Psychology schizoid personality type. Schizoid personality type: definition in psychology, types, signs, treatment. During the prenatal period

The term “schizoid” itself is translated as “split”. This disorder occurs more often in men than in women; Schizoidity can be pronounced or latent. To understand how to interact with such people, you need to take a closer look at their characteristics.

Personality characteristics of a schizoid

The schizoid type of character manifests itself throughout the patient’s life. Symptoms of schizopathy can be recognized with early years. Early examinations, as well as psychotherapy sessions, significantly increase the chances of recovery and normalization of the patient’s condition. At the same time, there always remains the danger that the symptoms of schizotypal disorder will occasionally manifest themselves to one degree or another.

A schizoid can be recognized by his communication with people, or rather, by the absence of it. With such a disorder, it is difficult for the patient to express his thoughts, emotions and feelings to other people, which leads to the person’s attention being focused on his inner world. For a schizoid it is much more important and valuable than the ordinary physical world.

Personality traits and character develop without receiving external experience from the world. Simply put, schizoids try not to interact with the outside world, preferring to experience it through reading and watching films.

At the same time, such people are often given a diagnosis in absentia: “inability to communicate with people.” This is not entirely true; Schizoids may have friends with whom they feel comfortable. As a rule, they have known each other since childhood, since in adult life schizoid individuals prefer not to make acquaintances at all.

Development of schizoid states with age

As you know, a huge part mental problems, pressures, phobias and deviations are laid down in early childhood. During this period, the child’s psyche is labile and pliable, like soft clay, which leaves a trace of any external influence. Over time, such a psyche gradually “hardens”, and any changes in one’s character become less and less possible.

Schizoid personality disorder (or SPD) manifests itself in the following ways with age:

The listed points characterized a person with congenital schizoid disorder; the acquired forms of this mental disorder in the course of life will be discussed a little below.

Schizoid individuals, despite their detachment, are capable of surpassing ordinary people in terms of career, self-realization and achieving financial success, since their characteristic hard work and perseverance allow them to achieve the highest success in certain, highly specialized fields of science and art.

In modern psychology it is known that there are no absolutely “pure” personality types. People called “schizoids” have signs of not only one mental disorder, but also some other mental disorders.

Schizoid disorder does not manifest itself in all cases full force. Many who read psychological sites have noticed that most of the signs and symptoms of disorders can be easily found in themselves. Therefore, you need to understand that a mental disorder is diagnosed only when a person exhibits at least several pronounced signs.

There is no need to list all the characteristics, since they are easily confused with other species mental disorders. Schizoid personality type signs some of them are worth mentioning:

1. Internal reluctance to communicate with people, negative attitude towards spending leisure time with a team or group of people.
2. Ignoring people's opinions regarding any sphere (for example, fashion, politics, art, recreation, etc.). What is meant here is not a deliberate disregard for the opinions of others, but a desire to listen only to oneself, since the schizoid personality is not accustomed to trusting other people. Their behavior is also very different from the generally accepted one.
3. Lack of concern for one's appearance. Such people may look sloppy, unathletic, with a belly, or, conversely, be thin. The gait of schizoids is striking, which in no way worries them.
4. A tendency to talk to oneself, not only in the mind, but also out loud. This is not surprising: many schizoids are incredibly well-read and very intelligent people who do not communicate with other people. However, the need to verbalize your thoughts (sometimes in written form) still remains, which leads to lengthy monologues, a sore throat, etc.
5. Lack of emotions or weak emotional response. More precisely, this is how it is seen only from the outside, and schizoids themselves claim that they live a rich emotional life. They just hide them very deeply from others, and they have their own reasons for this.

Psychiatrists still cannot understand what exactly provokes the appearance of this mental disorder. What is especially interesting is that there are actually very few schizoids with a congenital disorder - the occurrence of schizopathy depends on many hereditary factors.

The main part acquires this disorder in the course of their life, as a kind of response to influences outside world. This is why it is important to consider the possible causes of schizoid disorder in people.

What leads to the emergence of schizotypal traits

Avoidance of communication and interaction with people around (including close relatives) can be triggered by the fact that the child had extensive negative experience communicating with people in childhood. As a result, he subconsciously tries to distance himself from painful experiences, because he is accustomed to believing that any communication is a source of unpleasant emotions.

