The subject of this case study is a Jill Jones. Mr. Jones is a Caucasian female. She is 45 years old, and separated with 3 children who are in foster care. The client has presented with the desire to put her life back together. Obtaining custody of her children and better relations with her ex-husband, the father of her children. Her primary complaints are in the way she is being treated by others. She sees her ex who took custody of her children and the court system that is currently supporting this arrangement despite her objections.
The client explains that others claim her relationships; boyfriends are viewed as a danger to her children. She fails to make a connection between the dangers presented by her choice of mate and the perception of others’ regarding the safety of her children if they were to be placed in her care. Her interpretation is that they are persecuting her boyfriend and past relationships for their past actions. She reports that in her mind, that it is of no concern of others if her current or recent boyfriend has a criminal past if she has reason to believe that she and her children are safe because he cares about them and would never hurt them.
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"Hybristophillia".
The presenting problem is that she seems to have a tendency to seek out mates who are dangerous in significant ways. These mates tend to be those who have recently been tried or incarcerated for violent crime. The first boyfriend she had after her separation with her ex-husband was known for robbery and home invasion. When that relationship failed her next interest was on parole related to assault and battery charges. Her most recent romantic interest is currently on trial for double murder. In response to these observations she claims it is not important that a romantic interest be a violent person, but she also claims that she would not change the people she has dated because she would not want to be with someone who was boring.
According to the DSM IV-TR, the diagnostic category that this client fits under is paraphilia. (Mcmanus, Hargreaves & Alison 2013) Paraphilia is a category of disorder where an individual is attracted sexually to objects, dangerous things or otherwise atypical individuals. According to the DSM V, it can be defined as “any powerful and persistent sexual interest other than sexual interest in copulatory or pre-copulatory behaviour with phenotypically normal, consenting adult human partners” (p.367; [12]). In this situation the client can be diagnosed with Hybristophilia, which is classified under Paraphilia NOS, 302.9, by DSM V.
The most likely treatment to address these issues would be a behavioral approach to address the actions and core beliefs behind the actions of the client. An approach such as Cognitive behavioral therapy would allow for the client to begin to look at things such as irrational patterns of thought that lead her to act in a way that is at odds with social norms and her own best interest. It is important to work on gestalt exercises; including empathy in order to understand the point of view other people have about the situation to better understand where concerns are coming from.
There may not be a condition with specific pharmaceutical intervention but there may be other psychological conditions, which would prompt this kind of treatment. For this reason, it is important to evaluate her for other mental health conditions including but not limited to depression and anxiety. If sufficient evidence of further psychological impairment is present, a full psychological evaluation may be warranted. If further diagnosis is present, treatment protocols for those diagnoses should be followed. Follow up assessment for any present should be made after progress is made and sufficiently in advance of a future custody hearing to be presented as evidence and aid in custody.
