Clinical psychology

acute schizophrenia

(also called reactive schizophrenia) a form of schizophrenia that can begin at any age; frequently occurs in response to a traumatic event. (Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 701)

agoraphobia

fear or avoidance of situations, such as crowds or wide open places, where one has felt loss of control and panic. (Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 678)

anorexia nervosa

an eating disorder in which a person (usually an adolescent female) maintains a starvation diet despite being significantly underweight; sometimes accompanied by excessive exercise. (Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 712)

antisocial personality disorder

a personality disorder in which a person (usually a man) exhibits a lack of conscience for wrongdoing, even toward friends and family members; may be aggressive and ruthless or a clever con artist. (Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 710)

anxiety disorders

psychological disorders characterized by distressing, persistent anxiety or maladaptive behaviors that reduce anxiety. (Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 677)

attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)

a psychological disorder marked by extreme inattention and/or hyperactivity and impulsivity. (Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 670)

binge-eating disorder

significant binge-eating episodes, followed by distress, disgust, or guilt, but without the compensatory behavior that marks bulimia nervosa. (Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 713)

bipolar disorder

a disorder in which a person alternates between the hopelessness and lethargy of depression and the overexcited state of mania. (Formerly called manic-depressive disorder.) (Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 687)

bulimia nervosa

an eating disorder in which a person's binge eating (usually of high-calorie foods) is followed by inappropriate weight-loss promoting behavior, such as vomiting, laxative use, fasting, or excessive exercise. (Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 713)

chronic schizophrenia

(also called process schizophrenia) a form of schizophrenia in which symptoms usually appear by late adolescence or early adulthood. As people age, psychotic episodes last longer and recovery periods shorten. (Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 700)

conversion disorder

a disorder related to somatic symptom disorder in which a person experiences very specific, physical symptoms that are not compatible with recognized medical or neurological conditions. (Also called functional neurological symptom disorder.) (Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 707)

delusion

a false belief, often of persecution or grandeur, that may accompany psychotic disorders. (Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 699)

dissociative disorders

controversial, rare disorders in which conscious awareness becomes separated (dissociated) from previous memories, thoughts, and feelings. (Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 708)

dissociative identity disorder (DID)

a rare dissociative disorder in which a person exhibits two or more distinct and alternating personalities. (Formerly called multiple personality disorder.) (Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 708)

DSM-5

the American Psychiatric Association's Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition; a widely used system for classifying psychological disorders. (Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 669)

epigenetics

"above" or "in addition to" (epi) genetics; the study of environmental influences on gene expression that occur without a DNA change. (Myers Psychology for AP 3e pp. 137, 668)

generalized anxiety disorder

an anxiety disorder in which a person is continually tense, apprehensive, and in a state of autonomic nervous system arousal. (Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 677)

hallucinations

false sensory experiences, such as seeing something in the absence of an external visual stimulus. (Myers Psychology for AP 3e pp. 233, 699)

illness anxiety disorder

a disorder related to somatic symptom disorder in which a person interprets normal physical sensations as symptoms of a disease. (Formerly called hypochondriasis.) (Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 707)

major depressive disorder

a disorder in which a person experiences, in the absence of drugs or another medical condition, two or more weeks with five or more symptoms, at least one of which must be either (1) depressed mood or (2) loss of interest or pleasure. (Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 687)

mania

a hyperactive, wildly optimistic state in which dangerously poor judgment is common. (Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 687)

medical model

the concept that diseases, in this case psychological disorders, have physical causes that can be diagnosed, treated, and, in most cases, cured, often through treatment in a hospital. (Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 667)

obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)

a disorder characterized by unwanted repetitive thoughts (obsessions), actions (compulsions), or both. (Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 679)

panic disorder

an anxiety disorder marked by unpredictable, minutes-long episodes of intense dread in which a person may experience terror and accompanying chest pain, choking, or other frightening sensations; often followed by worry over a possible next attack. (Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 678)

personality disorders

inflexible and enduring behavior patterns that impair social functioning. (Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 710)

phobia

an anxiety disorder marked by a persistent, irrational fear and avoidance of a specific object, activity, or situation. (Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 679)

posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD)

a disorder characterized by haunting memories, nightmares, hypervigilance, social withdrawal, jumpy anxiety, numbness of feeling, and/or insomnia that lingers for four weeks or more after a traumatic experience. (Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 680)

psychological disorder

a syndrome marked by a clinically significant disturbance in an individual's cognition, emotion regulation, or behavior. (Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 666)

psychotic disorders

a group of disorders marked by irrational ideas, distorted perceptions, and a loss of contact with reality. (Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 699)

rumination

compulsive fretting; overthinking our problems and their causes. (Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 693)

schizophrenia

a disorder characterized by delusions, hallucinations, disorganized speech, and/or diminished, inappropriate emotional expression. (Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 699)

social anxiety disorder

intense fear and avoidance of social situations. (Formerly called social phobia.) (Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 677)

somatic symptom disorder

a psychological disorder in which the symptoms take a somatic (bodily) form without apparent physical cause. (Formerly called somatoform disorder; see conversion disorder and illness anxiety disorder.) (Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 707)

active listening

empathic listening in which the listener echoes, restates, and clarifies. A feature of Rogers' client-centered therapy. (Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 726)

