AP Psychology - Unit 5 Vocab & Content

Health psychology

The subfield studying how biological, social, and psychological factors influence physical health, illness, and wellness. It focuses on applying behavioral principles to promote health, prevent illness, and improve healthcare systems using the biopsychosocial model.

stress key part

Most important aspect is appraisal. (not necessarily negative)

stress characteristics

• Biological: activation of the sympathetic nervous system

• Psychodynamic: turmoil in the unconscious that might show up as something else

• Evolutionary: result having evolved for a different environment

• Sociocultural: comes from not matching society’s roles and expectations

• Humanistics: arises when obstacles block us from growing and becoming

• Cognitive: the reaction of having disruptive and unpleasant thoughts

• Behavioral: the inability to obtain positive or negative reinforcement

hypertension

• often caused by the body's prolonged activation of the sympathetic nervous system, leading to sustained elevated blood pressure (a key part of the "Resistance" phase in Selye's General Adaptation Syndrome).

• Chronic high blood pressure, typically measured at 130/80 mm Hg or higher

immune suppression

• is defined as the reduction in the effectiveness of the immune system’s ability to function and fight off infections, diseases, and pathogens.

• Often caused by chronic, long-term stress

stressors

• Daily hassles: more than additive. They are multiplocative. Constant noise, physical discomfort, and financial uncertainty can pile up

• Traumatic events: anything can be traumatic. Often depends on cognitive appraisal, personality traits, coping mechanisms and resources

• ACEs

• Can be transient - they are temporary challenges

• Chronic - severe and not temporary

eustress

• Challenging, but not unpleasant

• Possibility of long-term benefit from this

• Yes its scary but worth it

• Approach-avoidance conflict

• Optimum arousal

• Consent and choice

  • Internal locus of control

• Leads to growth

distress

• Unpleasant

• Unhealthy in long run

• Avoidance-avoidance conflict

• Learned helplessness

• Lack of control

  • External locus of control

ACEs

• Children are vulnerable and require care and support in many ways

• When that care is not given or even denied, it can affect the person’s development throughout their life.

• Defined as potentially traumatic, stressful events occurring before the age of 18 that can have long-lasting, negative impacts on physical and mental health across the lifespan.

general adaptation syndrome

• Stress happens over time

• Stress is the complex interaction between the environment, the appraisal, and the body’s physical reaction

• The body’s ability to resist stress and its own reaction to its changes over time

• Walter cannon and hans selye

GAS image

alarm reaction phase

• Fight or flight, sudden activation of the sympathetic nervous system. Anxiety, amygdala and adrenaline

• an automatic, involuntary physiological and psychological reaction to a perceived threat or danger. It is governed by the sympathetic nervous system as part of the body's survival mechanism

  • When a stressor is encountered, the body sends a distress signal to the hypothalamus, which activates the sympathetic nervous system. The adrenal glands release adrenaline and cortisol, providing a surge of energy to fight, flee, or freeze.

• Release of various stimulatory hormones including corticosterone

resistance phase

• “Handling it” with excess adrenaline the body and brain rise to the challenge

• Your body can handle this stress

• Adaptive for transient stressors but not chronic ones

• Part of parasympathetic rebound

• Your body cannot be aroused forever

exhaustion phase

• The body can’t fight the stressor, the stress response, and continue to repair tissue and fight infection

• Body and mind = limited responses

fight-flight-freeze response

• Evidence that acting aggressive or withdrawing increase fueling of fight or flight

• See alarm reaction phase for more info

tend-and-befriend theory

• Proposes that some people react to stress by tending to their own heed and or the needs of others and seeking connection with others

• Nurturing offstring and seeking social support

• more common with female

problem-focused coping

• Involves seeing stress as a problem to be solved and working solutions until a solution is found

  • Outward focused

  • A solution can eliminate the source

  • Might be considered “long term”

emotional-focused coping

• Equals meditation, taking meds aimed at reducing stressful emotional responses

  • Inward focuses

  • This is necessary and good

  • Might be considered “short-term”

• Reframing

• And cognitive appraisal

Cognitive Appraisals

• Primary appraisal: is this event a threat?

