a feeling of being “left out” or deprived easily arises; Sensitivity to shades can develop into pickiness, and restraint in expressing positive emotions can develop into feelings of anxiety and guilt in situations in which such emotions are expected from them. In particular, feelings of anxiety and reactions of self-reproach arise in this type of personality in situations that should evoke a feeling of pleasure, although to an outside observer such reactions seem to have no basis.

A pronounced profile peak on the fifth scale may have a certain significance in diagnosing homosexual tendencies (mainly in men), but the following points should be kept in mind:

a) homosexual tendencies can be dissimulated when studied using the method of multilateral personality research;

b) insufficient identification with a culturally determined male or female role will determine the peak of the profile on the fifth scale, regardless of the presence of homosexual tendencies;

c) in the presence of homosexual tendencies, a profile peak on the fifth scale can only occur if in homosexual contacts the subject plays the role of a person of the opposite sex.

In cases where the sexual role does not change and homosexual contact arises only as a result of an unusual choice of object, the peak of the profile is observed at the eighth scale, and not at the fifth scale. The profile peak on the fourth scale is more typical than the peak on the fifth scale in cases where homosexuality is the result of belonging to a deviant group and a means of challenging social norms. From the above it is clear that the profile level on the fifth scale is much more important for characterizing personality traits than for identifying homosexual tendencies.

In conclusion, it should be noted that low profiles, in which the only pronounced peak (on the main scales) is observed on the fifth scale, may arise as a result of the subject’s attempt to hide his symptoms or emotionally charged problems. Such an assumption is always appropriate with this type of profile if a high level of the profile is noted on the L and K scales or on one of these scales, but even the absence of such a picture on the rating scales does not allow us to reject it completely.

Combination with previously discussed scales. The combination of a peak on the fifth scale in men or a decrease in profile on the fifth scale in women with a profile peak on the second scale reflects increased sensitivity, vulnerability, kindness and blockade of heteroaggressive tendencies. Features of femininity in behavior are combined with anxiety or a tendency to subdepressive affect, expressed by a feeling of weakness, failure, insecurity or guilt. Individuals with this type of profile are usually incapable of external manifestations that reflect feelings of self-worth, strength and pride. In clinically pronounced cases, depending on the height of the profile peak on the second scale and its level on the ninth, various anxious and depressive states are observed.

If the peak of the profile on the second scale is combined with an increase in the profile on the fifth scale in women or a decrease in it on the fifth scale in men, then the characteristic tendency for such indicators on the fifth scale towards competition and self-affirmation, dominance, determination and the desire to overcome obstacles is smoothed out. A combination of the described pattern on the fifth scale with a profile peak on the first scale can have a similar meaning.

The combination of a peak on the fifth scale in men (and a decrease on this scale in women) with a peak on the third scale reflects an increase in responsiveness to external stimuli, artistry, a tendency to fantasize, capriciousness, inconsistency and sentimentality.

When combining a pronounced increase or decrease in the profile on the fifth scale with a profile peak on the fourth, women experience an increase in external manifestations of unconventional behavior as the profile level on the fifth scale increases and their decrease as it decreases. In men, depending on the increase or decrease in the profile on the fifth scale in the presence of a peak on the fourth, not so much the severity, but the direction of unconventional behavior changes.

A decrease in profile on the fifth scale with a rise on the fourth scale in men reflects an emphasized demonstration of strength and independence with a lack of respect for generally accepted norms. In the absence of pronounced increases in the profile on at least one of the scales of the neurotic triad or on the seventh scale, such individuals exhibit obvious heteroaggressive tendencies, which can be realized in aggressive actions, especially in adolescents and young men.

A similar profile for women reflects a combination of acceptance of the culturally determined female role with protest against existing social norms. At the same time, the accepted role does not imply open and aggressive manifestation of social protest. Women with such personality traits tend to create situations that cause frustration, provoking expressions of dissatisfaction or aggressive behavior in others. As a result, women of this type are able to express protest, which takes the form of placing blame on others for such developments. The behavior of others is regarded as unacceptable and hostile (especially if there is an increase in profile on the sixth scale).

Combinations of profile increases on the fifth and fourth scales in men in the absence of pronounced profile increases on other scales are characteristic of individuals demonstrating their disagreement with accepted customs and forms of behavior. Often these are people leading an unregulated, “bohemian” lifestyle. Some of them exhibit a homosexual tendency and openly admit it during the study period.

A similar profile in women reflects a protest against the traditional female role, the more pronounced and changing the behavior of these individuals, the more pronounced the rise in the profile on the fourth scale.

[1] The study of these individuals was carried out by G.X. Efremova at the Research Institute of the Prosecutor's Office.

