AP Psychology Vocab Unit 8 Part 1

Psychological disorder

a syndrome marked by a clinically significant disturbance in an individual’s cognition, emotion regulation, or behavior.

Medical model

the concept that diseases, in this case psychological disorders, have physical causes that can be diagnosed, treated, and, in most cases, cured, often through treatment in a hospital.

Epigenetics

“above” or “in addition to” (epi) genetics; the study of environmental influences on gene expression that occur without a DNA change.

DSM-5

the American Psychiatric Association’s Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition; a widely used system for classifying psychological disorders.

Atention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)

a psychological disorder marked by extreme inattention and/or hyperactivity and impulsivity.

Anxiety disorders

psychological disorders characterized by distressing, persistent anxiety or maladaptive behaviors that reduce anxiety.

Social anxiety disorder

intense fear and avoidance of social situations.

Generalized anxiety disorder

an anxiety disorder in which a person is continually tense, apprehensive, and in a state of autonomic nervous system arousal.

Panic disorder

an anxiety disorder marked by unpredictable, minuteslong episodes of intense dread in which a person may experience terror and accompanying chest pain, choking, or other frightening sensations; often followed by worry over a possible next attack.

Agoraphobia

fear or avoidance of situations, such as crowds or wide open places, where one has felt loss of control and panic.

Phobia

an anxiety disorder marked by a persistent, irrational fear and avoidance of a specific object, activity, or situation.

Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)

a disorder characterized by unwanted repetitive thoughts, actions, or both.

Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD)

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

Major depressive disorder

a disorder in which a person experiences, in the absence of drugs or another medical condition, two or more weeks with five or more symptoms, at least one of which must be either (1) depressed mood or (2) loss of interest or pleasure.

Bipolar disorder

a disorder in which a person alternates between the hopelessness and lethargy of depression and the overexcited state of mania.

Mania

a hyperactive, wildly optimistic state in which dangerously poor judgment is common.

Rumination

compulsive fretting; overthinking our problems and their causes.

Schizophrenia

a disorder characterized by delusions, hallucinations, disorganized speech, and/or diminished, inappropriate emotional expression.

Psychotic disorders

a group of disorders marked by irrational ideas, distorted perceptions, and a loss of contact with reality.

Hallucinations

false sensory experiences, such as seeing something in the absence of an external visual stimulus.

Delusion

a false belief, often of persecution or grandeur, that may accompany psychotic disorders.

Chronic schizophrenia

a form of schizophrenia in which symptoms usually appear by late adolescence or early adulthood. As people age, psychotic episodes last longer and recovery periods shorten.

Acute schizophrenia

a form of schizophrenia that can begin at any age; frequently occurs in response to a traumatic event.

Somatic symptom disorder

a psychological disorder in which the symptoms take a somatic form without apparent physical cause.

Conversion disorder

a disorder related to somatic symptom disorder in which a person experiences very specific, physical symptoms that are not compatible with recognized medical or neurological conditions.

Illness anxiety disorder

a disorder related to somatic symptom disorder in which a person interprets normal physical sensations as symptoms of a disease.

Dissociative disorders

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

Dissociative identity disorder (DID)

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

Personality disorders

inflexible and enduring behavior patterns that impair social functioning.

Antisocial personality disorder

a personality disorder in which a person exhibits a lack of conscience for wrongdoing, even toward friends and family members; may be aggressive and ruthless or a clever con artist.

Anorexia nervosa

an eating disorder in which a person maintains a starvation diet despite being significantly underweight; sometimes accompanied by excessive exercise.

Bulimia nervosa

an eating disorder in which a person’s binge eating is followed by inappropriate weight-loss promoting behavior, such as vomiting, laxative use, fasting, or excessive exercise.

Binge-eating disorder

significant binge-eating episodes, followed by distress, disgust, or guilt, but without the compensatory behavior that marks bulimia nervosa.

Vulnerability (diathesis) stress model

Genetic predispositions combine with environmental stressors increase or decrease the likelihood of developing a disorder

Persistent depressive disorder (dysthymia)

Mild depressive symptoms that last shorter. Must have 2 of the symptoms for 2 or more years.

Bipolar I

More mania, less depressed

Bipolar II

More depressed, less mania (hypomanic)

Negative explanatory style

Increases depression

Positive symptoms

The presence of inappropriate symptoms

Negative symptoms

The absence of appropriate symptoms

Disorganized speech

Jumbled ideas that may make no sense even with sentences

Flat state (schizophrenia)

A state of no apparent feelings

Catatonia (schizophrenia)

Motor behaviors ranging from stupor to excitement

Stupor

Remaining motionless for hours

Excitment

Nonstop motion for hours

Dissociative amnesia

not remembering what happens when you dissociate

Dissociative fugue

Where a person wanders away from their home and usual surrounding

Cluster A: Eccentric or odd

Paranoid, schizoid, and schizotypal personality disorder

Cluster B: Dramatic or impulsive

Borderline personality disorder, narcissistic personality, antisocial personality disorder, and histrionic personality disorder

Cluster C: Anxiety

Avoidant personality disorder, dependent personality disorder, and obsessive compulsive personality disorder

What activity is low for people with antisocial disorder?

Amygdala and autonomic system

Dependent personality disorder

An intense, excessive need to be cared for, leading to submissive, clingy behavior and fear of abandonment

Histrionic Personality Disorder

excessive emotionality and attention-seeking behavior that begins by early adulthood

Borderline personality disorder

intense, unstable emotions, moods, and relationships, alongside impulsivity and a distorted self-image