Historical Perspectives on Abnormal Behavior

Exam 1

Psychopathology

the scientific study of mental disorders, including their theoretical underpinnings, etiology, progression, symptomatology, diagnosis, and treatment.

Genetic contributions

Almost always polygenetic & small contributions

Account for less than 50% of variation in psychopathology

Life events can overpower gene influence

Considered within environmental context

Components of a psychological disorder

psychological dysfunction, personal distress, atypical or not culturally expected

Supernatural Perspective

Belief in witches and demons causing evil.

Exorcism

Treatment involving expelling evil spirits.

Insanity Cure

Rest, sleep, baths, and potions recommended.

Hippocrates

Father of western medicine, linked behavior to biology.

Wandering Uterus

Ancient belief explaining women's psychological issues.

Humoral Theory

Mental disorders caused by imbalances in bodily fluids, blood, phelgm, black bile, yellow bile

Bloodletting/vomiting

Ancient treatment for excess humors.

Advanced Syphilis (General Parasis)

Causes unusual psychological and behavioral symptoms from bacterial brain infection

Insulin Shock Theory

Induces heightened hunger as a treatment.

Lobotomy

Crude surgical procedure for mental disorders.

Psychotropic Medications

Drugs for treating mental health issues since 1950s.

John Grey and the Reformers

Championed biological tradition in the USA , always physical etiology

treatment— rest, diet, environment

Moral Therapy

Treating patients as normally as possible.

Psychoanalytic Model

Focus on the unconscious mind in behavior.

Humanistic Model

Emphasizes free will and self-actualization.

Cognitive Behavioral Model

Predicts and controls behavior through thought processes.

Diathesis Stress Model

Already having the genes for a disorder and then a stressor adds on top of it so you develop the disorder

recipricol gene-environment model

people with the genes seek out situations in the environment that make the genes be expressed

Epigenetics

Environmental factors influence gene expression.

Key Systems of the Body

CNS , Peripheral NS , Brain , Genes

Plasticity

the brain's ability to change, especially during childhood, by reorganizing after damage or by building new pathways based on experience

SSRIs

Medications that enhance serotonin availability.

Serotonin

Affects mood, hunger, sleep, and arousal

acetylcholine

muscle movement, attention, and memory

Psychosocial

stress emotions and social spaces

Placebo Effects

Improvement from belief in treatment, not the treatment itself.

Neurotransmitters

chemical messengers that cross the synaptic gaps between neurons

levels and structures of neurons

take a rat and put it in a cage it will be stressed and try to escape put it in a cage with colored tubes and friends it

GABA

An inhibitory neurotransmitter in the brain. Calming

Glutamate

excitatory neurotransmitter. leads to action. learning and memory

Epinephrine (Adrenaline) Norepinephrine

helps control mood, alertness and arousal. fight or flight response

Dopamine

A neurotransmitter associated with movement, attention and learning and the brain's pleasure and reward system.

Learned Hopelessness

Condition where individuals feel powerless to change.

implicit memory

Memories we don't deliberately remember or reflect on consciously

emotion

define disorders and affect cognitive processes

emotional suprpession

increase sympathetic nervous system

Cultural Social and Interpersonal factors

culture, gender, and social support

Mood

a temporary state of mind or feeling.

Emotional Suppression

Increases sympathetic nervous system activity.

Cultural Influence

Culture shapes behavior expression and forms.

Multidimensional integrative approach

Abnormal behavior results from multiple influences

Biological

Behavioral

Emotional

Social & cultural

Developmental

Environmental

Classes of drugs that affect serotonin system

Tricyclic antidepressants

Selective-serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs)

St. John’s wort, psychedelics & hallucinogens

Effect of social support

Low social support related to mortality, disease, and psychopathology