Psychotherapy of Personality Disorders: Metacognition, States of Mind and Interpersonal Cycles

The book begins by developing a general model of how personality disorders originate, persist, and become reinforced through self-organizing psychological and interpersonal processes. It examines debates concerning categorical, dimensional, and prototype-based classification and identifies four major domains for clinical assessment: systems of meaning and states of mind, metacognitive functioning, interpersonal patterns, and decision-making processes. The second chapter sets out general treatment principles. Subsequent chapters apply the framework to borderline, narcissistic, dependent, avoidant, and paranoid personality disorders, describing the characteristic mental states, metacognitive deficits, relational cycles, and therapeutic priorities associated with each condition. The conclusion consolidates the common principles underlying assessment and treatment across the different disorders.