Course Description

Largely following upon the work of Nancy McWilliams, this course focused on “level” and “type” of personality organization. Level of personality development will be discussed through the lens of Kernberg’s tripartite model (psychotic, borderline, neurotic) and type of personality organization (such as schizoid, narcissistic, histrionic, or depressive personalities) will be explored as an outcome of defensive style. Therapeutic implications for each defensive style will be explored.

Learning Objectives

Differentiate levels of personality organization (psychotic, borderline, neurotic) using Otto Kernberg’s structural model and apply level-based assessment to evaluate reality testing, identity integration, and defensive capacity in clinical presentations.
Identify core personality styles (e.g., schizoid, narcissistic, histrionic, depressive) as articulated by Nancy McWilliams, and formulate personality type as an adaptive outcome of dominant defensive strategies rather than as fixed traits.
Analyze how characteristic defenses (e.g., splitting, idealization, withdrawal, repression, self-attack) shape transference, countertransference, and the therapeutic relationship across different personality organizations.
Apply level- and type-informed psychodynamic formulations to select appropriate therapeutic stance, interpretive depth, and relational pacing, thereby reducing enactment risk and increasing treatment effectiveness with diverse personality structures.

The Aion Institute is approved by the California Psychological Association to provide continuing professional education for psychologists. The Aion Institute (AIO279) maintains responsibility for this program and its content.

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AION 105 Psychodynamic Models of Personality