The schizoid discovers that when he is alone, he is not in danger. Naturally, dependence on this state appears, and the fear of losing it. Since the interests of schizoids are narrowly limited (to their profession or a single hobby), they have nothing to talk about even with their parents, brothers or sisters.

Difficulty of treatment schizoid personalities lies not in the specifics of therapy, and not in the selection of medications (although this is also important), but in the fact that the person himself does not consider it necessary to treat himself. He lives outside of society, and he likes this lifestyle. And if the patient himself does not want his recovery, then what will the doctor do?

How to communicate with schizoid personalities

Nevertheless, if you wish, you can find such an approach to a schizoid in order to still make him more contactable and talkative. To do this, you can use the tips below.

• Do not use in communication imperative mood! “Talk to me,” “don’t isolate yourself,” and similar phrases should be eliminated. This should be a dialogue, and without the slightest sign of pressure. The topic of conversation can be freely chosen; The main thing is that a person does not feel like at school when they try to explain something to him.
• Any interaction with a schizoid should be positive - after all, the main goal of such manipulations is for him to gradually learn to express his emotions in conversation. We need to make it clear to the person that he is accepted for who he is. At first, it is better not to use touches until an atmosphere of trust arises.
• It is necessary to ask a person less often about what he is doing, and more often to be interested in him internal state what he feels, etc. It is this state that the schizotypal person hides from others, so you need to ask him as gently as possible to talk about his experiences.

How is schizoidism treated?

It is worth noting that full treatment is prescribed, as a rule, to those people who have serious mental disorders, expressed in the appearance of anxiety, paranoia, degradation mental abilities, as well as severe depressive syndrome.

Psychiatrists, depending on the severity of schizoid psychopathy, offer several treatment options:

• Medication(with the help of tablets) removes the main symptoms of the disease, and also relieves excess mental stress.
• Thanks to group therapy The schizoid learns to express his thoughts verbally, and also gets used to other people like himself.
• Most often, the patient is prescribed to attend sessions psychotherapy. On them the patient masters the skills necessary for independent work over oneself, as well as those necessary for entering society.
• If the disease has not yet had time to manifest itself detrimentally, then the patient is prescribed consultation with a psychologist, which determines the patient's further treatment plan.

Known schizoids

The geniuses who move civilization forward, as is known, are sometimes separated from madness by a very thin, barely noticeable boundary, so it is not surprising that among them there were people with a variety of deviations. Famous schizoids were people such as Arthur Schopenhauer, Johann Sebastian Bach, Ludwig van Beethoven, Salvador Dali, Dmitri Mendeleev, Isaac Newton, and many others.

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People with a schizoid character type are always significantly different from those around them, and have special characteristics that manifest themselves in many directions. The manifestation of the schizoid personality type is facilitated by injuries received even before the birth of the child. No matter what kind of injury it is, it in any case means that the child is in danger.

The most common trauma is when the mother does not want to give birth to this child and is going to have an abortion. Other relatives who insist on terminating the pregnancy (father, grandparents, friends, etc.) and do not want the child to be born may also participate in this. From such rejection comes the anger and energy of rejection of the child, and the child, even in the womb, already understands perfectly well what is happening. And in order to protect himself and save his life, it seems to split into small pieces, subsequently lines of blockages appear between all organs, which interrupt the unified connection of all organs.

In this state, the child shows minimal signs of life, which allows those around him to calm down, and they no longer perceive this child as a threat to their well-being. In principle, this is what the child sought. By breaking himself into fragments, he saves his life. But as an adult, this person begins to experience the most innate feelings for the person who did not want his life. This person will experience the same negative feelings towards his mother. Even if the mother did not intend to take the child’s life, but was exposed to severe stress, then this also contributes to the development of a schizoid personality type.

The next traumas for the development of this type of personality are childbirth, and the moment of separation of the child from the mother. When a child is taken away from his mother immediately after birth, he is left alone with this stranger and huge world and at this moment he feels abandoned.

I would like to note that the parent does not need to feel guilty about what happened. If you read my article about human personality types, you probably remember that the child also accepted Active participation in the formation of his personality and the experiences that he had to endure.

When a child of the schizoid type grows up, it cannot be said that he experiences any fear. However, in reality this is not the case. This person is constantly haunted by fears and some of them are unaccountable. The biggest fear of a schizoid is that he has no right to exist and horror if he feels that he is in danger of destruction. This person is deprived of a sense of security and it seems to him that he is a stranger everywhere. And all these emotions taken together cause a strong feeling of anger in him.