• Secondary appraisal: can i handle this stressor?

Type A

• Competitiveness

• Sense of time urgency

• Elevated feelings of anger and hostility

• Act in ways that increase the likelihood that they will have stressful experiences

• Behavior patterns are more susceptible to stress-related diseased

Type B

• Low level of competitiveness

• Low preoccupation with time issues

• Generally easygoing attitude

• Behavior gets stressed more slowly

• Their stress levels don’t reach the same heights as type a

positive psychology

The scientific study of human strengths and virtues focusing on human flourishing and optimal functioning.

What is right in a person and how we can add to that, not the negatives

happiness

like stress it is hard to define. It is dependent on the operational definition produced via an experiment.

• Self-report scales are commonly used like the Authentic Happiness Inventory and the PERMA Profiler

well-being

A state of happiness and contentment, with low levels of distress, overall good physical and mental health and outlook, or good quality of life

resilience

The process of adapting well in the face of adversity, trauma, tragedy, threats, or significant sources of stress

positive subjective experiences

are fleeting, internally felt positive emotions and states (e.g., joy, contentment, gratitude) that enhance life.

keys to well-being

1. Altruism: unselfish regard for someone else’s welfare

2. Awe: feeling when in the presence of something that challenges ur understanding of the world

3. Bridging Differences: embracing a diversity of backgrounds

4. Compassion: feeling that arises when you are confronted with someone else’s suffering and you feel motivated to relieve it.

5. Diversity: involving people from a range of different social and ethnic backgrounds

6. Empathy: the ability to sense someone else’s pain

7. Forgiveness: conscious decision to release feeling of resentment

8. Gratitude: appreciation of what one has both tangible and intangible

   1. Gratitude increases well-being

9. Social connection: feeling that you belong to a group and feel close to those in that group

10. Intellectual humility: degree to which one recognizes their beliefs might be wrong

11. Mindfulness: moment by moment awareness of our thoughts, feelings, and environment

12. Purpose: intention to achieve a personal meaning

gratitude

• As an action: appreciating what an individual receives, whether tangible or intangible

• As a state of being: a state of being thankful

Benefits of practicing gratitude:

• Doing good

  • Social belonging

  • Prosocial behavior

• Feeling good

  • Improves health

  • Positive affect

  • Social well-being

  • Emotional well-being

signature strengths and virtues

• enduring, positive, and authentic character traits (e.g., wisdom, courage) that define a person's best self and contribute to long-term well-being and meaning.

• 24 total traits but classified into 6 categories of virtues.

• Virtues = character strength

wisdom

Creativity, curiosity, open-mindedness, love of learning, perspective.

courage

Bravery, persistence (perseverance), integrity (honesty), zest.h

humanity

Love, kindness, social intelligence.

justice

Teamwork, fairness, leadership.

temperance

Forgiveness, humility, prudence (caution), self-regulation (self-control).

*minimalist

transcendence

Appreciation of beauty and excellence, gratitude, hope, humor, spirituality.

post-traumatic growth

A positive subjective experience that some experience after the experience of trauma or stress.

growth can equal…

• Personal strength

• Close relationships

• Greater appreciation for life

• New possibilities

• Spiritual development

disordered behavior

unusual, maladaptive (interferes with ability to function in particular situation), abnormal by society’s standards, perceptual or cognitive dysfunction

3 characteristics needed to be a disorder

• dysfunction: Impairment or disturbance in behavior

• distress: Does it cause worrisome or anxiety

• deviation from norms: Not typical of one’s society’s normal behavior

positive consequences for classifying and/or diagnosing a disorder

• Individuals could experience relief knowing their group of symptoms has a name

• Helps guide individuals toward appropriate course of treatment

• Simplifies communication with a common language

• Diagnostic labeling consequences

  • Helps guide research

  • Helps predict future problems for an individual

negative consequence for classifying and/or diagnosing a disorder

• Negative attitude toward self, including shame

• Reduced hope and self-esteem

• Self-limiting beliefs. May accept the role and outlook

• Diagnostic labeling consequences

  • Diagnosis made by using self-reports. Individuals may not be good at describing symptoms

