Psychology and psychopathology of envy and jealousy in women

Comparative analysis of meanings of emotions of envy and jealousy in the context of the modern psychological, clinical and psychoanalytical approaches is discussed. Authors take notice of the underestimation of the emotion of envy and tendency to equate envy and jealousy in favor of the latter in clinical psychiatry. They describe the clinical differences between normal and pathological forms of jealousy. Two types of development of delusion of jealousy were revealed: (1) type that developed in the dynamic of the Schneiders «Wahnwahrnehmung» and (2) type that occurred as a phenomenon of insight. It was observed that type of delusion of jealousy that appeared as an expression of the content of insight has had the more favorable outcome as compared with «Wahnwahrnehmung» one. Especial significance of the role of pathological intuition in the development of pathological jealousy is emphasized. The peculiarities of the emotions of envy and jealousy in women along with association of these emotions with personality disorders were observed. Pathological mixed envious-jealous states in women were revealed.