Each personality type has its own means of defense. A schizoid has three of them. The first type of defense is care. You may have often seen this when, when talking with a person, you felt that he was not here, even though he pretended to be listening, but this was not the case; at that moment he seemed far away from you. If you yourself belong to this type of personality, then you have probably noticed that when you become bored and uninterested, you experience slight tension, then a fog appears in your head and you find yourself in an unknown place, and at this moment you do not hear the voice of your interlocutor and his image as would blur.

The second type of defense of a schizoid is “Beyond oneself.” Other people think this person is strange. He is not from this world. And the third defense is “Needles.” If you believe the words of clairvoyants, then this person’s aura looks like the bristles of a hedgehog. It is difficult to talk with this person, since these needles really prick at the energetic level, causing discomfort and it becomes clear to the other person that they do not want to communicate with him.

It is important to understand here that there are no bad or good defenses, they just are. And if you are a schizoid type, then as long as you think that the world is dangerous, you will defend yourself. The only thing you can do is realize that you have them, it is important to see them. And when you begin to understand that the world is not so bad, your defensive reactions will disappear by themselves.

A schizoid person has a narrow, elongated body, although there are also overweight schizoids. Looking at this man, it seems that he is not foldable and clumsy, it seems that every part of him lives on its own. But that’s the way it is, he once split himself in order to survive. This person has weak joints, red and tense, because there are blocks in his joints that look like holes in the aura. Schizoid does not accept physical reality and any actions are unacceptable to him, so when something is worth doing, he opens these holes and releases energy. He becomes powerless and unwilling to do anything; he looks for any excuse, on a subconscious level, not to do what he doesn’t like.

The left and right sides of a schizoid are unbalanced, as there is no balance. His head tilts slightly to the side. And all because at the base of the skull there is the most important energy block, from which energy flows very strongly. That is why a schizoid often experiences headaches.

The schizoid personality type cannot establish eye contact because it avoids looking into the eyes of another. A schizoid usually has a long, thin and tight neck, small shoulders that lack strength. It even happens that one shoulder is larger, the other is smaller, and all because there is more energy in one half than in the other. The schizoid has too much Long hands and legs that he cannot control. In addition, these people often have cold hands and feet.

The schizoid personality type has a tightly compressed chest. This can lead to various girdling pains. And women of this type cannot have large breasts. Tension also arises around the abdomen, and therefore, no matter how hard a schizoid tries to strengthen the abdominal muscles, it will be difficult for him to achieve any result. No matter what this person does, his stomach will still be flabby, loose and weak. And if you want to get your tummy in order, then cleanse the third chakra and your schizoid character.

A schizoid may have a curved spine and that’s it, because he is often absent in his own body. To smooth out many of the negative aspects of a schizoid personality, this person needs to frequently practice meditation - this is the only remedy that can help you.

In the presence of a schizoid personality type, a person is drawn to talk about high spiritual topics, even if the schizoid person remains silent. He likes to talk about space, love and spirituality, but if you ask something specific, he cannot answer you. If you agree with a schizoid about business meeting, then don't be surprised if he doesn't come. It’s just that during a conversation he may move away and not hear you.

If danger arises in his life, then he seems to disappear, he simply does not exist. That is, physically he is here, but he himself is not here. It is also difficult to catch him if he thinks that he simply does not need to be in a certain place. You can look for him as much as you like, but on a subconscious level he will do everything possible to avoid this meeting. You can call him, or come to visit, and at this time he can go about his business. But it's not his fault. This is how his protective powers operate, which protect him from danger, and also so that he does not relive his fears again and again.

Schizoid personality disorder or schizoid psychopathy - behavioral characteristics a person, which manifest themselves in avoidance of relationships that can be rich in emotions and experiences. And both negative and positive. Warm feelings or experiences are replaced by fantasies, overly “thought out”, rethought and theorized. This kind of substitution and avoidance occurs due to the fact that real relationships and emotional connections with other people bring fatigue and discomfort.

