OVERVIEW
This page is dedicated to organizing various examples of standardized exam questions whose answer is avoidant personality disorder. While this may seem a odd practice, it is useful to see multiple examples of how avoidant personality disorder will be characterized on standardized exams (namely the boards and the shelf exams). This page is not meant to be used as a tradition question bank (as all of the answers will be the same), however seeing the classic “test” characterization for a disease is quite valuable.
QUESTION EXAMPLES
Question # 1
A young librarian has been exceedingly shy and fearful of people since she was a small child. She wishes to make friends, but even casual social settings cause her a great deal of shame and anxiety. She has never been to a “real party”, and she has requested to work in the least active section of the library, even though this means a lower salary. She cannot look at patrons without blushing, and she is convinced that they see her as a “goof, or an oddball”. What is the likely diagnosis for this patient?
Question # 2
A 23-year-old woman drops out of community college after 3 weeks. When asked why, she explains that even though she would very much like to have friends, she is afraid to approach anyone because “they would think I’m a huge weirdo.” Furthermore, when one of the professors asked her a question in the middle of her chemistry class and she became extremely uncomfortable and has difficulty answering due to embarrassment. She has never had a significant relationship with anyone other than her parents and her younger brother. What is the likely diagnosis for the patient?
Page Updated: 09.20.2016