Definitions of Abnormality - Failure to Function Adequately

Failure to Function Adequately

• Behaviour consider abnormal when it causes distress leading to an inability to cope with the demands of everyday life

  • ‘Demands’ refer to day-to-day activities such as getting up in the morning, eating regularly, communicating with others etc.

  • The abnormal behaviour being shown is maladaptive, irrational or dangerous

  • Abnormality is when a lack of proper functioning causes personal distress for others, e.g. disruption work or personal relations

  • e.g. not being able to hold down a job, interact meaningfully with others, make yourself understood

First feature of personal dysfunction

Personal distress

Description of feature

Includes depression and anxiety disorders.

Example of feature

 Fixating, low mood

Second feature of personal dysfunction

Maladaptive behaviour

Description of feature

Behaviour stopping individuals from attaining life goals, both socially and occupationally.

Example of feature

Pulling out of meeting friends

Third feature

Unpredictability

description

Displaying unpredicted behaviours characterised by loss of control, like attempting suicide after failing a test.

example

 You do not feel like you are in the driver's seat of your life, you cannot control your life, behaviour may look unpredictable

fourth feature

Irrationality

description

Displaying behaviour that cannot be explained in a rational way.

example

Jumping to conclusions

fifth feature

Observer discomfort

description

Displaying behaviour causing discomfort to others.

example

Makes others feel worried

sixth feature

Violation of moral standards

description

Displaying behaviour violating society’s moral standards.

example

Not conforming to social norms

seventh feature

Unconventionality

description

Displaying behaviour that doesn’t conform to rules.

example

 Social rules, unwritten rules - not conforming to them

Strength

P - strength is that is represents a sensible threshold for when people need professional help

E - most of us have symptoms of mental disorder to some degree at some time

According to MH charity Mind, around 25% of people in UK will experience a MH problem in any given year

However, many people press on in face of fairly severe symptoms

Tends to be at point that we cease to function adequately that people seek professional help/are noticed + referred by others

K - Criterion means that treatment + services can be targeted to those who need them most

Weakness

P - limitation is that it is easy to label non-standard lifestyle choices as abnormal

E - In practice, it can be hard to say when someone is really failing to function adequately

Not having a job might seem like failing to function adequately, and for some, it would be

However, people with alternative lifestyles choose to live ‘off-grid’

K - this means that people who make unusual choices are at risk of being labelled abnormal + freedom of choice may be restricted

Strength

P - strength is that it considers the impact of behaviour on an individual’s everyday life

E - Rosenhan and Seligman identified criteria such as maladaptiveness and personal distress, which indicate whether a person’s behaviour prevents them from functioning effectively

K - therefore, FFA is useful as it focuses on an individual’s ability ro cope, making it a more practical definition of whether behaviour is causing difficulty rather than simply being ‘different’

Weakness

P - FFA can be culturally relative

E - differen cultures have different expectation about what is considered normal behaviour and how people should function in everyday life

Therefore, behaviour that is considered maladaptive in one culture, may be accepted/expected in another

Psychologists could wrongly identify culturally different behaviour as abnormal

K - This suggests that FFA has limited validity as a universal definition as it may reflect expectations of a single culture rather than a MH disorder

Strengths

• Set-criteria is clear, making it easy to define what failing to function in day to day life looks like

• Holistic view of abnormality

• More individual autonomy - diagnosis = more effective, acknowledges more of the impact on the individual

• Observable - easy to identify

• Can be used when interviewing patients

 

Weaknesses

•  Subjective, based on observations of behaviour

• Still relies on judging behaviours based on severity/how extreme the behaviour is

• Could there be any behaviours missed by the criteria, too reductive?

• If behaviour is misinterpreted, could lead to misdiagnosis

• Context-dependent, we all struggle to function at times + individual differences