Dissociative Identity Disorder/Multiple Personality Disorder | Research & Encyclopedia Articles

Dissociative Identity Disorder/Multiple Personality Disorder

A disorder in which a person's identity dissociates, or fragments, creating additional, distinct identities that exist independently of each other within the same person.

Persons with dissociative identity disorder (DID) adopt one or more distinct identities. Each identity or personality is distinct from the other(s) in specific ways. There are cases in which a person will have as many as 100 or more identities, while some people only exhibit the presence of one or two. ("Co-presence" is the term used to describe the situation that exists when two or more personalities are simultaneously present with or without knowledge of each other's existence or current presence.)

Prior to the publication of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorder-IV (DSM-IV), dissociative identity disorder was referred to as multiple personality disorder (MPD); the birth personality was referred to as the original personality, and the condition was referred to as "split personality." With the publication of DSM-IV, these terms are now considered imprecise and are no longer used. The DSM-IV lists four criteria for diagnosing someone with dissociative identity disorder:

• The presence of two or more distinct "identities or personality states;"
• At least two personalities must take control of the person's identity on a regular basis;
• Exhibits aspects of amnesia, that is, the person forgets routine personal information;
• The condition must not have been caused by "direct physiological effects," such as drug abuse or head trauma.

Dissociative Identity Disorder/Multiple Personality Disorder article

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