AP Psych Unit 5 Vocab Set #2

Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD)

an anxiety disorder characterized by unwanted repetitive thoughts and/or actions

Obsessions

persistent ideas, thoughts, or impulses that are unwanted and inappropriate, causing distress

Compulsions

repetitive behaviors or mental acts that are performed to prevent or reduce anxiety

Hoarding Disorder

persistent difficulty discarding or parting with possessions, regardless of their actual value

Dissociative Disorders

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

Dissociation

a splitting off of mental processes into two separate, simultaneous streams of awareness

Dissociative Amnesia

dissociative disorder characterized by the sudden and extensive inability to recall important personal information, usually of a traumatic or stressful nature

Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID)

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

Trauma and Stressor Related Disorders

a group of mental disorders distinguished by their origin in stressful events

Hypervigilance

heightened state of sensory sensitivity to threats

Flashbacks

involuntary re-experiencing of traumatic events

Insomnia

recurring problems in falling or staying asleep

Emotional Detachment

the state of being disconnected from one’s feelings

Hostility

the intentional use of unfriendly or offensive behavior

Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)

a disorder characterized by haunting memories, nightmares, social withdrawal, jumpy anxiety, and/or insomnia that lingers for four weeks or more after a traumatic experience

Feeding and Eating Disorders

disorders characterized by persistent disturbance of eating and behavior, leading to altered consumption of absorption of food that significantly impairs physical health and/or psychosocial functioning

Anorexia Nervosa

eating disorder marked by weight loss through starvation and fear of gaining weight

Bulimia Nervosa

an eating disorder characterized by episodes of overeating, (usually of high-calorie foods) followed by vomiting, laxative use, fasting, or excessive exercise

Personality Disorders

psychological disorders characterized by inflexible and enduring behavior patterns that impair social functioning

Paranoid Personality Disorder (Cluster A)

personality disorder characterized by extreme suspiciousness or mistrust of others

Schizoid Personality Disorder (Cluster A)

a personality disorder characterized by persistent avoidance of social relationships and little expression of emotion

Schizotypal Personality Disorder (Cluster A)

a personality disorder where a person has several traits that cause interpersonal problems (inappropriate affect, paranoid/magical thinking, off beliefs)

Antisocial Personality Disorder (Cluster B)

a personality disorder in which the person (usually a man) exhibits a lack of conscience for wrongdoing, even toward friends and family members

Histrionic Personality Disorder (Cluster B)

a personality disorder characterized by excessive emotionality and preoccupation with being the center of attention; emotional shallowness and overly dramatic behavior

Narcissistic Personality Disorder (Cluster B)

a personality disorder characterized by arrogance and exaggerated ideas of self-importance and achievements; preoccupation with fantasies of success

Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) (Cluster B)

a personality disorder characterized by a lack of stability in interpersonal relationships, self-image, and emotion; impulsivity, angry outbursts, intense fear of abandonment, recurring suicidal gestures

Avoidant Personality Disorder (Cluster C)

a personality disorder characterized by consistent discomfort and restraint in social situations, overwhelming feelings of inadequacy, and extreme sensitivity to a negative evaluation

Dependent Personality Disorder (Cluster C)

a personality disorder characterized by a pattern of clinging and obedience, fear of separation, and an ongoing need to be taken care of

Obsessive-Compulsive Personality Disorder (Cluster C)

personality disorder characterized by preoccupation with orderliness, perfection, and control (distinct from OCD)

Cultural Humility

an acknowledgement of one’s own barriers to true intercultural understanding

Therapeutic Alliance

a bond of trust and mutual understanding between a therapist and client, who work together constructively to overcome the client’s problem

Psychotropic Medication

drugs that treat psychiatric symptoms by restoring neurotransmitter balance

Nonmaleficence

ethical principle of avoiding harm to clients

Fidelity

commitment to confidentiality and truthfulness

Integrity

adherence to moral and ethical principles

Psychodynamic Therapies

treatments that stress the importance of the unconscious mind, extensive interpretation by the therapist, and the role of early childhood experiences in the development of an individual’s problems