History of development

The author of the concept of “accentuation” is psychiatrist Karl Leonhard. It was introduced in 1968 in Germany. The doctor preferred to use it in the phrase “accentuated personality.” According to Leonhard, accentuation is overly expressed personality traits that can go beyond the norm under the negative influence of a certain type and cause the development of various psychopathy. He was the first to try to classify accentuations. Leonhard believed that most people have sharpened character traits.

Later, the Soviet psychiatrist A.E. Lichko dealt with this issue. He developed Leonhard’s concept and introduced the concept of “character accentuation,” by which he meant the extreme limits of the personality norm, when some traits are hypertrophied.

A person acquires vulnerabilities and sensitivity to the effects of a certain psychogenic orientation. At the same time, accentuation, according to Lichko, cannot be presented as a mental disorder.

Causes

Many factors can provoke the development of personal accentuation. The main and most common one is genetic predisposition. Another reason is the lack of communication during puberty, when a teenager is ignored by peers and parents. The social environment greatly influences the formation of personality.

The lack of realization of a child’s communicative potential can be hidden not only in parental indifference, but also in overprotection. In this case, this is the reason for the lack of communication with people of the same age, which negatively affects later life.

Accentuation can be caused by unmet personal needs, various complexes, nervous system disorders and other somatic diseases. Statistics show that such manifestations are typical for individuals whose work involves constant communication. This condition is observed in teachers, medical and social workers, media persons and military personnel.

Personality pathology

prof. Vladimir Antonovich Tochilov St. Petersburg Medical Academy named after. I.I. Mechnikov

Personality is a system of a person’s relationship to himself and to the environment (in its social, first of all, terms - that is, his relationship to society).

It is known that man is a biosocial being. And, considering personality as a certain system, we can imagine that it is based, first of all, on the biological part - temperament, which indicates strength, speed, mobility, dynamism, variability of biological and physiological processes. There are 4 main temperaments; in their pure form they are extremely rare; we mostly see mixed temperaments, when temperaments are mixed and connected with each other. Temperament is a constant, stable part of personality; practically it remains with a person for the rest of his life, and it is almost impossible to replace it. And only under severe psycho-traumatic circumstances (catastrophic) can temperament change. Temperament is a general biological characteristic that applies not only to humans, but also to animals. It is impossible to judge what a personality will be like by temperament.

The next component of personality that “grows” on temperament is the person’s character. The list of characters can be endless - as many people, so many characters. Character largely depends on both temperament and social factors: family influence, upbringing, social environment, etc. Character is a type of relationship with the environment.

The next component of personality is intelligence.

Speaking about personality, it is very important to talk about its social orientation: creative, destructive, etc. The theory of Ernst Kregmer is set out in one of his main works “body structure and character”. He connected, while studying personality, the relationship between character type and physique. Kregmer called tall, long, long-limbed people living in their own world glizoids (Don Quixote). Another type - cheerful, active, talkative, short in stature (Sancho Panzo) - cycloids.

Carl Gustav Jung looked at people from a more psychological perspective, and noted that some people are immersed within themselves, they live with their thoughts, constructs, fantasies, while others have a connection with the outside world and live in the world. This is, in general, the same thing that Kregmer said, but more clearly argued psychologically; this is set out in the work “Psychological Types”. Jung called the first ones introverts (turned inward), and the second - extroverts (turned outward).

There is no classification of personality; the transfer comes from pathology (schizoid, hysterical, cycloid). Personality develops around the age of 25-30, or even later. A personality in its development goes through a number of crises: puberty, menopause, etc.

PSYCHOPATHY . Psychopathy is an anomaly of personality development. Most often, it is a biologically (constitutionally) determined personality pathology from birth (that is, congenital). In psychopaths, heredity burdened with mental illness is observed in 83%. Thus, psychopathy is not a disease, but a special breed of people; it occurs in society in 5% of cases. The word “psychopathy, psychopath” first appeared in our hospital of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker at the end of the last century (V.A. Kandinsky, Professor Balinsky).

Psychopaths are people who, from birth, perceive, think, and act in a special way, unlike everyone else. Intelligence can formally be unchanged, and often high. But they cannot adapt to life due to the peculiarities of their volitional and emotional spheres. In the emotional sphere, this can be a weakness of the emotional response, or its strengthening. A person falls out of life and becomes maladapted.

A psychopath is characterized by a total distortion of personality; almost all mental spheres and all personality traits suffer. Personal changes are stable and last a lifetime. Psychiatrists have developed the following criterion: a psychopath always irritates you, unlike, say, a patient with neurosis, for whom you feel pity and sympathy. In other words, the neurotic suffers himself, and the patient with psychopathy makes others suffer. When a person with psychopathic traits is in a home environment, he looks too sick, but when he is in a psychiatric hospital, he looks healthy.

There are many classifications of psychopathy. There is a classification by P.B. Gannushkin, who wrote “Clinic of psychopathy, their statics, dynamics and systematics.” It is based on temperaments; psychopathy can occur in any temperament except sanguine.

