Abnormal Psychology - Substance-Related, Addictive, and Impulse Control Disorders

Flashcards covering key vocabulary and definitions related to substance-related, addictive, and impulse control disorders.

Substance-Related and Addictive Disorders

Range of problems associated with the use and abuse of drugs and other substances people use to alter the way they think, feel, and behave.

Impulse Control Disorders

Disorders in which a person acts on irresistible, but potentially harmful, impulses.

Alcohol Related Disorders

Cognitive, biological, behavioral, and social problems associated with alcohol use and abuse.

Psychoactive Substances

Substances such as drugs that alter mood or behavior.

Substance Use

The ingestion of psychoactive substances in moderate amounts that does not significantly interfere with social, educational, or occupational functioning.

Substance Intoxication

Physiological reaction to ingested substances — drunkenness or getting high.

Substance Use Disorders

How significantly the use of a substance interferes with the user’s life.

Physiological Dependence

The use of increasingly greater amounts of a drug to experience the same effect.

Tolerance

Need for increased amounts of a substance to achieve the desired effect, and a diminished effect with continued use of the same amount.

Substance Dependence

Maladaptive pattern of substance use characterized by negative physical effects when the substance is withdrawn, unsuccessful efforts to control its use; also known as addiction.

Substance Abuse

Pattern of psychoactive substance use leading to significant distress or impairment in social and occupational roles and in hazardous situations.

Depressants

Psychoactive substances that result in behavioral sedation, including alcohol and the sedative, hypnotic, and anxiolytic drugs.

Stimulants

Psychoactive substances that elevate mood, activity, alertness, including amphetamines, caffeine, cocaine, and nicotine.

Opiates

Addictive psychoactive substances such as heroin, opium, and morphine that cause temporary euphoria and analgesia (pain reduction).

Hallucinogens

Any psychoactive substance such as LSD or marijuana that can produce delusions, hallucinations, paranoia, and altered sensory perception.

Gambling Disorder

Persistent and recurrent problematic gambling behavior leading to clinically significant impairment or distress.

Alcohol

The most commonly used and abused depressant substance.

Alcohol Related Disorders

Cognitive, biological, behavioral, and social problems associated with alcohol use and abuse.

Alcohol Use Disorder

A problematic pattern of alcohol use leading to clinically significant impairment or distress.

Withdrawal Delirium

Frightening hallucinations and body tremors that result when a heavy drinker withdraws from alcohol.

Wernicke-Korsakoff Syndrome

Organic brain syndrome resulting from prolonged heavy alcohol use, involving confusion, unintelligible speech, and loss of motor coordination; deficiency of thiamine.

Fetal Alcohol Syndrome

Pattern of problems including learning difficulties, behavior deficits, and characteristic physical flaws resulting from heavy drinking by the victim’s mother when she was pregnant with the victim.

Alcohol Dehydrogenase

Enzyme that helps humans metabolize alcohol.

Anxiolytic Related Disorders

A problematic pattern of sedative, hypnotic, or anxiolytic use leading to clinically significant impairment or distress.

Barbiturates

Sedative drugs including amytal and seconal that are used as sleep aids.

Benzodiazepines

Antianxiety drugs including valium and xanax, also used to treat insomnia.

Stimulant Use Disorder

A pattern of amphetamine-type substance, cocaine, or other stimulant use leading to clinically significant impairment or distress.

Amphetamines

Stimulant medication used to treat hypersomnia by keeping the person awake during the day, and to treat narcolepsy, and suppressing rapid eye movement sleep.

Amphetamine Use Disorders

Significant behavioral symptoms, such as euphoria or affecting blunting (a lack of emotional expression), and impaired social and occupational functioning.

Tobacco-Related Disorders

Cognitive, biological, behavioral, and social problems associated with the use and abuse of nicotine.

Tobacco Use Disorder

A problematic pattern of tobacco use leading to clinically significant impairment or distress.

Caffeine Intoxication

Recent consumption of caffeine, typically a high dose well in excess of 250 mg.

Opioid Use Disorder

Cognitive, biological, behavioral, and social problems associated with the use and abuse of opiates and their synthetic variants.

Cannabis Use Disorder

A problematic pattern of cannabis use leading to clinically significant impairment or distress.

Hallucinogen Use Disorders

Cognitive, biological, behavioral, and social problems associated with the use and abuse of hallucinogenic substances.

Agonist Substitution

Replacement of a drug on which a person is dependent with one that has a similar chemical makeup, an agonist; used as a treatment for substance dependence.

Nicotine

Toxic and addictive substance found in tobacco leaves.

Nicotine Patch

Patch placed on the skin that delivers nicotine to smokers without the carcinogens in cigarette smoke.

Antagonist Drugs

Medications that block or counteract the effects of psychoactive drugs.

Controlled Drinking

An extremely controversial treatment approach to alcohol dependence, in which severe abusers are taught to drink in moderation.

Relapse Prevention

Extending therapeutic progress by teaching the client how to cope with future troubling situations.

Intermittent Explosive Disorder

Episodes during which a person acts on aggressive impulses that result in serious assaults or destruction of property.

Kleptomania

Recurrent failure to resist urges to steal things not needed for personal use or their monetary value.

Pyromania

An impulse control disorder that involves having an irresistible urge to set fires.