Free Association

in psychoanalysis, a method of exploring the unconscious in which the person relaxes and says whatever comes to mind, no matter how trivial or embarrassing

Cognitive Restructuring

a therapeutic approach that teaches clients to question the automatic beliefs, assumptions, and predictions that often lead to negative emotions, and to replace negative thinking with more realistic and positive beliefs

Fear Hierarchies

feared objects, activities, or situations are ranked according to difficulty; they begin with mildly or moderately difficult exposures, then progress to harder ones

Cognitive Triad

the three forms of negative thinking that Aaron Beck theorized lead people to feelings of depression; the triad consists of a negative view of one’s experiences, oneself, and the future

Applied Behavior Analysis

the use of operant conditioning principles to change human behavior

Exposure Therapies

behavioral techniques that treat anxieties by exposing people to the things they fear and avoid

Systematic Desensitization

a type of exposure therapy that associates a pleasant relaxed state with gradually increasing anxiety-triggering stimuli; commonly used to treat phobias

Aversion Therapies

treatment that uses punishment to decrease the frequency of undesirable behaviors

Token Economies

a technique used in behavior therapy to reinforce behavior by giving tokens (that can be exchanged for something desirable) for appropriate behavior

Biofeedback

a system for electronically recording, amplifying, and feeding back information regarding a subtle physiological state, such as blood pressure or muscle tension

Cognitive-Behavioral Therapies

therapy approaches that seek to help clients change both counterproductive behaviors and dysfunctional ways of thinking

Dialectical Behavior Therapy

a form of treatment in which the focus is on getting people to accept who they are regardless of whether it matches their ideals

Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy

a confrontational cognitive therapy that vigorously challenges people’s illogical, self-defeating attitudes and assumptions

Person-Centered Therapy

therapy centering on the client’s goals and ways of solving problems

Active Listening

the therapeutic practice of giving someone your full attention to understand what they are saying, both verbally and nonverbally

Unconditional Positive Regard

a caring, accepting, nonjudgmental attitude, which Carl Rogers believed would help clients to develop self-awareness and self-acceptance

Group Therapy

therapy conducted with groups rather than individuals, permitting therapeutic benefits from group interaction

Hypnosis

a social interaction in which one person (the hypnotist) suggests to another (the subject) that certain perceptions, feelings, thoughts, or behaviors will spontaneously occur

Psychoactive Medication

medications used to change, modify, or alter an individual’s behavior or mood; this general term includes antianxiety, antidepressant, antipsychotic, and hypnotic medications

Antidepressants

drugs that combat depression by affecting the levels of activity of neurotransmitters in the brain

Antianxiety Drugs

a category of drugs that includes barbiturates and benzodiazepines; diminish feelings of anxiety

Lithium

a drug used to treat bipolar disorder, which, at proper maintenance dosage, reduces both manic and depressive episodes

Antipsychotic Medications (Neuroleptics)

prescription drugs that are used to reduce psychotic symptoms; frequently used in the treatment of schizophrenia

Tardive Dyskinesia

a side effect of long-term use of traditional antipsychotic drugs, causing the person to have uncontrollable facial tics, grimaces, and other involuntary movements of the lips, jaw, and tongue

Psychosurgery

surgery that removes or destroys brain tissue in an effort to change behavior

Lesioning

removal or destruction of part of the brain

Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS)

the use of strong magnets to briefly interrupt normal brain activity as a way to study brain regions

Electroconvulsive Therapy

a biomedical therapy for severely depressed patients in which a brief electric current is sent through the brain of an anesthetized patient

Lobotmy

a now-rare psychosurgical procedure once used to calm uncontrollably emotional or violent patients; the procedure cut the nerves that connect the frontal lobes to the emotion-controlling centers of the inner brain

Evidence-Based Interventions

treatments that have been found to be effective on the basis of valid and reliable research studies