FIRST GROUP . Psychopathy in which there is a pathology of inhibitory-excitable systems in the area of mood, they arise more often against the background of choleric temperament. Such people are called hyperthymic, or, according to Gannushkin, constitutionally excited. Throughout their entire lives they remain in a state of mild manic excitement, a slight increase in mood. People are extremely active and active, have optimistic dreams, do not give rest to themselves and others, are very sociable, and are ready to go anywhere at any time. In Gogol - Nozdryov.

Hypotimics - all their lives they are in a state of mild subdepression (constitutionally depressive). They are always dissatisfied with something, dissatisfied primarily with themselves, often whine and lament. Characters: from the cartoon “The Secret of the Third Planet” - Captain Green: “Well, what’s wrong with us?”, Eeyore, Pierrot.

But in one person, both can be combined, they are called cylotymics, since the mood changes cyclically.

SECOND GROUP . The second group of psychopathy develops on a phlegmatic temperament. It is characterized by the fact that some processes become stuck.

A . Epileptiform psychopathy. People have the ability to accumulate emotions and then at some point discharge, like a capacitor. There is a powerful emotional explosion. People love order; these people will force humanity into heaven, they love all of humanity, and not each person individually; literally everything is under their control. By the way, the creators of the great empires in history were either epileptoids or epileptics - we with mildly expressed personality disorders: Julius Caesar, Alexander the Great, Napoleon, Peter the Great.

B. _ Paranoid psychopathy. Here people get stuck not on emotions, but on ideas. These people are what are called “stubborn”. Here there is an extremely valuable idea, which is based on something real, there is no absurdity, but it is very highly charged and begins to dominate, a person begins to devote his whole life to its implementation. Each obstacle on their way gives them several times more strength. These are the ideas of reform, invention, perpetual motion, and reorganization of the world. These people call themselves unrecognized geniuses and believe that everyone is bothering them.

THE THIRD GROUP of psychopathy develops on a melancholic temperament. A . Hysterical psychopathy. Weak people who want to show themselves, to demonstrate, that is, they want not to be, but to appear. They want to constantly attract attention to themselves. It is very important for hysterical psychopaths to be admired, and if this is not possible, then, for example, to be despised. In the end, this doesn’t matter: the main thing is that these people evoke at least some emotions in those around them, since their own emotional sphere is not developed. These people absolutely cannot exist in an atmosphere of emotionlessness, in an atmosphere of indifference, when no attention is paid to them, then they simply die, decompensate. They try to “take” these emotions from others by any means: extravagance in clothing, hairstyle, jewelry, cosmetics. These people in any company try to be in the center of the situation, they are artists. Supposedly they attend all concerts, all performances. Turning to literature, here we can recall Khlestakov: he “spoke on a friendly footing” with Pushkin. When you first meet such a person, you can fall under his spell; he can arouse a lively, genuine interest in your interlocutor. And then he meets a second, third time and you look: he’s like a broken record - the same thing, the same thing, like an artist performing his role. In such people, the first signaling system predominates.

B. _ Psychoasthenic psychopathy is based on the predominance of the second signaling system, and, unlike hysterics who live by impressions, psychoasthenics are anxious and suspicious people, living with their own thoughts, extremely unsure of themselves or others, work is given to them with colossal efforts, very great I strained my strength because although they do everything perfectly, they are forced to check and recheck endlessly, since they are not sure that everything was done correctly. But these people are the most efficient, they need praise, but they can never become bosses. They can never refuse anything (social obligations, lending money). When decompensated, they develop severe obsessions.

IN . Schizoid psychopathy - people are pathologically withdrawn, living within themselves with their thoughts, constructs, and abstractions. With pronounced schizoid psychopathy, these people even stand out from others: they “don’t give a damn” about clothes, they have a special facial expression, unusual facial expressions that do not reflect emotions. Inclined to study abstract sciences: mathematics, philosophy, inclined to create unique collections.

It is thanks to schizoids that “breakthroughs” are made in science. There is such a theory: a time comes when there is a crisis in science, as if there is nowhere to go, and suddenly a schizoid grows up who makes a breakthrough in science, raising it to the next level. Following these, a mass of active, active cycloids emerge and begin to quickly but superficially develop this discovery, not in depth, but in breadth.

Along with psychopathy, as congenital personality anomalies, there are acquired personality characteristics called sociopathy (marginal psychopathy, since nuclear ones are congenital, that is, psychopathy itself). The reason is upbringing in a family: overprotection (blowing dust from a child) is the result of the emergence of a weak, defenseless, unadapted personality; on the contrary, hypoprotection (on the verge of neglect); Cinderella situation - a person in childhood is deprived of emotional warmth and support - the so-called emotional rejection from adults; the situation of a “family idol”, when a child prodigy is raised, most often the result is hysterical personalities.

