Abnormal Psychology Exam 1

Study Guide for Exam 1 of abnormal psych

What are the 5 ways mental disorders were defined HISTORICALLY?

1. Deviations from social expectations

2. Conditions that mental health professionals treat

3. Labeled for disliked actions

4. Subjective distress or unhappiness

5. Dysfunctions that cause harm

What is the DSM definition for mental disorders?

A syndrome characterized by clinically significant disturbance in cognition, emotion regulation, or behavior which reflects dysfunction in psychological, biological, or developmental processes underlying mental functioning

What is the role of culture in the DSM?

Shapes how mental distresses are experienced, expressed, or interpreted and helps prevent misdiagnosis.

What is an example of culture playing a role in the DSM

A grieving individual from a specific background reports hearing the voice of a deceased loved on or talking to a spirit

What are the 3 steps with assessment tools?

1. Gather info

2. Organize + process info to form clinical description

3. Compare description using nosology to get diagnosis

What are the 5 assessment tools?

1. Life Records

2. Interviews

3. Psychological Tests

4. Observations

5. Biological Measures

*Why is reliability + validity important for assessment?*

to ensure mental health diagnosis and treatment plans are accurate (valid), consistent (reliable), and meaningful

If valid = ?

reliable

Reliable ≠ ?

validity - if reliable can still be invalid

What type of validity is this: an intelligence test that only measures math skills, would be low in

Content validity — a tool measures all aspects of domain it’s suppose to measure

What type of validity is this: checking someone’s GPA or how many suicide attempts they have

Predictive validity — accurately forecasts a person’s behavior

What type of validity is this: A school creates a fast 15-minute math quiz and test students using this quiz during the same week the students take an official, state-wide math exam. If the scores match closely, the new quiz is valid

Concurrent validity — results of one procedure agree closely with results of another assessment method

What validity is this: Theories of anxiety predict that people’s anxiety levels will increase under stressful circumstances

Construct validity — when results coincide with what a theory about some construct would predict

M in MAPS stands for?

Medical Myths

A in MAPS stands for?

Attempted Answers

P in MAPS stands for?

Prejudicial Pigeonholes

S in MAPS stands for?

Superficial Syndromes

What is medical myths?

pills are not always the first-line treatment for most of disorders in DSM-5

What is attempted answers?

mental disorders are a collection of potentially interpreted symptoms with subjective observations that assesor indicates something is wrong

What is Prejudicial Pigeonholes?

Thinking an individual unfairly as belonging to a particular group, can have consequences for person’s future

What is Superficial Syndromes?

Diagnoses made using features that clinicians or clients can easily see/observe such as depressed mood, restlessness, social awkwardness, rather than understanding the symptoms deeply

What is the meaning of models of abnormality?

theoretical frameworks led by psychologists to explain causes, developments, or treatments

What is the biological model explain?

The nervous system controls all thought and behavior whether normal or abnormal — any event/substance that affects nervous system also affects thinking + behavior

What are neurotransmitters?

Chemicals released by neurons that acts on other neurons

What are examples of neurotransmitters?

• Acetylcholine

• Norepinephrine

• Dopamine

• Serotonin

• GABA

What is the Genetic Influences of abnormality?

Our genes: genotype (genetic) and phenotype (physical) AND behavioral genetics

How are behavioral genetics studied?

Family, Adoption, and Twin studies

Who created the psychodynamic theory?

Freud

What is the psychodynamic theory?

Normal and abnormal behaviors are influenced by unconscious forces

What is behavior theory?

Explains abnormal behavior in terms of the laws of learning (operant and classical conditioning)

What is operant conditioning and which theorist is associated with it?

Reward based learning with positive/negative reinforcement or punishment by Skinner

What is classical conditioning and which theorist is associated with it?

Pairing associations with stimuli by Pavlov

What is cognitive theories and who was this by?

from Bandura + Ellis, this theory explains abnormal behavior via maladaptive information processing — what we pay attention to, perceive, think about, remember.

What is humanism (humanistic + positive behavior theory) and who was this by?

the belief that human behavior is determined by each person’s unique perception of the world by Rogers + Maslow

What is social causation theory?

Explains abnormality in terms of external factors: harmful environments, adverse social policies, powerlessness, and cultural tradition

What is social justice theory?

Addressing issues of power, privilege and oppression can improve mental health outcomes

*What is the Diathesis Stress Model?*

Abnormal behavior results from the interaction of particular people within specific environments. It results from both a stressor AND diathesis (predisposition of vulnerability for disorder)

*What is the difference between correlations and experiments?*

Correlations = observes natural connections without proving what caused them

Experimental = actively manipulates variables to prove cause and effect

*What is a placebo?*

Improvements that results from expectations or other psychological factors rather than from treatment/active ingredient

*What is a control?*

no treatment is recieved

*What is a double-bind?*

experimental design in which only the director knows which participants are in the experimental group and which are in control

*What are representative samples?*

Samples in which participants are selected to represent levels of important subject variables → small group selected from larger group

What is internalizing?

deficit in desired child behaviors accompanied by subjective distress in the child

What is externalizing?

Disruptive childhood behavior that is a nuisance to others — aggression, hyperactivity, impulsivity, or inattention

What are some neurodevelopment disorders?

1. Intellectual development disorder

2. Autism spectrum disorder

3. Specific learning disorder

4. Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder

What are associated symptoms with Intellectual development disorder (IDD)?