antianxiety drugs

drugs used to control anxiety and agitation. (Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 754)

antidepressant drugs

drugs used to treat depression, anxiety disorders, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and posttraumatic stress disorder. (Several widely used antidepressant drugs are selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors— SSRIs.) (Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 754)

antipsychotic drugs

drugs used to treat schizophrenia and other forms of severe thought disorder. (Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 753)

aversive conditioning

a type of counterconditioning that associates an unpleasant state (such as nausea) with an unwanted behavior (such as drinking alcohol). (Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 731)

behavior therapy

therapy that applies learning principles to the elimination of unwanted behaviors. (Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 729)

biomedical therapy

prescribed medications or procedures that act directly on the person's physiology. (Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 722)

client-centered therapy

a humanistic therapy, developed by Carl Rogers, in which the therapist uses techniques such as active listening within an accepting, genuine, empathic environment to facilitate clients' growth. (Also called person-centered therapy.) (Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 725)

cognitive therapy

therapy that teaches people new, more adaptive ways of thinking; based on the assumption that thoughts intervene between events and our emotional reactions. (Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 733)

cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT)

a popular integrative therapy that combines cognitive therapy (changing self-defeating thinking) with behavior therapy (changing behavior). (Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 736)

counterconditioning

behavior therapy procedures that use classical conditioning to evoke new responses to stimuli that are triggering unwanted behaviors; include exposure therapies and aversive conditioning. (Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 729)

eclectic approach

an approach to psychotherapy that uses techniques from various forms of therapy. (Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 723)

electroconvulsive therapy (ECT)

a biomedical therapy for severely depressed patients in which a brief electric current is sent through the brain of an anesthetized patient. (Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 756)

evidence-based practice

clinical decision making that integrates the best available research with clinical expertise and patient characteristics and preferences. (Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 744)

exposure therapies

behavioral techniques, such as systematic desensitization and virtual reality exposure therapy, that treat anxieties by exposing people (in imaginary or actual situations) to the things they fear and avoid. (Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 730)

family therapy

therapy that treats people in the context of their family system. Views an individual's unwanted behaviors as influenced by, or directed at, other family members. (Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 737)

group therapy

therapy conducted with groups rather than individuals, providing benefits from group interaction. (Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 737)

insight therapies

therapies that aim to improve psychological functioning by increasing a person's awareness of underlying motives and defenses. (Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 725)

interpretation

in psychoanalysis, the analyst's noting supposed dream meanings, resistances, and other significant behaviors and events in order to promote insight. (Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 723)

lobotomy

a psychosurgical procedure once used to calm uncontrollably emotional or violent patients. The procedure cut the nerves connecting the frontal lobes to the emotion-controlling centers of the inner brain. (Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 758)

meta-analysis

a procedure for statistically combining the results of many different research studies. (Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 743)

posttraumatic growth

positive psychological changes as a result of struggling with extremely challenging circumstances and life crises. (Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 760)

psychoanalysis

(1) Freud's theory of personality that attributes thoughts and actions to unconscious motives and conflicts. (2) Sigmund Freud's therapeutic technique used in treating psychological disorders. Freud believed the patient's free associations, resistances, dreams, and transferences—and the therapist's interpretations of them—released previously repressed feelings, allowing the patient to gain self-insight. (Myers Psychology for AP 3e pp. 579, 723)

psychodynamic therapy

therapy deriving from the psychoanalytic tradition; views individuals as responding to unconscious forces and childhood experiences, and seeks to enhance self-insight. (Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 724)

psychopharmacology

the study of the effects of drugs on mind and behavior. (Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 753)

psychosurgery

surgery that removes or destroys brain tissue in an effort to change behavior. (Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 758)

psychotherapy

treatment involving psychological techniques; consists of interactions between a trained therapist and someone seeking to overcome psychological difficulties or achieve personal growth. (Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 722)

rational-emotive behavior therapy (REBT)

a confrontational cognitive therapy, developed by Albert Ellis, that vigorously challenges people's illogical, self-defeating attitudes and assumptions. (Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 733)

repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS)

the application of repeated pulses of magnetic energy to the brain; used to stimulate or suppress brain activity. (Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 757)

resilience

the personal strength that helps most people cope with stress and recover from adversity and even trauma. (Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 760)

resistance

in psychoanalysis, the blocking from consciousness of anxiety-laden material. (Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 723)

systematic desensitization

a type of exposure therapy that associates a pleasant relaxed state with gradually increasing anxiety-triggering stimuli. Commonly used to treat phobias. (Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 730)

therapeutic alliance

a bond of trust and mutual understanding between a therapist and client, who work together constructively to overcome the client's problem. (Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 747)

token economy

an operant conditioning procedure in which people earn a token for exhibiting a desired behavior and can later exchange tokens for privileges or treats. (Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 732)

transference

in psychoanalysis, the patient's transfer to the analyst of emotions linked with other relationships (such as love or hatred for a parent). (Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 724)

unconditional positive regard

a caring, accepting, nonjudgmental attitude, which Carl Rogers believed would help clients develop self-awareness and self-acceptance. (Myers Psychology for AP 3e pp. 592, 726)

virtual reality exposure therapy

a counterconditioning technique that treats anxiety through creative electronic simulations in which people can safely face their greatest fears, such as airplane flying, spiders, or public speaking. (Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 730)