Mark L. Ruffalo M.S.W., D.Psa.

About

Mark L. Ruffalo, M.S.W., D.Psa., is a psychotherapist in private practice in Tampa, Florida, and serves as Assistant Professor of Psychiatry at the University of Central Florida College of Medicine and Adjunct Instructor of Psychiatry at Tufts University School of Medicine. His main interests include the history of psychiatry, particularly mid-20th century American psychiatry; the conceptualization of mental illness; and the psychoanalytic treatment of mood and personality disorders, conversion disorder, and schizophrenia.

He has become known for his work on communication dilemmas, paradoxes, and double binds in personality pathology. He was the first to describe double bind communication as a feature of borderline personality disorder.

Ruffalo received his bachelor's degree in psychology summa cum laude and his master's degree in social work from the University of Pittsburgh. He completed his internship at the Western Psychiatric Institute and Clinic of the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. His doctoral project, titled "Understanding Schizophrenia: Toward a Unified Biological and Psychodynamic Approach," was published in the journal Psychoanalytic Social Work.

The views expressed on this blog are solely his own and do not reflect the views of any of his employers. His website is drruffalo.com.

Recent Posts

On Popular Misconceptions of Narcissism

Narcissistic personality disorder is a severe but rare form of psychopathology; its misapplication on social media is rampant.

A Review of "Conversations in Critical Psychiatry"

Awais Aftab recently published a fascinating new book containing a series of interviews with leaders in the fields of psychiatry and critical psychiatry.

Pars Pro Toto Thinking and Borderline Personality Disorder

In pars pro toto thinking, the part is taken for the whole. This type of thinking is a hallmark of severe personality disorders, such as borderline personality disorder.

The Need-Fear Dilemma and Adult Psychopathology

Patients beset by a need-fear dilemma have a simultaneous need for and fear of closeness in interpersonal relationships.

Treatment for FND: An Interview with Anton Scamvougeras

Anton Scamvougeras discusses treatment for functional neurological disorders.

From Conversion to FND: An Interview With Anton Scamvougeras

The recent shift away from psychological explanations of conversion disorder/FND to neurobiological ones reflects a basic misunderstanding of the disorder, says Anton Scamvougeras.

The Paradox of Borderline Personality Disorder

Borderline personality disorder is marked by self-defeating, paradoxical, and self-contradictory behavior.

What Trauma Therapists May Get Wrong

It has become common for therapists to use trauma as a diagnosis, but this practice may be conceptually and theoretically flawed.

The Problem With Too Many Diagnoses

Patients who have been diagnosed with multiple psychiatric disorders have become the rule, not the exception—with serious consequences for treatment.

Pathological Jealousy in Borderline Personality Disorder

While many patients with borderline personality disorder exhibit extreme jealousy, it represents an understudied element of the disorder.