Obsessive-Compulsive Personality Disorder

baru-baru ini aku dituduh seorang sahabat, bahwa aku punya OCD - obsessive compulsive behavior. dan ketika tadi aku baca-baca, rasanya sih engga ya, karena aku ga sgitu takutnya sama germs, jadi ngerasa harus cuci tangan terus-menerus, ga suka bolak-balik nutup pintu jg. tapiiiiiii.. ketika dibaca-baca lagi, kecurigaan yang lebih banyak adalah bahwa instead of OCD, aku mengidap OCPD - obsessive compulsive personality disorder. apa sih OCPD? apa dong bedanya sama OCD? artikel di bawah ini aku kopiin dari ya.

When Everything Has to Be "Just Right"

OCPD Overview

Obsessive-Compulsive Personality Disorder (OCPD) is the mental disorder of striving for too much success. Perfection is the ultimate goal of the OCPD person, and failure is seen as earth shattering. OCPD is the disorder that, on the outside, seems useful. A drive to succeed is very appealing, but OCPD pushes it past the line of success and into the realm of isolation, anxiety, and depression.

What is a Personality Disorder?

A personality disorder is defined to be "...an enduring pattern of inner experience and behavior that deviates markedly from the expectations of the culture of the individual who exhibits it" (APA, 2000). This means that the person's world perspective has, for the most part, always been skewed, with expectations that differ from the rest of his or her culture. Deeply-rooted and longstanding, the overly perfectionistic behaviors are sensible to the person with OCPD. Psychologists call this ego-syntonic, which means that the person with OCPD feels his disordered outlook is good and correct.

Psychiatric Definition

Personality disorders are divided into three different categories, called Clusters. Cluster A disorders are part of the schizophrenia spectrum (the "weird,") Cluster B disorders are marked by unstable behaviors (the "wild,") and Cluster C disorders are anxious or fearful (the "worried.") Avoidant, Dependent, and Obsessive Compulsive personality disorders fall under the "worried" category.

The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM), commonly referred to as "the psychologist's Bible," describes all the identified mental disorders, including personality disorders. For a diagnosis of OCPD, the person must fulfill at least 4 of the DSM criteria listed in the box below (APA, 2000).

A pervasive pattern of preoccupation with orderliness, perfectionism, and mental and interpersonal control, at the expense of flexibility, openness, and efficiency, beginning in early adulthood and present in a variety of contexts, as indicated by four (or more) of the following:

1. is preoccupied with details, rules, lists, order, organization, or schedules to the extent that the major point of the activity is lost
2. shows perfectionism that interferes with task completion (e.g., is unable to complete a project because his or her own overly strict standards are not met)
3. is excessively devoted to work and productivity to the exclusion of leisure activities and friendships (not accounted for by obvious economic necessity)
4. is over conscientious, scrupulous, and inflexible about matters of morality, ethics, or values (not accounted for by cultural or religious identification)
5. is unable to discard worn-out or worthless objects even when they have no sentimental value
6. is reluctant to delegate tasks or to work with others unless they submit to exactly his or her way of doing things
7. adopts a miserly spending style toward both self and others; money is viewed as something to be hoarded for future catastrophes
8. shows rigidity and stubbornness

Description of Symptoms

As detailed, the person with OCPD is so occupied with striving to do a task properly that the person attempts to attain perfection. Such a person may impose all sorts of rules to maintain "efficiency," but instead only succeed in making the task more difficult (criterion 1 & 2). The person with OCPD puts work before personal relationships or leisure time (criterion 3), and draws a very strict line when it comes to moral or ethical issues (criterion 4). Hoarding with no traceable cause or sentiment was at one time thought to be a key symptom (criterion 5), however this criteria is under review and may be omitted in the next version of the DSM (Claiborne, 2009). The person with OCPD is very controlling, and has a feeling of superior competence comparing him or herself to others. He or she will entrust tasks to others only under extreme caution (criterion 6), and have strict instructions as to how they are to be carried out. The person with OCPD will save money and be stringent with it, as money is a fail-safe in case something unavoidably catastrophic occurs (criterion 7). General rigidity and stubbornness is not uncommon: the OCPD patient takes comfort in "the way it's always been done", does not favor change, and will only relent reluctantly in an argument (criterion 8).

Because it is a personality disorder, the person with OCPD is comfortable with their high standards and rigid mindset, seeing it as a virtue even though more often than not it hampers success. The person with OCPD will justify actions instead of admitting any sort of problem, because in the person's mind he or she is right.

Impact of the Disorder

Prevalence of OCPD

Obsessive-Compulsive Personality Disorder is seen in about 1% of the general population of the United States; however, it is seen in 3%-10% of psychiatric outpatients. It is almost twice as prevalent in males as females (McGlashan et al., 2005).

OCD vs. OCPD

OCPD shares some of the same symptoms as obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), such as a general desire for order, but is a different disorder and as such should not be confused. OCD is an anxiety disorder (APA, 2000). OCPD is, as described above, a personality disorder. Most people with OCPD do not have OCD, and likewise most people with OCD do not have OCPD. The main difference is that someone with OCD is focused on particular distressing obsessions such as repeated hand-washing or abnormal fears of danger. Perfection for them is a sterile, danger-free environment. OCPD involves a more broad approach; a constant mindset of order and compulsion. The OCPD person is not distressed by his or her condition, whereas the OCD person is disturbed by his or her abnormal thoughts and actions.

Credits: Article written by D. Terwilliger and M. Williams, Ph.D.

PS : dari 8 kriteria OCPD di atas, aku punya 6! oh gosh!!