unit 8 vocab

clinical psychology

psychological disorder

persistently harmful thoughts, feelings, and actions

attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)

disorder including attention difficulty, hyperactivity, and impulsiveness

medical model

systems-analysis approach to review the physical causes of disorders

DSM-IV

multiaxial manual that now describes 400 psychological disorders

anxiety disorders

feelings of excessive apprehension and anxiety

generalized anxiety disorder

anxiety disorder with persistent feelings of anxiety and an unknown source

panic disorder

episodes of intense dread which may include feelings of terror, chest pains, choking, or other frightening sensations

phobia

persistent and irrational fear of an object or situation that disrupts behavior

obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)

persistent unwanted thoughts and urges to engage in senseless rituals that cause distress

post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)

disorder resulting from an individual living through or witnessing an event in which they believe that there is a threat to life or safety

dissociative disorders

disorders when conscious awareness becomes separated from previous memories, thoughts, and feelings

dissociative identity disorder (DID)

disorder in which a person exhibits two or more distinct and alternating personalities

mood disorders

disorders with a prolonged, pervasive emotional disturbance

major depressive disorder

mood disorder; lasting 2+ weeks unmedicated of persistent sadness and other symptoms with no mania

mania

a state of excitement often combined with overoptimism, grandiosity, or impaired judgment

bipolar disorder

mood disorder in which symptoms of mania and depression alternate

schizophrenia

a group of severe disorders characterized by disorganized and delusional thinking, disturbed perceptions, inappropriate emotions and actions

delusions

distorted beliefs

personality disorders

disorders with inflexible and enduring behavior patterns that impair social functioning

antisocial personality disorder

disorder when the person exhibits a lack of conscience for wrongdoing, even toward friends and family members

psychotherapy

an emotionally charged, confiding interaction between a trained therapist and a mental patient

biomedical therapy

use of drugs or other procedures to act on the patient’s nervous system and cure them of psychological disorders

eclectic approach

various forms of healing techniques depending upon the client’s unique problems

psychoanalysis

form of psychotherapy aimed at bringing repressed feelings into conscious awareness where the patient can deal with them

resistance

when, during free association practices, the patient edits their thoughts

interpretation

the blocking of learning or memory retrieval by other conflicting material

transferance

when the patient opens up and reveals their innermost private thoughts, developing positive or negative feelings towards the therapist

client-centered therapy

form of humanistic therapy; when the therapist listens to the needs of the patient and addresses problems in a productive way while building their self-­esteem

active listening

acknowledging expressed feelings by echoing, restating, and clarifying the patient’s thinking

behavior therapy

therapy that applies learning principles to the elimination of unwanted behaviors

counterconditioning

procedure that conditions new responses to stimuli that trigger unwanted behaviors

exposure therapies

type of counterconditioning; exposing patients to things they fear and avoid in the goal that anxiety will lessen with repeated exposure

systematic desensitization

type of exposure therapy; associates a pleasant, relaxed state with gradually increasing anxiety-­triggering stimuli

virtual reality exposure therapy

exposing people to fear­ driving objects in virtual environments

averse conditioning

type of counterconditioning; associates an unpleasant state with an unwanted behavior; frequently used with alcoholism

token economy

behavior therapy program (typically in institutions) when the desired behavior is reinforced by offering tokens that can be exchanged for other good things

cognitive therapy

therapy that teaches people adaptive ways of thinking and acting

cognitive-behavior therapy

therapy that aims to alter the way people act and think

family therapy

therapy that guides family members toward

positive relationships and improved

communication

regression towards the mean

the tendency for extremely high or extremely low scores to become more moderate after retesting

meta-analysis

quantitative technique for combining the results of multiple studies into a single result

psychopharmacology

the study of drug effects on mind and behavior

tardive dyskinesia

a movement disorder associated with the use of antipsychotics

electroconvulsive therapy (ECT)

therapy practice used for severely depressed patients who do not respond to drugs; after getting anesthesia, patients usually get a 100 volt shock

repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS)

therapy treatment involving a pulsating magnetic coil placed over prefrontal regions of the brain

psychosurgery

very uncommon and is used as a last resort; involves the removal of brain tissue

lobotomy

old-ish (early 1900s) psychosurgery that cut into various nerve tracts in the frontal lobe of the brain via small, drilled holes or an ice pick to the eye socket