Finally, there are acquired personality changes as a result of a variety of diseases: with epilepsy, with schizophrenia, with vascular diseases of the brain, as well as with somatic pathology: “ulcer personality,” bilious personality, even personality with hemorrhoids.

Species and types

Andrei Evgenievich Lichko proposed 11 types of accentuations, distinguished by special characteristics observed during adolescence. The scientist also identified several types, varying in severity:

Explicit. This is an accentuation that manifests itself as the boundary of the norm. Its features are constant throughout the entire life period of the individual.
Hidden. A variant of accentuation, when certain traits become aggravated only during crisis periods of life or in stressful situations.

K. Leonhard also gave a classification. Lichko refined Leonhard's existing typology, clarifying some features, reducing the number of types and combining some of them. In addition, he changed the essence of the definitions describing some types. Thus, the introverted type according to Leonhard corresponds to the schizoid type according to Lichko. Below is a more recent and widespread classification of types of accentuations.

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Hyperthymic

These are people with excellent tactical thinking, but making strategic decisions is difficult for them. They do not think far ahead, do not calculate moves and do not think about the consequences of certain actions. They often blindly trust people and make mistakes when choosing partners and friends.

Hyperthyms are distinguished by their sociability and sometimes turn out to be too talkative. They are active at work and mobile. They find it difficult to sit still, which causes learning difficulties during the school period. Such people crave attention and strive to be leaders in the team. Hyperthymic individuals often have many hobbies, but do nothing seriously. They have enough superficial knowledge in any field, after which the subject of study quickly becomes boring.

These people are energetic, which is manifested in good results in sports and everything related to physical activity. Hyperthyms are very hardy. These are positive personalities, but very often careless.

Sexual reactions associated with sexual arousal in hyperthymus begin to appear at an early age. They strive to have sexual intercourse with the object of their love as soon as possible; the romantic relationship does not last long. In adulthood, casual acquaintances are not neglected to satisfy libido if there is no love.

Labile

People of this type are characterized by pronounced mood swings and strong mental sensitivity. The reason for a sharp jump in emotional background is not always obvious. It could be a carelessly thrown word from a friend or a smile and friendly look from a random passerby. In connection with this feature, the future for people of this type looks different every time - sometimes rosy and cloudless, sometimes dull and gloomy. The attitude towards others is appropriate: one and the same person can be interesting, charming and attractive today, and boring, ugly and undernourished tomorrow.

Individuals with labile accentuation do not tolerate indifferent attitude from loved ones, separation, death of people and animals to whom they were attached. They are responsive and good-natured, easy to make contact and make new acquaintances.

Unpredictability creates a frivolous image for people with labile accentuation, but in fact they are capable of deep feelings and affection.

Cycloid

This type of accentuation is also associated with mood swings, like the previous one, but here the “swing” has a more noticeable amplitude. Cycloids are characterized by high spirits and a feeling of complete depression, alternating each other in a cycle. Such periods of fluctuations last about 1-2 weeks.

During the full flowering of strength, health and energy, cycloids turn into hyperthyms. They begin to make new acquaintances and hobbies, strive to be in company, and again apply for leadership positions.

During periods of depression, cycloids become vulnerable, irritability increases, laziness and apathetic behavior are observed. They show sensitivity to criticism, cannot stand comments and reproaches, reacting sharply to every statement addressed to them. At this time, cycloids strive for solitude, avoid noisy companies and even one-on-one meetings with friends. During the period of hypothymia, these people turn into lethargic couch potatoes. All hobbies acquired during the previous hyperthymic period come to naught, so such people are usually not seriously interested.

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Sensitive

This is a type of accentuation with increased sensitivity combined with an inflated level of moral requirements for one’s personality and others. Sensitive people are timid and uncommunicative with unfamiliar people, opening up only to close ones.

They are very vulnerable and insecure individuals. This is especially evident in the situation of first love. In childhood, they are obedient, have respect and awe for their parents. They often show fearfulness. Prone to self-flagellation.

Schizoid

Individuals with this type of accentuation are closed and silent. They are completely immersed in their own experiences and fenced off from the rest of the world by an invisible wall. Qualities such as intuition and empathy (the ability to empathize) are poorly developed in schizoids. For this reason, it is difficult for them to establish contacts based on emotional connections. Schizoids have constant hobbies, these include reading books, swimming, yoga, etc. Such a person will definitely not choose team sports.

These people combine contradictory qualities:

subtle mental organization and external coldness;
pliability and internal protest, stubbornness;
naivety and distrust;
apathy and determination;
reluctance to communicate with people and craving for human society;
timidity and tactlessness in statements, etc.

Outwardly, all these manifestations look absurd and illogical. This is explained by the fact that schizoids exist emotionally on a different plane, so they care little about the lives of other people. But at the same time, like all people, they need friends and like-minded people. However, due to manifestations of schizoid accentuation, it is very difficult for them to find a friend. Do not confuse a schizoid and a schizophrenic (patient with schizophrenia).

