noun
definition
A psychological disorder that causes an uncontrollable obsession with stealing without economic or material need.
Examples of kleptomania in a Sentence
Individuals with kleptomania do not want to steal and feel guilty about it.
Kleptomania involves urges to steal and repetitive acts of unnecessary theft.
Career thieves, those who steal out of need or to support substance abuse, and those who steal because they have no regard for society's laws, are not considered to have kleptomania.
Kleptomania is diagnosed when repetitive stealing is not better explained by anger or vengeance, peer pressure, delusions or hallucinations, conduct disorder, a manic episode, or antisocial personality disorder.
Kleptomania is an inability to resist impulses to repetitively steal objects that are not necessary for personal use or monetary value.
Children and adolescents with kleptomania experience a growing sense of tension just before stealing, followed by pleasure, relief, or gratification during or just after stealing.