Speaking about the schizoid personality type, it is worth saying that the most noticeable signs may be precisely this disinterest in any contacts with others and obvious neglect social norms. Such people may not respond to greetings, dress “strangely” even for the current very tolerant times, do not respect the chain of command, which is why they have constant problems in socialization, both at the stage of training and in the process of trying to get a job. They often have an attitude towards society as a “herd”, which adjusts them to its laws, and therefore a disdainful attitude towards the majority of people, above whom they feel themselves.

It is believed that there are generally eight character types: narcissistic, paranoid, obsessive-compulsive, psychopathic, hysterical, depressive-manic, masochistic and schizoid.

The schizoid type of character is caused by a certain discrepancy between the feeling of oneself and the world around us, a feeling of detachment.

Many famous geniuses were schizoid: Albert Einstein, Van Gogh, Kant, Hegel, Archimedes, Newton, Bach... Among living people, these include the intellectual Anatoly Wasserman and the mathematician Grigory Perelman, who refused the European Mathematical Society Prize in 1996, in 2006 – Fields Medal and in 2010 – the Clay Mathematical Institute Millennium Prize.

In addition, the schizoid type of character is attributed even to fictional characters: Don Quixote and the Hedgehog in the Fog.

People with a schizoid character type tend to:

How and why this type is formed

On this score there is a large number of theories. From a physiological point of view, the nerve endings of schizoids are more sensitive. Even at a very young age, such children may show irritation or depression from the strong lighting of the room or the constant hubbub. It’s no secret that many kids, on the contrary, love the constant presence of adults, it calms them down and gives them a feeling of security. In schizoids, on the contrary, “extra people and movements” tire.

Other theories explain development in connection with the specifics of upbringing: a tough, nervous, explosive, critical father and a “loving” mother who violates personal boundaries. In addition, significant factors for the formation of this type are:

Such a child spends his childhood alone and often in a harassed state. He is better off alone, alone with books, fantasies and conclusions. But, despite their well-read and calm nature, teachers also do not like such a child: he does not participate in amateur activities, cannot explain or write anything beautifully, and “too much” knowledge in narrow areas can generally cause a feeling of competition and a desire to “punish an upstart who undermines authority.” teacher."

Diagnosis

The diagnosis of schizoid psychopathy can be made by a specialist if four or more symptoms are present:

However, a schizoid personality is not always the same in behavior if you observe it. Manifestations can be similar to the type of autism with everyone additional signs(including an extreme degree of problems with socialization), and the type of sthenic schizoidity with high success in narrowly focused areas of activity that require extreme forms of pragmatism, coldness and unemotionality in decision making.

One example describes an advisor on personnel policy large enterprise, which “became famous” for its absolutely “impersonal” approach to assessing the significance of this or that employee for the overall successful operation of the enterprise, regardless of the employee’s length of service, his preliminary contribution, current family circumstances, health status and other additional nuances that are always “looked back” emotionally responsive people. As a result, he fired workers who had devoted their entire lives to this production and this moment experienced any difficulties in life. And the case became famous because of several suicides that were committed by fired people and which did not cause any emotional reaction in the described adviser.

However, schizoid personality disorder is never diagnosed in the presence of schizophrenia, Asperger's syndrome and delusional disorders.

According to Theodore Millon, there are four subtypes of this disorder:

• exhausted, lethargic type, which is characterized by chronic exhaustion, fatigue, lethargy, slowness, apathy;
• an anxious, distant type, which is characterized by isolation and separation from the realities of life, isolation, wandering, the inability to stay in one job for a long time and to find a job at all;
• depersonalized type, the main specificity of which is a feeling of separation of one’s body and consciousness, absorption in fantasy;
• the unemotional type, gloomy and the most emotionally unperturbed.

According to the classification, schizoid disorder belongs to the cluster of unusual and eccentric disorders. The manifestations that were described earlier should be observed from the period of early maturity, that is, from eighteen years of age and older.

It should also be emphasized that some signs must be correlated with age criteria, physiological characteristics and moments of education. For example, the need for sexual contact may fade with age or be suppressed by a certain upbringing, and the lack of friends may be due to negative life experiences or a physical feature that becomes a psychological barrier. However, in these cases the person does not lose emotional assessment this fact: he complains, worries, gets angry, ironizes, makes excuses. In a word, he shows emotions.

In psychoanalysis, such problems are interpreted from the point of view of the presence of a borderline level of development of personal organization in the schizoid personality type. The schizoid type has a tendency to “defensive fantasizing.” Another of his defense mechanisms is intellectualization, which allows him to reduce the emotional significance of events without avoiding the events themselves.