  • Stigma may keep people from seeking help.

cultural/societal norms - consequences for classifying and/or diagnosing a disorder

Individualistic:

• More likely to see mental health issues as a normal way of life

• More likely to seek help

Collectivist:

• Seen as a sign of weakness

• Seen as an outcast

• Less likely to seek help

stigma consequences for classifying and/or diagnosing a disorder

• negative attitudes, prejudice, and discrimination

• can lead individuals to internalize negative stereotypes, experience reduced self-esteem, or face social rejection

• self-stigma: internalized stigma

racism consequences for classifying and/or diagnosing a disorder

• often leading to misdiagnosis, overdiagnosis of severe conditions in minority groups, and underdiagnosis of others

• minimization of distress

• cultural misinterpretation, implicit bias, racial trauma and PTSD

sexism consequences for classifying and/or diagnosing a disorder

• inaccurate labeling, misdiagnosis, and unequal treatment outcomes.

• over-pathologizing women

• under-diagnosing men

• women’s physical symptoms are often incorrectly dismissed as hormonal, stress-related, or psychological

ageism consequences for classifying and/or diagnosing a disorder

• negative stereotypes, prejudices, and discrimination against individuals based on their age

• underdiagnosis

• misdiagnosis

• misattributing symptoms as “normal aging”

discrimination consequences for classifying and/or diagnosing a disorder

• social stigma and stereotyping

• self-stigma and internalization

• discrimination in opportunities

• misdiagnosis and cultural bias

• the “stickiness” of labels

culture-bound disorder

• a mental illness that is recognized only within a specific society or culture, often acting as a combination of psychiatric and somatic symptoms

• They highlight how culture shapes the expression, interpretation, and treatment of psychological distress, proving that mental health is not strictly biological

diagnostic and statistical manual (DSM)

• Most current edition is the DSM-5-TR

• Developed by the american psychiatric association to classify and describe disorders

  • Checklist of symptoms

  • Does not explain

  • Does to give treatment

international classification of mental disorders

• Most current edition is the ICD-11

• Developed by the world health organization

• Used to standardized health information across the world

• Mental and physical disorders

Eclectic

• Most psychologists do not ascribe to one approach

• When diagnosing and treating disorders, psychologists consider many factors instead of one.

behavioral defines psychological disorders

• Focus on maladaptive learned associations between or among responses to stimuli

• Positive and negative reinforcement

• Phobias included

• It is all learned

• Disordered behavior has been rewarded or reinforced at some point establishing it as a pattern of behavior

• Treatment: must unlearn the maladaptive behavior or modify the learned responses to certain stimuli

psychodynamic defines psychological disorders

• Focus on unconscious thoughts and experiences, often developed during childhood

• Conflicts exist  between id, ego, and superego

• Anxiety stems from socially unacceptable desires

• Childhood conflicts

humanistic defines psychological disorders

• Focus on lack of social support and being unable to fulfill one’s fullest potential

• Not receiving unconditional positive regard creates self-doubt and can lead to depression

• Not fulfilling one’s fullest potential can create anxiety in determining life goals.

