Editing Codependency (section)

==Theories==
According to theories of codependency as a psychological disorder, the codependent partner in a relationship is often described as displaying self-perception, attitudes and behaviors that serve to increase problems within the relationship instead of decreasing them. It is often suggested that people who are codependent were raised in dysfunctional families or with early exposure to addiction behavior, resulting in their allowance of similar patterns of behavior by their partner.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Aristizábal |first1=Luz Adriana |title=Codependency in the Relations of Couples of Imprisoned Women |journal=Social Sciences |date=27 October 2020 |volume=9 |issue=11 |page=190 |doi=10.3390/socsci9110189|doi-access=free }}</ref>

In an early attempt to define codependency as a diagnosable disorder,<ref name="jmorgan" /> psychiatrist Timmen Cermak proposed, "Co-dependence is a recognizable pattern of personality traits, predictably found within most members of chemically dependent families, which are capable of creating sufficient dysfunction to warrant the diagnosis of [[Mixed personality disorder|Mixed Personality Disorder]] as outlined in DSM III."{{sfn|Cermak|1986a|p=1}} Cermak listed the traits he identified in self-suppressing, supporting partners of people with chemical dependence or disordered personalities, and proposed a DSM-style set of diagnostic criteria. His proposal placed codependence within the framework of Mixed Personality Disorder, which is used to describe individuals who do not qualify for a single [[Personality Disorder]] diagnosis, but who have traits of several Personality Disorders.{{sfn|Cermak|1986a|p=10}}

Efforts to define and measure codependency include the [[Spann–Fischer Codependency Scale]], proposed in 1990. That scale is predicated upon a definition of codependency as "a dysfunctional pattern of relating to others with an extreme focus outside of oneself, lack of expression of feelings, and personal meaning derived from relationships with others."<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Fischer |first1=Judith L. |last2=Spann |first2=Lynda |date=1991-05-06 |title=Measuring Codependency |url=http://dx.doi.org/10.1300/j020v08n01_06 |journal=Alcoholism Treatment Quarterly |volume=8 |issue=1 |pages=87–100 |doi=10.1300/j020v08n01_06 |issn=0734-7324|url-access=subscription }}</ref>

As part of an effort to unify a definition of codependency, a 1994 review found that the definitions included in surveyed articles suggested "an excessive reliance on other people for approval and for a sense of identity and purpose."<ref name="Hands-101994">{{cite journal |last1=Hands |first1=Melanie |last2=Dear |first2=Greg |title=Co-dependency: a critical review |journal=Drug and Alcohol Review |date=October 1994 |volume=13 |issue=4 |pages=437–445 |doi=10.1080/09595239400185571 |pmid=16818359 |url=https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdfdirect/10.1080/09595239400185571 |access-date=14 August 2024}}</ref><ref name="Dear-2004" /> A 2004 study found that definitions typically include high [[self-sacrifice]], a focus on others' needs, suppression of one's own emotions, and attempts to control or fix other people's problems.<ref name="Dear-2004">{{cite journal |last1=Dear |first1=Greg E. |last2=Roberts |first2=Clare M. |last3=Lange |first3=Lois |editor1-last=Shohov |editor1-first=Serge P. |title=Defining Codependency: A Thematic Analysis of Published Definitions |journal=Advances in Psychology Research |date=2004 |volume=34 |pages=189–205 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=nvDkZDAP1HIC&dq=Defining+codependency%3A+An+analysis+of+published+definitions&pg=PA189 |access-date=9 August 2024 |publisher=Nova Publishers |isbn=978-1-59454-079-0 |language=en}}</ref>

===Relationships===
Codependent relationships are often described as being marked by intimacy problems, dependency, control (including caretaking), denial, dysfunctional communication and [[Personal boundaries|boundaries]], and high reactivity. There may be imbalance within the relationship, where one person is abusive or in control or supports or enables another person's addiction, poor mental health, immaturity, irresponsibility, or under-achievement.<ref name="lancer">{{cite book|last1=Lancer|first1=Darlene|title=Conquering Shame and Codependency: 8 Steps to Freeing the True You|date=2014|publisher=Hazelden|location=Minnesota|isbn=978-1-61649-533-6|pages=63–65}}</ref>