Moreover, his necessary support is sublimation, which is based on his fantasies. With its help, internal tension is relieved, and energy is redistributed in another direction, which is more acceptable for such a person: drawing, sculpture, solving incredible problems.

The main meaning of this approach is that the primary conflict that forms schizoidism is the problem of rapprochement and distance. Such a person constantly maintains a distance from other people, which makes him want to get closer. However, he regards rapprochement as a violation of personal boundaries and absorption, which forces the schizoid to jealously maintain this very distance in order to preserve personal space in his concept. This explains the eccentricity and dissimilarity of many such individuals: following generally accepted norms is also regarded as “absorption.” Therefore, the schizoid clearly neglects the laws of society and social norms.

However, this type of personality does not always act independently. Most often, we are faced with a schizoid-hysteroid personality type, in which schizoid personality disorder adds symptoms of hysteroid: suggestibility, inadequate demonstration of one’s sexual and external attractiveness, posing and “showing off” are added.

Moreover, it should be noted that since he demonstrates this very “attractiveness,” such a person often fits into public opinion: “You can’t look without tears.” Too bright color combinations, overtly emphasizing their shapes. In a word, red skirt, green tights, incomprehensible, old-fashioned, but candid top and at the same time, unwashed hair is a completely normal picture of such a girl. Remarks about the absurdity of her appearance cause surprise and can be considered envy.

Many relatives whose loved ones suffer from schizoid personality disorder wonder: is it dangerous? As can be seen from the above, such people are characterized by isolation and focus on their own inner world. They do not show aggression; on the contrary, they try in every possible way to reduce the number of contacts. So they are absolutely safe for others.

In addition, their emotional detachment from the suffering of others is absolutely not equivalent to a lack of understanding of what is happening, because the intellect does not suffer. As a result, a schizoid psychopath, in the event of committing offenses, is fully liable, because they are not mentally ill. But for the person himself, such a disorder can turn into trouble, both in the form of employment problems, and in the form of ridicule and bullying, which begin from school and are caused by some detachment, extravagance and the inability to join the company.

But in the case of a confirmed diagnosis in persons with schizoid personality disorder, the army is most likely excluded.

Treatment

In the case of classic schizoid personality disorder, treatment is extremely difficult, not because these cases are not treatable, but because the patients themselves do not consider their condition a problem. They cannot understand why they are forced to “fit into the herd.” Therefore, they come to the appointment either under pressure from relatives, or with other complaints, for example, with the problem of addiction. The problem of socialization is perfectly solved with the help of role-playing games. Schizoids literally have to figure out how people feel and what they are offended by.

A frequent problem is the selection of the necessary psychologist who is able to make contact extremely intelligently, without violating the boundaries of the schizoid and, at the same time, without getting carried away by his philosophizing and reasoning that is not the essence of the problem.

Concerning drug treatment, then in Lately the appropriateness of its use is questioned.

But who really needs a psychologist is the relatives of such a person, because it is their isolation and alienation of the child that causes panic, they worry about his future and suffer from his coldness. All this accumulates in a large lump of unspokenness, which can subsequently result in personal health problems: gastrointestinal diseases, heart diseases, diabetes, etc. Work with relatives is aimed at relieving anxiety, tension, and “recharging with love and warmth” in the form of supportive sessions. And the most important thing is the opening of the opportunity to accept such a child as he is.

The schizoid personality type, as a rule, is expressed by introversion, which manifests itself in an enhanced mode. The individual creates an imaginary “dome of comfort”, being in which gives calm and measured perception of the realities of life. Interpersonal relationships are usually poor or non-existent. There is a contrast of perception in relation to other people and animals, that is, close attachment to representatives of the animal world and alienation in human relationships. Any area of ​​life is associated with loneliness and reluctance to change, compete, or ambitiously achieve anything. Even the sexual aspect of life is expressed either in the complete absence of real sexual contact, or in the presence of a short-term relationship, but exclusively in mature age. This personality type is not susceptible fashion trends. In work, their choice falls on backbreaking, difficult-to-perform activities, from which a common person I would refuse.

