APA Dictionary of Psychology

a set of disorders in which the primary symptom (e.g., violation of social rules and rights of others, defiance, hostile behavior) is severe enough to produce significant impairment in social or occupational functioning. In DSM–IV–TR, disruptive behavior disorders include conduct disorder, oppositional defiant disorder, and disruptive behavior disorder not otherwise specified (i.e., a pattern of behavior, such as aggression or defiance, that results in clinically significant impairment but does not conform to the full diagnostic criteria of the other disorders in this category). DSM–5 and DSM-5-TR use the rubric disruptive, impulse-control, and conduct disorders to encompass conditions characterized by problems with behavioral and emotional self-control, including not only conduct and oppositional defiant disorders but also intermittent explosive disorder, pyromania, and kleptomania, among others. They also include in this category antisocial personality disorder, cross-listing it under the category for personality disorders.