Asociality

Asociality is not necessarily perceived as a totally negative trait by society, since asociality has been used as a way to express dissent from prevailing ideas. It is seen as a desirable trait in several mystical and monastic traditions, notably in Jainism, Catholicism, Eastern Orthodoxy, Buddhism and Sufism. Introversion is 'the state of or tendency toward being wholly or predominantly concerned with and interested in one's own mental life.' Some popular writers have characterized introverts as people whose energy tends to expand through reflection and dwindle during interaction. In schizophrenia, asociality is one of the main 5 'negative symptoms', the others being avolition, anhedonia, reduced affect and alogia. Due to a lack of desire to form relationships, social withdrawal is common in people with schizophrenia. People with schizophrenia may experience social deficits or dysfunction as a result of the disorder, leading to asocial behavior. Frequent or ongoing delusions and hallucinations can deteriorate relationships and other social ties, isolating individuals with schizophrenia from reality and in some cases leading to homelessness. Even when treated with medication for the disorder, they may be unable to engage in social behaviors such as maintaining conversations, accurately perceiving emotions in others, or functioning in crowded settings. There has been extensive research on the effective use of social skills training for the treatment of schizophrenia, in outpatient clinics as well as inpatient units. Social skills training (SST) can be used to help patients with schizophrenia make better eye contact with other people, increase assertiveness, and improve their general conversational skills. Asociality in people with avoidant personality disorder (AvPD) is common. They experience discomfort and feel inhibited in social situations, overwhelmed by feelings of inadequacy. Such people remain consistently fearful of social rejection, choosing to avoid social engagements as they do not want to give people the opportunity to reject (or possibly, accept) them. People with AvPD actively avoid occasions that require social interaction, leading to extremely asocial tendencies. These individuals usually have few or no close friends. People with AvPD may also display social phobia, the difference being that social phobia is the fear of social circumstances whereas AvPD is better described as an aversion to intimacy in relationships. Schizoid personality disorder (SPD) is characterized by a lack of interest in social relationships, a tendency towards a solitary lifestyle, secretiveness, emotional coldness, and apathy. Affected individuals may simultaneously demonstrate a rich, elaborate and exclusively internal fantasy world. SPD is not the same as schizophrenia, although they share such similar characteristics as detachment and blunted affect. There is, moreover, increased prevalence of the disorder in families with schizophrenia. Schizotypal personality disorder is characterized by a need for social isolation, anxiety in social situations, odd behavior and thinking, and often unconventional beliefs. People with this disorder feel extreme discomfort with maintaining close relationships with people, and therefore they often do not. People who have this disorder may display peculiar manners of talking and dressing and often have difficulty in forming relationships. In some cases, they may react oddly in conversations, not respond, or talk to themselves.