• Low self-esteem

• Self-actualizing - there is a block that is hindering your growth

cognitive defines psychological disorders

• Focus on maladaptive thoughts, beliefs, attitudes or emotions

• Irrational fears can lead to irrational behaviors

• Maladaptive thoughts and rumination can lead to a cycle of depression

• Cognitive framing is important

• Misperceptions and misinterpretations of the world lead to disordered behavior

• Treatment: must change the contents of thought or way it is processed

evolutionary defines psychological disorders

• Focus on behaviors and mental processes that reduce the likelihood of survival

• Fears can be adaptive and aid in survival, such as fears of the dark or dangerous animals

• Fears can also reduce the chances of reproduction such as fears of rejection and issues in relationships

sociocultural defines psychological disorders

• Focus on maladaptive social and cultural relationships and dynamics

• Not meeting societal standards can lead to depression and low self-esteem

• Individualistic and collectivist cultures have differing norms for behavior and relationships 

• Society and culture defines what is acceptable behavior

biological defines psychological disorders

• Focus on physiological or genetic issues

• Oversupply or undersupply of specific neurotransmitters can lead to disordered behavior

• Manifestation of abnormal brain function bc structural or chemical abnormalities

• Medication is treatment route

• genetics

• Is there a gene that is associated with addiction?

biopsychosocial model

an integrated approach that explains how health, illness, and behavior are determined by the complex interplay of biological, psychological, and social-cultural factors - that impact psychological disorder

biological factors - biopsychosocial model

• genetic predispositions

• neurochemistry

• brain structure and function

• hormones

• physiological reaction to drugs

psychological factors - biopsychosocial model

• cognitive patterns

• coping skills

• emotions/mood

• learned behaviors/associations

• self-concept

sociocultural factors - biopsychosocial model

• social support

• family/peer dynamics

• cultural norms

• environmental stressors

• life events

diathesis-stress model

Examines psychological disorders from the perspective of the interplay between a diathesis, or underlying vulnerability, such as a genetic predisposition, with an external stressor that triggers that vulnerability to manifest.

diathesis

• This is the predisposition or vulnerability a person has toward developing a specific disorder.

• It is usually genetic, biological, or a result of early childhood trauma.

stress - diathesis stress model

• This is the environmental factor or life event that triggers the activation of the diathesis.

• It includes major stressors or chronic daily stressors

neurodevelopmental disorders

• Symptoms: focus on whether exhibited behaviors are appropriate for age or maturity levels

• Impact: may affect emotions, learning ability, self control, and memory

• Onset: occurs during the developmental period

Duration: typically for life.

symptoms - neurodevelopmental disorders

• delays in reaching milestones

• difficulties with communication

• impaired social interaction

Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)

Indicators for…

• Inattention

  • Overlooking detail

  • Inability to focus on single task

  • Frequently doesn’t finish tasks

• Hyperactivity/impulsivity

  • fidgeting/movement

  • Interrupting others

  • Trouble waiting one’s turn

• At least some symptoms must have been present before the age of 12 for diagnosis

DSM 5 says 5 out of 9 indicators must be present at least six months for diagnosis

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD)

Symptom categories…

• Impaired social and communication skills

  • Social emotional reciprocity

  • Deficits in nonverbal and verbal communication

  • Difficulty making friends or lack of interest in peers

• Restrictive and repetitive behavior

  • Repetitive motor movements, use of objects, or speech

  • Inflexibility with routines

  • Fixated interests

  • Hyporeactivity to sensory input

Spectrum doesn’t refer to “degree” rather a range of symptoms.

neurodevelopmental disorders - possible causes

Development of the nervous system is complex and orderly influenced by genetics and the environment both prenatally and after birth

• Down syndrome: example of a developmental disorder that is genetic

• Environmental factors: such as teratogens, infectious disease, social deprivation, and physical trauma can contribute to developmental disorders.

ADHD - possible causes

heritability of about 74% and no significant evidence to identify clear environmental causes, but can’t be ruled out.

ASD - possible causes

appears to be largely genetic but complex. Pre-natal risk factors have been identified that increase likelihood of ASD.

Schizophrenic spectrum disorder

severe psychological disorders characterized by a split from reality,

split-brain: Disturbances in thought, perception, speech, motor behavior, and emotional experience

Schizophrenic spectrum disorder - acute

has a sudden onset, often following stress, with prominent positive symptoms (hallucinations, delusions) and a higher likelihood of recovery.