Examples of “schizoids” among prominent figures

If we consider statistical data on individuals with a schizoid personality type, who are found among the entire population in 7.5% of cases, we can conclude that there is a significant proportion of mentally unstable people. There is no particular gender difference when identifying the frequency of manifestation of schizoid personalities, but, according to some data, the ratio tends to be 2:1, where the preponderance will be on the side of men.

It is amazingly common among famous figures to find those who have a schizoid personality type. Examples? A lot of them. These are outstanding scientists - Albert Einstein, Dmitry Ivanovich Mendeleev, Isaac Newton, and famous philosophers - Immanuel Kant, Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel, Arthur Schopenhauer, and brilliant composers - Johann Sebastian Bach, Ludwig van Beethoven, and the famous artist Salvador Dali, and many other.

Schizoid character type is not always a prerequisite for illness

Every person has traits that define a schizoid character type. Thanks to them, an individual can prove himself to be an innovator, a thinker or a person with creative potential. The schizoid character type as a predominant trait of a person can result in the fact that he will devote more to theory than to emotional aspects real life. Average people do not always understand the hobbies of schizoid individuals; sometimes these hobbies even seem bizarre to them.

The main nuance of this behavior is the ineffectiveness of theoretical ideas. Emotional satisfaction is achieved in the process of solving a problem, and not in its practical implementation. On the contrary, there is a conscious move away from transferring the idea to the commercial sphere. Interesting feature carries a schizoid personality type. She expresses her unwavering attitude towards her popularity among the masses or the influence of money.

What is a schizoid like in childhood?

Every parent worries about their child from the moment he is born and, as they say, until gray hair. The schizoid personality type is susceptible to certain disorders. Treatment is more effective if deviations appear in early age, starting from 3-4 years. The child unconsciously withdraws from parental affection and prefers to engage in solitary activities alone. There is an interest in everything philosophical - these can be eternal questions about life and death, and about the origin of all things, etc.

How does a schizoid position himself in adolescence?

At a later age, in people with a schizoid personality type, one can observe a tendency to complex mathematical calculations, but at the same time a complete inability to solve basic problems in everyday life. The schizoid personality type, which manifests itself at an early age, usually leads to a progressive form of autism.

As for the medicinal method of treating the disorder, one can note an ineffective result. According to statistics, schizoid individuals do not seek treatment for this disease, but undergo treatment for other diseases, in particular alcoholism. If, nevertheless, a schizoid personality type has been diagnosed, a specialist in the field of psychiatry will advise what to do in this case.

Psychotherapy as the main treatment for schizoids

An effective method of treating a patient with a schizoid personality type is psychotherapy, during which the doctor offers a list of standard emotions that the patient should become familiar with and try to experience. May also be offered role-playing games within social life, the essence of which is to instill generally accepted social behavior that is acceptable in certain situations.

Preconditions causing disorder in schizoids

Severe personality disorder of the schizoid type manifests itself in the first years of an individual's life. Period of development of the disorder of this type very long lasting.

Genetic predisposition to schizoid disorder No. Even, for example, at work a patient can achieve significant success, but only in an isolated area. At the same time, those around him may not even know about his illness.

Symptoms of schizoid disorder include:

1. Emotional indifference or weakly expressed emotion in relation to events happening around.
2. A constant state of isolation, thoughtfulness, seriousness and aloofness.
3. Almost complete absence of need for interpersonal relationships.
4. No need to defend your opinion.
5. Recognition of the truth of information only if it comes from verified sources, for example, stated in the words of distinguished scientists.
6. Non-standard thought processes, especially in the analytical field.
7. Helplessness in everyday life.

The most important factor on the path to relative stability of schizoid personalities throughout life is the correct choice of profession and periodic diagnosis by a psychotherapist.

The result of crossing two radical types

Along with the four dominant personality types, there are also smoothly flowing ones, namely:

I. Schizoid-hysteroid personality type.

II. Hysterical-schizoid personality type.

Despite the fact that these psychotypes come from the main categories, they are fundamentally different from them. These are independently existing personality types.

The reason for the appearance of such a combination may be crossbreeding different types the personalities of one and the second parent in their child, but only under the condition of clearly defined initial types that have equal strength and do not drown out each other. Most often, in this combination, the schizoid type occupies the primary position, and not the hysterical one, because it is more stable.

Summarizing the above information, we can talk about identifying the main and secondary types, but without completely suppressing the second. In particular, the individual’s need for introversion, which is understood both as isolation, from the point of view of a schizoid, and as the presence of deep contact from the point of view of necessity for society, is already a trait of a hysterical personality type.