Hysterical

Egocentric behavior, thirst for attention and longing for admiration for oneself are the hallmarks of the hysterical type of accentuation. The biggest fear of such people is to be disgraced, ridiculed, fear that their plans will be exposed. Hysteroids are stubborn and sociable and are always the first to take the initiative. The interests and hobbies of people with this type of accentuation are unstable and change over time. The main reasons for such changes are fashion and success.

Hysteroids simultaneously show dependence on other people's opinions and the desire to manipulate others. Thus, in adolescence they are often prone to blackmail through suicide. This can be expressed in different forms, for example, in demonstrative attempts to cut veins, jump from a window, take a large dose of medicine from a home medicine cabinet, etc. Other ways to attract attention used by hysterical teenagers are imaginary or one-time drug use, running away from home, skipping school, etc.

As for sexual behavior, here hysterics are distinguished by their theatricality. Their libido is not particularly strong and is within normal limits. Sex for them is another way to attract attention and make an impression. For this purpose, hysterical girls can slander themselves and invent numerous non-existent sexual relationships, creating the image of libertines.

Seven radicals of character

This technique was developed by psychologist Viktor Ponomarenko and described in his book “Practical Characterology”. Radicals (accentuations) got their names from terms used in psychiatry.

The essence of this technique is that by external signs (visual psychodiagnostics) one can determine the components of character - radicals. That is, in real time you can draw a certain conclusion about a person’s character based on his manner of communication and appearance.

Seven radicals:

hysterical (demonstrative);
paranoid (purposeful);
schizoid (strange);
epileptoid (two types: excitable and stuck);
emotive (sensitive);
hyperthymic (cheerful);
anxious (fearful).

Let's consider each radical separately.

Hysterical (demonstrative)

Usually these people:

want to be liked by others;
behave demonstratively and want to be noticed;
prone to mannerisms;
They talk a lot, attracting attention to themselves.

Facial expressions: emotions look exaggerated - if there is sorrow on the face, then it must be universal, sadness with tears, too wide smiles.

Clothes: defiant, bright, extravagant.

Speech: expressive and emotional with dramatic pauses.

Gestures: accentuated poses and picture gestures.

Paranoid (goal-oriented)

Usually these people:

confident, self-confident;
listen only to their own opinion;
strategists, but not tacticians;
their scale is enormous and their goals are global.

They go over their heads, guided by the principle “Whoever is not with us is against us.”

Facial expressions: confident, authoritative.

Clothes: neatness, nothing superfluous.

Speech: Mentoring, confident tone.

Gestures: pointing, chopping, broad.

Schizoid (strange)

These are pronounced introverts, they are characterized by unpredictable behavior and creativity without patterns. They decide for themselves which laws to obey; they are “not like everyone else.” They often have an awkward appearance.

Facial expressions: mismatch between gestures and facial expressions (clenched fists and joy on the face).

Clothing: inharmonious and sloppy, there is no clear image.

Speech: highly intelligent, sometimes abstruse.

Gestures: awkward, inconsistent, angular.

Epileptoid (excitable)

These are tough, even cruel people. They are always ready to engage in battle and conflict. They tend to blindly believe instructions, saying: “I was just following orders.”

Facial expressions: aggressive, direct gaze, constrained and small facial expressions.

Clothing: sporty or formal style.

Speech: harsh, slow, sluggish.

Gestures: heavy.

Epileptoid (stuck)

Such people have a hard time switching from one to another. They are punctual, systematic, pragmatic, unhurried. They live by the principle: “My home is my castle,” which also applies to other aspects of their life. If they call you a friend, they will never betray you.

Facial expressions: confident, direct, sometimes even heavy gaze.

Clothes: neat.

Speech: slow, sluggish.

Gestures: verified, clear.

Emotive (sensitive)

Such people have pronounced kindness and empathy, so they can empathize with others. They love watching movies with emotional scenes. They tend to avoid conflicts by yielding to their interlocutor. They know how to listen and often do not know how to argue.

Facial expressions: uncertain, weak.

Clothes: nice, soft, comfortable.

Speech: quiet.

Gestures: smooth.

Hyperthymic (cheerful)

These people love life in all its manifestations, they are optimistic and see the good in almost all situations. They have a great sense of humor. They are flexible when solving problems and know how to quickly switch from one task to another.

Facial expressions: cheerful, lively, energetic.

Clothes: comfortable, versatile, not restricting movement.

Speech: enthusiastic. They can talk about anything, the main thing is the process and sudden flashes of inspiration.

Gestures: fast, cheerful.

Anxious (fearful)

Such people are characterized by increased anxiety, they are constantly insuring themselves against mistakes, checking everything several times. They are afraid to make decisions themselves and close themselves off when communicating. They have their own calming rituals (for example, spitting over the shoulder).

Facial expressions: uncertain, weak.

Clothes: closed, dim.

Speech: uncertain, quiet.