Schizophrenic spectrum disorder - chronic

is long-term, showing a gradual development of negative symptoms (social withdrawal, apathy), which are harder to treat.

psychotic (psychosis)

A mental condition in which thoughts and emotions are so affected that contact is lost with reality.

positive - schizophrenic symptoms

Presence of an inappropriate or atypical behavior.

Examples:

• Delusions

• Hallucinations

• Disorganized speech

• Disorganized movement

negative - schizophrenic symptoms

Absence of appropriate or typical expected behavior

Examples:

• Lack of movement

• Flat affect (low emotional response)

• Reduction in speech

delusions

distorted or false beliefs about external reality. Beliefs not based in reality

delusions of persecution

The irrational belief that one is being targeted, plotted against, harassed, or harmed by others

delusions of grandeur

The irrational belief that one is exceptionally important, wealthy, powerful, or possesses divine/supernatural abilities

hallucinations

perception of a stimulus that does not exist (often auditory). Perceptions that are not based in reality.

disorganized thinking or speech

nonsensical language. Recognize the words being used but their order makes zero sense. Illogical fashion or irrelevant answers

world salad

nonsensical language. Stream of speech that has little or no coherence

disorganized motor behavior

aimless movement

catatonia

characterized by severe psycho-motor disturbances. includes immobility (stupor), rigid posturing, mutism, or excessive, purposeless movement. It signifies a loss of normal behavior and requires prompt medical attention.

catatonic excitement

(Positive Symptom): An individual exhibits excessive, uncontrollable, purposeless, and often frenetic motor activity. This may involve shouting, moving rapidly, or behaving erratically.

catatonic stupor

(Negative Symptom): An individual remains immobile, rigid, or unresponsive to their environment for extended periods. This often includes features like waxy flexibility (maintaining a position in which they are placed) or mutism.

flatt affect

a negative symptom of schizophrenia defined as a severe reduction or total lack of emotional expression.

schizophrenia - possible causes

• Individuals may genetically have higher or lower vulnerability for SSD

• Exposure to risk factors makes the disorder more likely

  • Prenatal virus exposure

  • Childhood stress and trauma

  • Social isolation

  • Family dysfunction

• Environmental stressors too

dopamine hypothesis

Too much dopamine in the brain, or too little, could directly contribute to symptoms of schizophrenia, particularly those of psychosis such as delusions, hallucinations, or disorganized thinking.

schizophrenia - diagnosis

• The presence of two of the five main symptoms for more than a month

• At least one symptom must be delusions, hallucinations, or disorganized speech

• Spectrum disorder: combination of symptoms differ from person to person

depressive disorders

The presence of a sad, empty, or irritable mood along with physical and cognitive changes affecting a person’s ability to function.

depressive disorders - treament

Treatment includes psychotherapy (CBT is popular) and antidepressant medications

symptoms - Depressive disorder

Disruptions in mood along with cognitive and physical symptoms affected by mood.

• Often a response to past or current loss

• Reflective of experience for learning and moving forward

• Symptoms slow us down to ponder

• Quite normal unless excessive or in response to everyday occurrences.

major depressive disorder

presence of majority of symptoms every day for at least two weeks.

• Depressed mood, loss of interest or pleasure in activities, weight gain or loss, insomnia or hypersomnia, suicidal ideation, fatigue, feelings of worthlessness, psychomotor changes, and decreased concentration

persistent depressive disorder

presence of symptoms over two years, often milder, but more persistent than episodic. Chronic, long-term depressive symptoms

depressive disorder - possible causes

• biological: neurotransmitter imbalance, genetic predisposition, brain structure/function

• cognition: cognitive triad (self, world, future), attributional style

• behavior: learned helplessness

• sociocultural/environmental: stressful life events, lack of social support, culture and social norms

bipolar disorders

• characterized by cycling moods involving “manic” episodes

• Disruptions in mood along with cognitive and physical symptoms affected by mood.

bipolar - treatment

mood-stabilizing medication and psychotherapy