Depression and Personality Dysfunction

This book analyses the clinical interaction between depression and personality dysfunction to help clinicians better understand and treat patients with complex depression. It proposes an innovative perspective to clinical work that moves away from a disorder-centered approach to a person-centered approach by analysing complex depression through the lens of functional domains related to personality functioning and applying Research Domain Criteria to diagnosis and treatment planning. By doing so, it aims to contribute to the development of precision psychotherapy by applying the principles of precision medicine to mental health care.

The book is divided in two parts. Chapters in the first part review problems in five domains of personality dysfunction that drive complex depressive presentations – identity, affect regulation, self-other regulation, social dysfunction and self-criticism – and the neurobiological findings underlying them. In the second part, authors present integrative models of depression and personality dysfunction and their implications for diagnosis and treatment.

Depression and Personality Dysfunction: An Integrative Functional Domains Perspective is a scientific and clinical guide for the understanding and treatment of patients with depression complicated by personality dysfunction. It will be a useful tool for clinicians looking for resources to develop a more person-centered and evidence-based approach to mental health care.