Gestures: constrained, self-soothing.

You should understand that the above examples according to Ponomarenko are very conditional, because many people demonstrate different radicals, depending on the situation. However, some conclusions can be drawn. Learn to observe and analyze - and then with experience you will begin to correctly interpret the behavior of others, drawing conclusions about people on this basis.

We wish you good luck!

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We also recommend reading:

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Key words:1Self-knowledge, 4Profiling, 4Self-knowledge

Diagnostic measures

To determine the presence of accentuations use:

Shmisek test.
PDO Lichko.
Leonhard's technique.

It is important to choose the right method to get the most reliable results. It is worth noting that in the development of accentuations there are 2 branches: transient accentuations and permanent ones.

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Some types are characterized by intrapunitive reactions (self-harm and suicide attempts) and extrapunitive reactions (aggression is taken out on surrounding people and objects). In both cases, there is a potential danger, so it is important to recognize and try to correct the accentuation in time.

Also, against the background of long-lasting accentuation in unfavorable conditions, the development of depressive disorders and neuroses is possible. Demonstrative manifestations of accentuations are often observed - vagrancy, drug use, numerous casual sexual relationships.

Techniques for character adjustment

Having discovered the presence of accentuation, you should start by working on yourself. Sometimes you can do without correction, but it is necessary if the condition prevents you from adapting to society.

The essence of treatment and prevention of this condition is to weaken the manifestation of an aggravated character trait:

If the type is hysterical, then you need to stop expecting praise and recognition for your every action, you cannot show posturing and blindly follow fashion.
Schizoids should learn to understand and accept the emotions of other people and show kindness. A good exercise in this case is “The Choleric Game”: deliberately loud conversation and gestures will help you understand the nature and essence of human emotions.
Hyperthymia is corrected through learning order and organizing one’s own time.
Those with a labile type of accentuation should learn to control their own emotions and find balance. Problem solving must be approached from a position of reason, not emotion.
Cycloids should keep a diary to record their own experiences. Self-analysis will help you understand the reasons for mood changes.
For sensitive people, a sense of humor will help reduce the feeling of discomfort. It’s also a good idea to praise yourself even for small achievements and stop emphasizing your shortcomings.

If you can’t solve the problem on your own, you can contact a psychologist. The specialist will select one of the methods of psychotherapy - group classes, family sessions, psychotrainings, private conversations or drama techniques in psychology.

Accentuation in teenagers

The manifestation of an accentuated personality in a teenager is influenced by the following factors:

Upbringing. The lack of control or its excessive manifestation on the part of parents affects the development of the child and his relationships with peers. In a negative way, this can provoke the manifestation of accentuations, and later mental disorders.
Obstacles in communicating with others. A cognitive crisis occurs that can lead to a nervous breakdown.
Limitation of development. Often at school, intense authoritarian communication is established between teacher and student. The child does not feel free and is not able to fully realize himself in such an environment.
Lack of agreement with your ego. Problems with self-esteem and feelings of inferiority arise.

These factors are unique keys to the occurrence of accentuations in adolescence and can be used for corrective work on consciousness independently or with the help of a specialist.

The difference between accentuations and psychopathy

The development of an accentuated personality does not indicate the presence of a mental illness or even a slight deviation from the norm. During adolescence, 95% of people experience these conditions. But if unfavorable conditions are created where a person has difficulty adapting, then simple accentuation can develop into psychopathy, which will be very difficult to get rid of.

Accentuation is not a pathology. It needs to be corrected if the condition affects adaptation and quality of life. It is possible to recognize and treat different types of such conditions using diagnostic and treatment techniques that are gradually being improved.

Character anomalies - psychopathy. Accentuation of character

Character anomalies - psychopathy. Accentuation of character

An anomaly of character from which both the individual and society suffers is called psychopathy.

However, this is not just a character anomaly. Psychiatrists refer to such people as “sick with psychopathy.” This means that this person not only has a “bad character”, but due to his personal characteristics he is a potential patient of a psychiatrist, since congenital or acquired character anomalies at an early age form a disharmonious personality, and this disrupts social adaptation (adaptation to the world around , other people).

Psychopathy determines the mental appearance of a person, leaves an imprint on the entire mental makeup, does not undergo significant changes throughout life and prevents the person himself from adapting to his surroundings.

Psychopathy is characterized by three main signs, established by the outstanding Russian psychiatrist P.B. Gannushkin.

1. The totality of pathological character traits that manifest themselves always and everywhere, in any conditions, under stress and in its absence.

2. Stability of pathological character traits - they first appear in childhood or adolescence, less often in adults, and persist throughout a person’s life.

3. Violations of adaptation (adjustment) precisely due to pathological character traits, and not due to unfavorable external influences.

