The 1997 movie titled, “Good Will Hunting” presents a story about a twenty-year-old young man named Will Hunting. Hunting is an orphan who was raised up in numerous abusive foster homes, but he is one of the smartest people in the world. Instead of Will spending his life in a prolific career, probably related to Mathematics, he seemingly wastes his life and creative genius fighting, drinking, and working as a janitor at MIT. Hunting tries to hide his intelligence but he is caught by Lambeau, a professor at MIT solving complex math problems. After Will assaults a police officer, he is offered two choices by Lambeau; to either go to jail or attend therapy sessions. Will chooses the latter, and attends therapy sessions conducted by a professor of psychology named Sean Maguire. Will suffers from a mental condition that contributes to his making of reckless and irrational decisions. Despite being a math genius, he is careless, aggressive and inconsiderate of other people’s feelings. Antisocial personality disorder is a mental condition where an individual is oblivious to right and wrong, and does not care about the feelings and rights of others. Will Hunting’s character in the movie depicts these traits.
Individuals that have antisocial personality disorder exhibit certain characteristics, signs, and symptoms. According to Mayo Clinic (n.d), individuals with antisocial personality disorder often antagonize, exploit and treat others with a lot of indifference. Such people do not exhibit any feelings of remorse or guilt for their behavior. On the same note, individuals with this disorder tend to violate the law more often, and are therefore likely to become criminals. Additionally, they may lie, experience problems with alcohol and drug use, and behave impulsively or violently. In the movie, Will engages in brawls and fights, and one of the fights nearly lands him in jail were it not for professor Lambeau to intervene. Secondly, Will lies about having twelve older brothers and he sends another character in the movie, Chucky, to pretend to be him during a job interview. Will also has a problem with drug and alcohol abuse because he spends most of his days in pubs drinking and having fun. Will also demonstrated failure to sustain consistent work behavior because he quit two jobs but did not care about informing his employers. Therefore, diagnosis of this condition begins with being aware of some or most of the traits mentioned above.
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According to Fisher and Hany (2019), the approximate lifetime prevalence of antisocial personality disorder among the general population ranges between 1 and 4%. Individuals need to exhibit signs and symptoms before the age of 15 for them to be perceived to be suffering from the disorder. Fisher and Hany (2019) also note that the susceptibility of suffering from antisocial personality disorder tends to be skewed towards males, with a likelihood of about 3 to 5 times of being diagnosed with the condition that females. Additionally, substance abuse has been established to show a considerable association with the diagnosis of the condition. However, it has also been found that the disorder may disappear or its prevalence rate may decline with increasing age. In the movie, Will Hunting is a male, 20 years old, a representative of the male who are likely to suffer from the condition as per the statistics and facts provided above. It is also possible to speculate that Will, might have manifested the signs and symptoms of antisocial personality disorder before he attained the age of 15. He had a troubled past and did not care about his former employers felt when he left without notice. It is possible that he exhibited symptoms of the condition when still in some of the foster homes.
Although there is no precise etiology for antisocial personality disorder, several theories can be used to explain its causes. The three primary causal theories are frustration-aggression hypothesis, environmental factors, and genetic influences. To start with the frustration-aggression hypothesis, it was formulated by John Dollard and colleagues in 1939, and it suggests that frustration usually produces aggressive behavior and that aggression is always a consequence of prior frustrations (Berkowitz, 1989). In the case of Will Hunting in the movie, his behavior depicts various frustrations he had probably experienced in his childhood. While other children had normal parents, he was an orphan moving from one foster home to another. Most of the children raised by both parents rarely experience any disruptions and as a result, grow up forming an attachment or bond with their parents. It was the opposite for Will, who immediately after the death of his parents experienced traumatic moments. His bond with his parents had just been cut when he was still young. Will might have probably tried to establish new bonds in some of the foster homes but the constant relocation might have finally made him bitter and indifferent. He might have been frustrated whenever the new bonds he tried to form were cut incessantly.
Environmental factors can also lead to the onset of antisocial personality disorder or related symptoms. According to Fisher and Hany (2019), some of the environmental factors that are associated with the development of antisocial personality include negative childhood experiences such as neglect, and both physical and sexual abuse. Will Hunting narrates in the movie how he was abused severally in the different foster homes. Since he was not a real family member some of the foster parents might have taken advantage of that fact and mistreated him. He might also have been scolded or subjected to psychological trauma. It is also possible that Will witnessed domestic violence in some of the foster homes, and could have possibly been introduced to drugs in those homes. Another aspect of the environment could relate to the friends whom Will associated with in the neighborhood. Poor treatment in the foster homes could have compelled him to associate with bad company. He might have also developed the arrogance in order to push people away because he no longer trusted people, especially after being mistreated in the foster homes. Genetic factors could also cause antisocial personality disorder primarily if some members of the family have the condition. In the movie, this aspect is not clear because Will’s family members are hardly mentioned.
Finally, there are a variety of ways in which antisocial personality disorder can be treated. According to Fisher and Hany (2019), treatment can be in the form of psychotherapy and psychopharmacy treatment techniques. Nevertheless, it is important to note that there are no single pharmacological interventions which have been found to effectively treat the condition; instead medications are recommended to treat and manage co-occurring conditions. For example, aggressive behavior can be treated using second-generation antipsychotics such as quetiapine (100 to 300 mg per day), and risperidone (2 to 4 mg per day) (Fisher & Hany, 2019). Also, anticonvulsants such as carbamazepine and oxcarbazepine can be used to help individuals control their high impulse. Nevertheless, the condition is mainly managed using talk therapy sessions aimed at advising individuals to avoid the triggers and find purpose in their lives. Therefore, the sessions are usually aimed at initiating behavioral changes. In the movie, Sean Maguire is the therapist who tries to counsel Will, to reflect on his life, forget about the past, and use his natural ability to make a difference both to the society and to himself. The therapy sessions are eventually fruitful because Will changes his character at the end of the movie and prepares to forge a new life.
Overall, antisocial personality disorder is one of the mental disorders that young people, especially in their teenage-hood or young adult statuses may suffer. Individuals are declared to suffer from this condition if they exhibit most or all the symptoms before or immediately they are 15 years old. Many adolescents suffering from the condition may not be aware that it is a mental condition unless experienced professionals spot it. Also older people may think that young people suffering from this condition are simply troublesome and need to be punished to control their behaviors. However, doing so may exacerbate the condition and make such young people to be exposed to be more harm. Parents, guardians, and other people who interact with adolescents or young people exhibiting the symptoms of antisocial personality behavior need to recommend medical attention as early as possible. The positive aspect of this condition is that it can be managed through psychotherapy, and many counselors can help individuals suffering from this condition to forge new ways and start their lives afresh. Therefore, people should not assume that aggressive adolescents especially those portraying a carefree attitude are just troublesome. They could be suffering from antisocial personality disorder.
References
Berkowitz, L. (1989). Frustration-aggression hypothesis: Examination and reformulation. Psychological Bulletin, 106 (1), 59–73. https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-2909.106.1.59
EmiliaRueckerOdie27 PG. (2020, August 11). Good Will Hunting [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BB0FY0NOI4Q
Fisher, K. A., & Hany, M. (2019). Antisocial personality disorder. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK546673/
Mayo Clinic. (n.d). Antisocial personality disorder. https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/antisocial-personality-disorder/symptoms-causes/syc-20353928
