UNIT 12

Psychological Disorder

A syndrome marked by a clinically significant disturbance in an individual’s cognition, emotion regulation, or behavior.

Medical Model

The concept that diseases, including psychological disorders, have physical causes that can be diagnosed, treated, and typically cured.

Epigenetics

The study of environmental influences on gene expression that occur without a DNA change.

DSM-5

The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition, a system for classifying psychological disorders.

Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)

A psychological disorder marked by extreme inattention and/or hyperactivity and impulsivity.

Anxiety Disorders

Psychological disorders characterized by distressing, persistent anxiety or maladaptive behaviors that reduce anxiety.

Social Anxiety Disorder

Intense fear and avoidance of social situations, formerly known as ‘Social Phobia.’

Generalized Anxiety Disorder

An anxiety disorder in which a person is continually tense, apprehensive, and in a state of autonomic nervous system arousal.

Panic Disorder

An anxiety disorder marked by unpredictable, minutes-long episodes of intense dread, accompanied by physical sensations.

Agoraphobia

Fear of or avoidance of situations where one has felt loss of control and panic.

Phobia

An anxiety disorder marked by a persistent, irrational fear and avoidance of a specific object, activity, or situation.

Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD)

A disorder characterized by unwanted repetitive thoughts (Obsessions) and/or actions (Compulsions).

Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)

A disorder characterized by haunting memories, nightmares, and heightened anxiety that lingers after a traumatic experience.

Major Depressive Disorder

A disorder where a person experiences two or more weeks of depressed mood or loss of interest along with other symptoms.

Bipolar Disorder

A disorder characterized by alternating periods of depression and mania, formerly known as Manic-Depressive Disorder.

Mania

A hyperactive, wildly optimistic state often associated with poor judgment.

Rumination

Compulsive fretting or overthinking our problems and their causes.

Schizophrenia

A disorder characterized by delusions, hallucinations, disorganized speech, and/or inappropriate emotional expression.

Psychotic Disorders

A group of disorders marked by irrational ideas, distorted perceptions, and a loss of contact with reality.

Hallucination

False sensory experiences in the absence of an external stimulus.

Delusion

A false belief that may accompany psychotic disorders.

Chronic Schizophrenia

A form of schizophrenia where symptoms typically appear by early adulthood, with lengthening psychotic episodes.

Acute Schizophrenia

A form of schizophrenia that often occurs in response to trauma and can begin at any age.

Somatic Symptom Disorder

A psychological disorder in which symptoms take a bodily form without apparent physical cause.

Conversion Disorder

A disorder that involves very specific physical symptoms related to recognized medical or neurological conditions.

Illness Anxiety Disorder

A disorder in which normal sensations are misinterpreted as symptoms of a disease.

Dissociative Disorders

Rare disorders where conscious awareness becomes separated from previous memories, thoughts, and feelings.

Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID)

A rare disorder in which a person exhibits two or more distinct personalities.

Personality Disorders

Inflexible and enduring behavior patterns that impair social functioning.

Antisocial Personality Disorder

A personality disorder characterized by a lack of conscience for wrongdoing, often aggressive or manipulative.

Anorexia Nervosa

An eating disorder involving a starvation diet despite significant underweight, often with excessive exercise.

Bulimia Nervosa

An eating disorder characterized by binge eating followed by inappropriate weight-loss behaviors.

Binge-Eating Disorder

Significant episodes of binge-eating followed by distress, without compensatory behaviors typical of Bulimia Nervosa.