Unit 5 AP Psychology

Understanding, classifying, and treating mental disorders.

Health Psychology

Studies how behavior and mental disorders influence health and illness. They ask how habits affect disease risk

Stress

Process of responding to a percieved threat or challenge (stressor).

Effects of Chronic Stress

Hypertension (high blood pressure); Immune Suppression (getting sick more often). Studied often in health psychology as impacts of stress

Eustress

Positive, motivating stress that leads people to achieve goals or focus

Distress

Overwhelming, negative stress that doesn’t result in change

Traumatic Stressors

Major events (ACEs, trauma) that cause stress

Daily hassles

Small, repeated frustrations that cause stress; can be damaging if they build up

General Adaptation Syndrome

The body responds to stress with an alarm reaction (fight, flight, freeze), before resisting the stressor (trying to cope with the stressor), and finally remaining exhausted as a result

Tend-And-Befriend Theory

Some people, especially women, respond to stress by tending to others and befriending support. They decide to learn to heal, and this response is linked to social attachment systems

Coping

How we respond to stress: do we try to solve the problem with action (problem-focused), or do we try to change the response to it (emotion-focused)?

Positive Psychology

The studying of well-being, resilience, and psychological health; aka how people can become the best version of themselves through positive thinking

Gratitude

Expressing gratitude increases subjective (personal) well-being, therefore increasing life satisfaction

Values in Action Classification

People are happier when they stick to their signature strengths; aka understanding their core CHARACTER strengths like wisdom, courage, humanity, justice, temperance, and transcendence

Posttramatic Growth

Positive psychological changes that occur as a result of truama: people work through trauma and learn to grow rather than dwell in saddness. This is impacted by social support and coping strategies

Classification of Disorders

Dysfunction (emotions and thoughts that interfere with life), Distress (emotional response), and Deviating From Social Norms (violating cultural expectations)

DSM

The US uses the DSM-5 to diagnose and understand the statistics behind mental disorders. This system is usually updated

Pros and Cons of Diagnosis

Pros: Access to treatment and insurance, reducing self-blame, and builds understanding

Cons: Stigma, discrimination, and cultural bias

Electic Approach

The approach that suggests that there are many psychological perspectives that classify mental disorders instead of one factor

Behavioral Perspective

Focuses on maladaptive behaviors, learned associations, and avoidance behaviors strengthened by negative reinforcement. Focuses on changing behavior

Psychodynamic Perspective

Focuses on unconscious conflicts, ACEs, and defense mechanisms (Freud-influence)

Humanistic Perspective

Focuses on lack of growth as a result of unmet needs. Low self esteem, lack of validation, and being disconnected from society. Focuses on reaching full potential

Cognitive Perspective

Focuses on maladaptive thoughts, distorted thoughts. Focuses on changing the thinking to change the disorder.

Biological Perspective

Focuses on neurotransmitter imbalances, structural brain indifferences, and genetic vulnerability that may cause disorders.

Sociocultural Perspective

Focuses on how social factors may lead to distress → environments shape distress

Evolutionary Perspectives

Focus on behavior that reduce survival or reproductive success. Traits that once helped survival can now cause dysfunction in a modern sense

Biopsychological Model

Mental disorders are a combo of biological, psychological and social factors

Diathesis Stress Model

Diathesis = vulnerability/predisposition; and stress = environmental trigger

ADHD (Attention Deficit Disorder)

A disorder characterized by inattentive, hyperactive, and/or behavior that impacts functioning

ASD (Autism Spectrum Disorder)

Deficit in social communication, as well as repetive and restricted behaviors. Occurs across a spectrum

Causes of ASD and ADHD

These are both behavioral disorders, and they are characterized by genetic influences, biological differences in brain development, and environmental ones like prenatal impacts

Positive Symptoms of Schizophrenia

Positive symptoms are not GOOD, they ADD impacts. These include adding delusions, hallucinations, and adding incomprehensible speech

Negative Symptoms of Schizophrenia

Negative symptoms are not BAD, they REMOVE impacts. These include reduced emotional expression (Flat affect), and lack of movement (catatonic stupor)

Causes of Schizophrenia

Overactive dopamine in systems, as well as prenatal stressors/genetics

Depressive Disorders

MDD: Depressed mood, loss of interest, and energy changes that impact daily life. Persistent Depressive Disorder (PDD) is different because it is chronnic and mild

Causes of Depression

Biological factors, cognitive patterns, socio-cultural stressors, and behavioral ones like learned helplessness

Bipolar Disorders

Toggle between cycles of mania and depression. BP1 = mania and depression, BP2 = hypomania (less severe) and depression cycles

Agoraphobia

Fear of being in situations without escape (EX; crowds)

Panic Disorder

Recurrent, unexpected panic attacks; can be culturally bound (ataque de nervios).