• below average intellectual functioning

• impairments in adaptive functioning

• Occurs before 18

What are the major causes for IDD

• Down syndrome

• Fragile X syndrome teratogens

• Premature birth and low birth weight

• adverse psychosocial conditions

What are some treatment options for IDD?

ABA, Normalization Movement, and Special education

What are associated symptoms for Autism Spectrum Disorder?

• Social relationship problems

• poor nonverbal cues

• Expressive language deficit

• Insistence on sameness

What are associated symptoms for Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder?

• inattention

• Hyperactivity

• impulsivity

What are associated symptoms for Specific Learning Disorder?

• Problems with reading (not dyslexia)

• difficulties with phonetic decoding, letter perception, and remember verbal info

What are the four domains for development?

1. Motor Skills

2. Language

3. Cognition

4. Adaptive functioning

What is ODD?

Pattern of negativistic, disobedient, and defiant behavior, usually shown at home and sometimes at school

What is Conduct Disorder (CD)?

A pattern of antisocial behavior at home or in the community, including significant physical aggression, property damage, deceitfulness or rule violations

What is a main difference between ODD and CD

ODD struggles with authority, CD struggles with major societal rules and violates others rights

What is a treatment option for Autism?

Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA)

What are treatment options for ADHD?

• Stimulant or Non-stimulant medication, both options work!

• CBT interventions

• Psychoeducation

• Family therapy

• School-based interventions

What are treatment options for ODD and CD?

• Parent management training

• Problem-solving skills training

• Multi systemic treatment

What is psychosis?

Serious mental state where individuals lack accurate perception/understanding of reality, and little insight into how their behavior appears to others

What does psychosis contain?

periods of hallucinations and delusions, auditory hallucinations are most common

What is Dementia Praecox? (history of schizophrenia)

Term in 1800’s that meant premature loss of rational thought.

What are the positive symptoms for schizophrenia?

Symptoms involving distorted or excess behaviors, such as hallucinations, delusions, bizarre behavior, confused thinking, and disorganized speech.

*What are the negative symptoms for schizophrenia?*

Symptoms involving a diminution, absence, or loss of normal psychological functions; examples include apathy, flat emotions, lack of self-care, and social withdrawal

What is the prodromal phase?

The usual first phase of schizophrenia in which there is an insidious onset of problems, suggesting psychological deterioration.

What is the active phase?

The stage of schizophrenia during which one or more psychotic symptoms, such as delusions or hallucinations, appear.

What is the residual phase?

A stage of schizophrenia during which most psychotic symptoms have subsided in frequency and intensity; the affected person may still be withdrawn and apathetic, behave strangely at times, and continue to show social and occupational impairments

What is brief psychotic disorder?

The sudden onset of psychotic symptoms marked by intense emotional turmoil and confusion

What is schizophreniform disorder?

A disorder in which people experience symptoms of schizophrenia for only a few months.

What is schizoaffective disorder?

A mental disorder in which the person displays symptoms of both schizophrenia and a mood disorder without satisfying the full criteria for either diagnosis.

What is substance-induced psychotic disorders?

A mental disorder in which a person experiences psychotic symptoms beyond what is expected from intoxication or withdrawal from a substance, and in which the person is not aware that the substance is producing the psychotic symptoms.

What are outcomes for schizophrenia in terms of culture playing a role?

researchers further hypothesize that the better outcomes for those with schizophrenia in developing nations are due to relative levels of social connectedness and acceptance in these cultures

What do twin studies show for schizophrenia?

if one MZ twin has schizophrenia, then the other should as well if schizophrenia were due solely to genetic transmission.

What do adoption studies show for schizophrenia?

If children born to parents with schizophrenia but then raised by adoptive families without a family history of schizophrenia go on to develop schizophrenia at a higher rate than adopted children born to parents without schizophrenia, there is support for a genetic contribution to schizophrenia

*How does the diathesis-stress model explain that cases of schizophrenia develop?*

schizophrenia results from the interacting effects of a predisposition or genetic vulnerability for the disorder (the diathesis) and stressors that trigger the diathesis into a full clinical diagnosis.

What are the brain regions implicated in Schizophrenia?

1. the frontal lobe

2. the temporal lobe and parts of the limbic system that lie beneath the temporal lobe

3. the thalamus

How does dopamine play a role with schizophrenia symptoms?

• increased dopamine activity in the brain tend to intensify symptoms of schizophrenia

• Drugs that block the action of dopamine in the brain are effective in relieving some positive symptoms of schizophrenia

• neuroleptics block dopamine is correlated with their clinical ability to reduce symptoms of schizophrenia

What is the social drift hypothesis?

explains higher rates of mental disorders among lower socioeconomic groups as the consequence of disordered people sinking to lower socioeconomic levels because of their disorders

What is the social causation theory?

theory suggesting that stress, poverty, racism, inferior education, unemployment, and social changes are sociocultural risk factors leading to mental disorders.

What is expressed emotion?

people with schizophrenia show a strong relationship between a certain family climate and the rate at which that person suffers relapses of schizophrenia. usually involves high levels of:

• criticism

• hostility

• over involvement

What are some of the treatment options for schizophrenia?

• Psychosocial treatments

• Biological Treatments

• Antipsychotics/Neuroleptics