If you are schizoid, the test will definitely show it

R. Cattell’s personality questionnaire, which is capable of both a quick diagnosis of a personality type and an in-depth study of it, has received widespread demand among psychologists. It will allow you to recognize, if present,
schizoid personality type. The test characterizes personality with 16 factors that make it possible to predict behavioral actions in projection onto real world. This technique can be carried out both individually and in groups, capturing various areas applications: personnel, professionally oriented, consulting, etc.

What is the final result of diagnostics using R. Cattell’s method?

The technique is presented 105 professional issues. The questionnaire allows you to accurately diagnose the individual traits of a particular person, called “constitutional factors,” according to the method of R. Cattell. Required condition When diagnosing a patient, time is limited. The technique allows us to identify the emotional, intellectual, and communicative properties, including the ability to self-regulate, of the diagnosed individual.

Thus, the psychologist receives the final result in the form of a psychographic profile of the individual.

This professional program is used in the work of various specialists: psychologists, teachers, doctors, personnel specialists, psychotherapists.

Practical significance of diagnostic results using the MMPI2 questionnaire

The second modern psychodiagnostic method, which is no less important and popular than R. Cattell’s questionnaire, is the MMPI2 questionnaire.

Its use greatly simplifies the procedure for selecting applicants based on the required personal characteristics. Further use methods will help track and identify employees involved in professional activity, which does not correspond to their psychographic personality profile, which will subsequently lead to increased productivity and minimization of risks. Programs allow you to install personal characteristics, level of intellectual and vocational training, main motivational impulses for activity, competencies, development potential, etc.

Areas of application can be various types psychological consultation, career guidance, professional selection, harmonization of relationships in teams and much more.

There are few such people, 1–2%. They do not like to be approached too closely and often scare people away with their particular behavior. Many people consider them “not like that.” But they are used to it.

After my book was published, readers often come up to me to thank me for information that has helped them or their work. But people with schizoid personality types send me emails saying, “thank you.” They thank me for the fact that my description contains no hint of their exaggerated oddities.

People with schizoid personality types use detachment as a defense mechanism. They leave - from people, into loneliness, into the world of their own fantasies. They always choose a distance, and they do not need other distorting defenses: denial, dissociation (separation of themselves from their unpleasant experiences), repression. Perhaps this is why they are often aware of processes that for others occur unconsciously.

Americans have a proverb: “The elephant is in the room, but no one notices it.” People with a schizoid personality type always see this elephant and are surprised that it is invisible to others. But when they try to talk about this elephant, they are looked at as crazy.

To avoid difficulties in communication, they prefer activities that they can indulge in alone. To not be in a group, a team. Many of them are busy with creativity, interested in philosophy, spiritual practices, meditation...

However, we are unlikely to meet a person with a schizoid personality type who does not have at least some degree of desire for attachment.

But there is a problem: while striving for intimacy, they experience an overload from excessive intimacy, it suppresses and oppresses them. As a rule, they feel better in the company of children and animals.

The child grows up to be extremely sensitive. He reacts to stimuli as if they hurt him

I was recently asked whether people with schizoid personality types and autistic people are similar. I think they have something in common. For example, both of them do not like excessive attention. But there is one significant difference - autistic people do not understand the feelings of other people. They don’t know that a child needs to be hugged... But they can be taught this. And a person with a schizoid personality type knows from the very beginning that the child must be picked up. But he cannot do this; he avoids contact in every possible way, since it is unbearable for him.

Their childhood

The child grows up to be extremely sensitive. He reacts to stimuli as if they were causing him pain. Moreover, to a variety of stimuli: sound, light, any changes, tactile sensations (like tags on clothes scratching the skin). When we take such a child in our arms, he does not cuddle, but moves away, his body becomes rigid.

Children with a schizoid personality type often refuse to breastfeed. They feel completely unprotected, and any contact is perceived by them as an invasion, a violation of their integrity. Even if this invasion is the mother's nipple in the mouth. It can be assumed that their skin is too thin.

I once shared this observation with my patient: I said that it was as if I was sitting next to a person who had a burn. He needs help, he needs to be touched, but this cannot be done, because any touch is intolerable. This metaphor seemed true and appropriate to her.