Under this conception of codependency, the codependent person's sense of purpose within a relationship is based on making extreme sacrifices to satisfy their partner's needs. Codependent relationships signify a degree of unhealthy "clinginess" and needy behavior, where one person does not have [[self-sufficiency]] or [[autonomy]]. One or both parties depend on their loved one for fulfillment.<ref name=webmd>{{cite web|last1=Wetzler, Ph.D. |first1=Scott|title=Psychology division chief at Albert Einstein College of Medicine|url=http://www.webmd.com/sex-relationships/features/signs-of-a-codependent-relationship|publisher=WebMD|access-date=5 December 2014}}</ref>

===Personality disorders===
Codependency may occur within the context of relationships with people with diagnosable personality disorders.

*[[Borderline personality disorder]] – there is a tendency for loved ones of people with borderline personality disorder (BPD) to slip into "caretaker" roles, giving priority and focus to problems in the life of the person with BPD rather than to issues in their own lives. The codependent partner may gain a sense of worth by being perceived as "the sane one" or "the responsible one."<ref name=Danielle>{{cite web|last1=Danielle|first1=Alicia|title=Codependency and Borderline Personality Disorder: How to Spot It|url=http://www.borderlinepersonalitytreatment.com/codependency-and-borderline-personality-disorder-how-to-spot-it.html|publisher=Clearview Women's Center|access-date=5 December 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141207072107/http://www.borderlinepersonalitytreatment.com/codependency-and-borderline-personality-disorder-how-to-spot-it.html|archive-date=7 December 2014|url-status=dead}}</ref>
*[[Narcissistic personality disorder]] – Narcissists, with their ability to get others to "buy into their vision" and help them make it a reality, seek and attract partners who will put others' needs before their own.<ref>Simon Crompton, ''All About Me: Loving a Narcissist'' (London 2007) pp. 157, 235</ref> A codependent person can provide the narcissist with an obedient and attentive audience.<ref>Crompton, p. 31</ref> Among the reciprocally interlocking interactions of the pair are the narcissist's overpowering need to feel important and special and the codependent person's strong need to help others feel that way.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Nehrig |first=Nicole |last2=Ho |first2=Scarlett Siu Man |last3=Wong |first3=Philip S. |date=January 2019 |title=Understanding the Selfobject Needs Inventory: Its relationship to narcissism, attachment, and childhood maltreatment. |url=http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/pap0000182 |journal=Psychoanalytic Psychology |volume=36 |issue=1 |pages=53–63 |doi=10.1037/pap0000182 |issn=1939-1331|url-access=subscription }}</ref>

===Family dynamics===
In the [[dysfunctional family]], the child learns to become attuned to the parent's needs and feelings instead of the other way around.<ref name="lancer"/> Parenting is a role that requires a certain amount of self-sacrifice and giving a child's needs a high priority. A parent can be codependent toward their own child.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Rusnáková |first1=Markéta |title=Codependency of the Members of a Family of an Alcohol Addict |journal=Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences |date=May 2014 |volume=132 |pages=647–653 |doi=10.1016/j.sbspro.2014.04.367|doi-access=free }}</ref> Generally, a parent who takes care of their own needs (emotional and physical) in a healthy way will be a better caretaker, whereas a codependent parent may be less effective or may even do harm to a child. Codependent relationships often manifest through enabling behaviors, especially between parents and their children. Another way to look at it is that the needs of an infant are necessary but temporary, whereas the needs of the codependent are constant. Children of codependent parents who ignore or negate their own feelings may become codependent.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Fuller |first1=Julie A. |last2=Warner |first2=Rebecca M. |date=2000-02-01 |title=Family Stressors as Predictors of Codependency |url=https://go.gale.com/ps/i.do?p=HRCA&sw=w&issn=87567547&v=2.1&it=r&id=GALE%7CA60099777&sid=googleScholar&linkaccess=abs |journal=Genetic, Social, and General Psychology Monographs |language=English |volume=126 |issue=1 |pages=5–22|pmid=10713899 }}</ref>