Schizoid type of psychopathy

Schizoid psychopathy is characterized by emotional coldness, inability to express living feelings and affection, secrecy, pathological isolation and lack of contact with other people, inability to experience pleasure, reduced interest in sexual communication, isolation from reality and immersion in one’s inner world, fantasizing to oneself, insufficient reaction to praise or blame, difficulty in mastering generally accepted norms of behavior, which manifests itself in eccentric actions.

One of the most prominent characteristics of this type of psychopathy is isolation and unsociability.

Unusual features appear already at the age of 3-4 years. Such children do not like noisy fun and active games, prefer quiet, solitary activities and do not strive for active communication with peers. From the very first years of life, children prefer to play alone. In children's institutions, when they try to involve them in group games, they may comply, but at the first opportunity they step aside and sit, doing something, alone. Educators draw parents' attention to the fact that the child is silent, rarely smiles and is uncommunicative.

Parents note that the child is very serious, freezes for a long time, as if thinking about something to himself. For example, while eating, he may freeze with a spoon in his hand, staring at one point or out the window.

Such children sometimes have unusual tastes in food, for example, the child eats only if sweet and salty dishes are mixed, eats herring with jam, refuses any fish or meat dishes, and the like.

Along with normal intellectual development, early speech development and a rich vocabulary, schizoid children may have difficulty acquiring motor skills and self-care skills. Often such children are clumsy, awkward, sedentary, and slow. They have difficulty learning to dress, comb their hair and look after themselves, and may sit for hours with a comb or piece of clothing in their hand.

A schizoid child prefers the company of adults to his peers, since adults pay little attention to him, and he can be left to his own devices. Sometimes such children silently listen to adults’ conversations for a long time, without disturbing them or bothering them. From childhood they show coldness and unchildish restraint.

In adolescence, schizoids differ sharply from their peers. The isolation and isolation from peers is striking. As a result, others develop a special attitude towards schizoids. From childhood they are considered strange, they are wary of them and avoid them. They always stand apart from the group of guys. Most interested in books, shows, quiet board games, construction, drawing, modeling. Therefore, contacts with peers are very selective and depend on interests.

The erudition of schizoids, the ability for logical thinking, interest in abstract, abstract concepts, complex philosophical problems, retention of significant information in memory, the ability to answer many complex questions by inventing unexpected, original light for them - all this attracts the attention of parents and teachers.

A schizoid teenager is not interested in communicating with more primitive peers. During school breaks, he does not go out into the corridor, where his classmates are making a noisy fuss, but takes out the book he brought with him and delve into reading. Self-absorption and one's hobbies, inability to play ordinary games and emotional inflexibility pushes peers away from a schizoid teenager.

The “weak point” of a schizoid is prohibitions or attempts to invade his inner world, his unusual hobbies and fantasies.

For example, if he is forbidden to read a lot or is prevented from pursuing hobbies, a teenager can insult his family without choosing expressions, and sometimes even be very offensive with sarcastic characteristics and contemptuous nicknames.

Discovering developed logical thinking, excellent abilities and developed erudition, schizoids at the same time find themselves completely helpless in simple everyday situations and cannot find the right way out of them.

Most schizoid teenagers suffer from their loneliness and inability to find a friend they like.

In a family, a schizoid teenager may not pay attention to other children and parents if they do not touch him and do not interfere with his hobbies. If a conflict situation is created in the family due to parental prohibitions and demands to “be like all children,” then this can cause decompensation, followed by the formation of a negative attitude towards all people, up to anthropophobia (fear of people).

In a psychotraumatic situation, neurotic reactions arise - obsessive concerns, fears, phobias.

In a schizoid teenager, the feeling of personal inferiority is associated with a persistent conviction that he has a physical defect and even a deformity, because of which he is rejected by his peers. This concern is painful; it cannot be convinced or corrected and is called dysmorphophobia.

Typically, a schizoid teenager’s desire for independence is limited by the requirement that others not interfere in his personal life. At the same time, a teenager can silently or out loud criticize the existing rules of behavior and orders in a team, mock the ideals and spiritual values of society, its conventions and lack of personal freedom. This is called nonconformism.

Schizoids do not like to act like everyone else, as is customary to behave in society. The inner world of a schizoid is closed to other people. He is filled with unusual fantasies intended for himself. Unlike hysterical fantasies, which the hysteric himself believes in, a schizoid is not immersed in fantastic fictions; he clearly separates real life from his colorful dreams and fantasies.

Most schizoids love to read and prefer reading to all other entertainments.

The hobbies of a schizoid are unusual and can be striking in their inconsistency with age or general intellectual development, for example, a passion for ancient languages, ancient Greek philosophy, the genealogy of Russian tsars or Chinese emperors, impressionism or abstractionism in painting, aesthetics, and the like.

Schizoids prefer professions related to their hobbies, for example, they become art critics, historians, philosophers, mathematicians, chess players, and engage in creative activities.