I repeat: as a defense, a person with a schizoid personality type prefers care. But he also feels separation from someone very acutely. Why? The fact is that he is already willing to let only a few people close to him, and the loss of one of these people would mean the disappearance of a very significant part of the support system. Such people become attached to others, but in their company it is difficult not to feel lonely.

Schizoid and others

Schizoids cannot tolerate superficial communication. My husband was a person with a schizoid personality type. In those in rare cases When I managed to persuade him to go on a visit with me, he immediately found a child or a dog and spent the whole evening with them. Talking about nothing was killing him. He needed sincerity and honesty. That is why, from the point of view of a schizoid person, a hysterical person is simply... a liar.

The fact is that for a hysteric the main defense is exaggeration. Imagine with what intonation a woman can pronounce the phrase: “I’m sooooo angry with my husband!” For her, this method of communication is a defense, she wants what she says to be taken seriously, and it seems to her that if she says it more quietly, they will not believe her.

Schizoid men love hysterical women for their sensitivity, warmth, and emotionality.

The combination of people with schizoid and hysterical personality types is difficult. At the same time, there is a long love story between them. Hysterical women find schizoid men extremely attractive. They value honesty, integrity, self-sufficiency in them... And schizoid men love hysterical women for their sensitivity, warmth, and emotionality.

But together they can drive each other crazy. Because when she feels bad, she tries to move closer to him, and he moves away. When he sees that she is not well, he thinks that the best thing he can do for her is to leave her alone. And she feels abandoned.

Features of schizoids

There are many contradictions in people with a schizoid personality type. They appear distant and uninterested, but they themselves live with a deep desire for intimacy. They are self-sufficient, but need another person. Extremely absent-minded and extremely attentive.

They seem inactive and unemotional, but inside they have something going on. active work, emotions are seething. They look asexual and ascetic, but they have a lot of impulsiveness and powerful sexual fantasies.

If a schizoid is sure that you will not consider him crazy, he will gradually tell you a lot of interesting things about the world of his fantasies

I once asked a psychoanalyst with a schizoid personality type why not so much attention is paid to schizoid dynamics in psychology. He replied: “Do you think WE can start some kind of social movement?” Sometimes I feel like I'm in some way an ambassador for a silent community of singles... that doesn't do very well with PR! But I do it sincerely.

The inner life of a person with a schizoid personality type is very attractive. If he is sure that you will not consider him crazy, gradually, trusting you more and more, he will tell you a lot of interesting things about the world of his fantasies.

A schizoid friend of mine once admitted that she doesn’t eat raisins. I assumed she didn't like the taste. “No,” she replied, “you don’t understand, he could be a fly!” I told my other friend about this, whose husband is schizoid. She immediately said that her husband doesn’t eat raisins either. True, he argues differently: he does not trust the raisins that are hidden in the buns. Charming! The whole world seems animated to them. In this sense, they are like children.

How to behave with them?

• Such people avoid contact and are easily frightened. They need as much space as possible to feel safe. The therapist should avoid invading the patient's territory, I would not recommend moving forward too quickly, asking awkward questions - so that they do not feel like an "interesting clinical case." They cannot stand insincerity and lies; it is important to be absolutely truthful, real, and honest.
• Among the difficulties: often therapeutic relationships become more comfortable for them than relationships with real ones, ordinary people in everyday life. You may find that although the person came to you with the desire to become more sociable, during the course of treatment he did not achieve this. Towards the end of therapy, he needs to be pushed a little by asking whether he managed to solve the issue with which he came.
• It is important that a person with a schizoid personality type knows that you consider him normal.
• It is difficult for such people to talk about feelings. Even if they want it. The very act of speaking is painful for them. Try to find an indirect way to talk about what is important: discuss films, plays, music... My colleague has been talking to a patient for many weeks about... pizza. In details: where in the city they make the best one, why it is so good, and so on. At the same time, they both understood that they were not talking about pizza, but about internal hunger, about how to satisfy it. And what does a person feel when he needs one thing, but is offered something completely different?

about the author

Nancy McWilliams- psychoanalyst. Author of the book “Psychoanalytic Diagnostics,” which describes different personality types (narcissistic, hysterical, depressive, schizoid and others), shows their characteristics, similarities and differences, prevailing emotions and affects, drives and defenses; tells how a person perceives himself and how others see him.