Social Anxiety Disorder

Fear of being judged when out in public; can be culturally bound (tajin kyofusho).

Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD)

Chronic worry that affects life

Causes of Anxiety Disorders

Learned associations (classical conditioning), maladaptive thinking, genetics

Obsessive Compulsive and Related Disorders

Defined by obsessions (intrusive thoughts) and compulsions (repetitive behaviors to minimize/push away thoughts).

Causes of OCD and related disorders

Classical conditioning, negative reinforcement during operant conditioning, serotonin invovlement, genetics. These thoughts are unwanted and distressing, and these associations aren’t random

Dissociative Amensia

Memory loss for traumatic info. Comes with travel/loss of identity (fugue)

Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID)

Two or more identity states are present due to trauma

Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)

Follows after exposure to trauma for some people. Includes hyperviligence, flashbacks, avoidance, and emotional detachment

Eating Disorders

Anorexia nervosa (avoiding food) and bulimia nervosa (binge eating, compensatory behavior).

Causes of Eating Disorders

Biological predisposition, cultural pressure, and cognitive distortions surrounding food and body image

Cluster A Personality Disorders

Includes odd/ecentric behavior (Paranoia, schizoid)

Cluster B Personality Disorders

Includes dramatic/erratic behavior (borderline, histronic, narcissistic)

Cluster C Personality Disorders

Includes anxious/fearful behavior (OCPD, avoidant). OCPD is different than OCD because it is personality, not association based.

Causes of Personality Disorders

Genetic vulnerability; trauma (early life experiences) and social factors

Psychotherapy

A type of therapy that emphasizes psychological methods to treat emotional/behavioral problems over JUST medical intervention. Usually is evidence-based, builds a strong therapeutic alliance, and maintains cultural humility between patient-therapist

Deinstitutionalization

A movement in the 1950s that emphasized releasing patients from psychiatric hospitals. This was done because of effective psychotropic medications, ethical concerns, and community-based care implemented

Nonmalefience

Ethical principle in treatment: treatment should do no harm

Fidelity

Ethical principle in treatment: keep committments and maintain trust

Integrity

Ethical principle in treatment: Honest and accurate treatment

Psychodynamic Therapy

Focuses on unconscious mind; tells patients to say what comes to mind and interpret dreams

Cognitive Therapy

Targets maladaptive thinking; restructures irrational thoughts (cognitive restructuring) and ranks fears (fear hierarchies)

Cognitive Triad

Connects the views between the world, oneself, and the future in cognitive therapy.

Behavioral Therapy and Applied Behavior Analysis

Focuses on conditioning by systemic desensitization, aversion therapy, token economies, and biofeedback.

Systemic Desensitization

Creates a fear hierarchy; pairs gradual exposure with relaxation techniques. (Behavioral Therapy)

Aversion Therapy

Pairing unwanted behavior with unpleasant stimuli (Behavioral Therapy)

Token economies

Reinforcing desired behaviors with tokens to encourage them (Behavioral Therapy)

Biofeedback

Monitoring body signals and trains control (Behavioral Therapy)

Dialetical Behavior Therapy (DBT)

Emotional regulation, leads to distress tolerance (used for borderline personality disorder), a type of CBT

Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy (REBT)

Challenges irrational beliefs, emphasizes interpretation that causes emotion, a type of CBT

Humanistic Therapy

Centered around a person. Features active listening, unconditional positive regard

Hypnosis

Used to manage pain and reduce anxiety. Not supported is memory recovery or age regression. It can cause confidence in inaccurate memory

Antidepressants

Targets serotonin and norepinephrine deficiency

Antianxiety drugs

Target GABA for relaxation

Lithium

Mood stabilizer for bipolar disorder

Antipsychotics

Dopamine blockers. Can lead to tardive dyskinesia (involuntary movement) as a side effect

Psychosurgery

Leisoining brain areas that are damaged. An outdated version of this is lobotomy

ECT

Controlled seizures for severe depression

TMS

Magnetic stimulation, noninvasive