The original thinking and taste of schizoids is often combined with artistic talent, and they turn out to be innovative artists, poets and writers with their own, very original, style and language, full of symbolic meanings and new, unknown words, playwrights, creating new directions in dramaturgy, composers with very original music, designed for a subtle, extraordinary taste.

But, despite significant achievements in creative, scientific or other professional activities, they remain completely impractical in everyday life and do not know the simplest everyday things that make up the lives of most people.

Their unusualness is also evident in their appearance. In clothes they are either emphatically refined and aristocratic, or deliberately careless and extravagant. The same thing with the hairstyle. Their movements, head posture, gait, facial expressions and intonations are unusual.

The emotional manifestations of schizoids are unexpected and sometimes incomprehensible to others. They do not have an emotional response to other people's experiences, they do not know how to find the right manner in communicating with other people.

Closely related to this is a lack of empathy - the inability to share the joys and sorrows of other people, to understand their sorrows and grievances, worries and worries.

All together determines the emotional coldness of schizoids. Other people often take offense at them, regarding many of their actions as cruel. But their outwardly apparent cruelty is not associated with sadistic inclinations, but is caused by an inability to feel and understand the suffering of other people.

Schizoids are characterized by a lack of internal unity and consistency of all mental activity, bizarreness and paradoxical nature of the psyche, emotions and behavior. Emotional imbalance in schizoids is characterized by increased sensitivity (this is called hyperesthesia ) and emotional coldness (this is called anesthesia ) with simultaneous alienation from people. Psychiatrists say about the emotionality of schizoids that it is a combination of “wood and glass,” that is, both hardness and fragility.

Over the years, schizoids, as compensation for the special attitude of others towards them, increasingly move away from other people, giving themselves over to their eccentricities and unusual hobbies. There is an increase in isolation, emotional coldness, exaggerated attachment to someone combined with alienation from all other people, selfishness and callousness towards others and increased sensitivity towards oneself.

Not all schizoids are the same. Among them there are subtle, sensitive natures and indifferent, dull ones. There are petty pedants, dry callous, ironic, sarcastic, there are also misanthropes, as well as stingy people. But there can also be business people, purposeful in achieving their highest goals and sweeping away everything in their path that interferes with them, persistent and persistent. They can be extremely vulnerable and cold, ruthless, even cruel to other people.

Schizoids usually use alcohol to facilitate contacts with people, eliminate feelings of awkwardness and their own inferiority in communication. But the doses of alcohol to facilitate relationships are usually small, and this, as a rule, does not lead to alcoholism.

Some schizoids, especially representatives of creative professions, prefer drugs to alcohol, which can cause them not only mental but also physical dependence, and the prognosis of drug addiction is unfavorable.

Dynamics of psychopathy

Psychopathic individuals quite often come into conflict with others. By creating conflict situations themselves, they make it even worse for themselves, since during the conflict there is an additional psychogenic effect.

In such a situation, a psychopathic reaction , which is fraught with an exacerbation of abnormal character traits. Even after the conflict ends, the psychopathic reaction may persist.

An exacerbation of psychopathic traits can also occur after a person has suffered from some serious illness or with chronic diseases of internal organs.

Psychopathic reactions usually arise suddenly, in response to events that are of little significance for a mentally normal person, but very painful for a psychopath. The patient's reaction is always inadequate, that is, it does not correspond to the strength of the stimulus that caused it. Most often it is expressed in the form of protest, indignation, anger, malice, rage and even aggression and destructive actions.

With decompensation for a long time, there is a violation of the patient’s ability to adapt to environmental conditions, all abnormal character traits are sharply revealed and new mental disorders may arise.

Patients with psychopathy are a high-risk group in terms of the possibility of developing alcoholism and drug addiction.

In addition, patients with psychopathy are characterized by a disorder of desires, and primarily sexual ones. Many of them exhibit sexual perversions - sadism, masochism, exhibitionism, homosexuality, pedophilia, narcissism and many others.

Due to the disorder of desires, patients with psychopathy may experience conflicts with society, illegal actions, including violence, and decompensation may also occur.

If you have discovered any alarming violations of behavior and relationships with others in a child (teenager), then you should not despair. Although psychopathy is characterized by totality and exists throughout a person’s life, all disorders can be corrected and treated.

The main thing is to consult a psychiatrist in a timely manner.

In order for children with central nervous system anomalies to develop correctly, a lot depends on parents and teachers. Do not overload the nervous system, create an optimal regime of activities and rest for the child, give the child full development - these are the main recommendations that adults should follow in order to help a child with a character anomaly develop correctly.

Parents will receive specific recommendations for raising a child with psychopathic manifestations from a specialist. Individual mental characteristics are so diverse and sometimes diametrically opposed that it is simply inappropriate to give any general recommendations, since what one child needs is completely unsuitable for another. Sedative (calming) therapy is indicated for overly active, excitable children, and activating therapy for inactive children. In each case, the doctor will select an individual treatment strategy.