Intro to Psych Final

disorder

refers to a state of mental/behavioral ill health

patterns

refers to finding a collection of symptoms that tend to go together, and not just seeing a single symptom

deviant

means differing from the norm

Philippe Pinel

(1745-1826) and others sought to reform brutal treatment by promoting a new understanding of the nature of mental disorders. This person proposed that mental disorders were not caused by demonic possession, but by environmental factors such as stress and inhumane conditions. “Moral treatment” involved improving the environment and replacing the asylum beatings with patient dances. This person’s humane environmental inventions improved lives but often did not effectively treat mental illness.

psychopathology

an illness of the mind, mood disorders (depression, anxiety, and schizophrenia)

The Biopsychosocial Approach

Mental disorders can arise in the interaction between nature and nurture caused by biology, thoughts, and sociocultural environment

culture-bound syndromes

are disorders which only seem to exist within certain cultures; they demonstrate how culture can play a role in both causing and defining a disorder. Examples include Bulimia Nervosa in the US, Running amok in Malaysia, Hikikomori in Japan

Critiques of DSM

• calls too many people “disordered”

• categorical instead of a web

• diagnostic labels direct how we view and interpret the world

GAD: Generalized Anxiety Disorder

Emotional-cognitive symptoms include worrying, having anxious feelings and thoughts about many subjects, and sometimes “free-floating” with no attachment to any subject. Anxious anticipation interferes with concentration. Physical symptoms include autonomic arousal, trembling, sweating, fidgeting, agitation, and sleep disruption.

Panic Attack

• many minutes of intense dread or terror

• chest pains, choking, numbness, or other frightening physical sensations. Patients may feel certain that it’s a heart attack.

• a feeling of a need to escape

Panic disorder

refers to repeated and unexpected panic attacks, as well as a fear of the next attack, and a change in behavior to avoid panic attacks.

Specific Phobia

more than a strong fear or dislike. Diagnosed when there is an uncontrollable, irrational, intense desire to avoid the same object or situation

Agoraphobia

is the avoidance of situations in which one will fear having a panic attack, especially a situation in which it is difficult to get help, and from which it’s difficult to escape.

Social Phobia

refers to an intense fear of being watched and judged by others. It is visible as a fear of public appearances in which embarrassment or humiliation is possible, such as public speaking, eating, or performing

Obsessions

intense unwanted worries, ideas, and images that repeatedly pop up in the mind

compulsion

a repeatedly strong feeling of “needing” to carry out an action, even though it doesn’t feel like it makes sense

distress

when you are deeply frustrated with not being able to control the behaviors

dysfunction

when the time and mental energy spent on these thoughts and behaviors interfere with everyday life

PTSD

about 10 to 35 percent of people who experience trauma not only have burned-in memories, but also four weeks to a lifetime of:

• repeated intrusive recall of those memories

• nightmares and other re-experiencing

• social withdrawal or phobic avoidance

• jumpy anxiety or hypervigilance

• insomnia or sleep problems

observational learning

If you see someone else avoiding or fearing some object or creature, you might pick up that fear and adopt it even after the original scared person is not around. In this way, fears get passed down in families.

cognition

includes worried thoughts, as well as interpretations, appraisals, beliefs, predictions, and ruminations. Includes mental habits such as hyper vigilance (persistently watching out for danger). This accompanies anxiety in PTSD.

Cognitive errors

such as believing that we can predict that bad events will happenI

Irrational beliefs

such as “bad things don’t happen to good people, so if I was hurt, I must be. bad'“

Mistaken appraisals

such as seeing aches as diseases, noises as dangers, and strangers as threats

misinterpretations

of facial expressions and actions of others, such as thinking “they’re talking about me”

serotonin

a neurotransmitter involved in regulating sleep and mood

glutamate

an excitatory neurotransmitter involved in the brain’s alarm centers

Major Depressive disorder (MDD)

• more than just feeling “down”

• more than just feeling sad about something

• depressed mood most of the day, and/or

• markedly diminished interest or pleasure in activities

• significant increase or decrease in appetite or weight

• insomnia, sleeping too much, or disrupted sleep

etc…

Bipolar disorder

was once called “manic-depressive disorder” two polar opposite moods are depression and mania.

• more than just “mood swings”

• depression plus the problematic overly “up” mood called “mania”

Depression

the common cold of disorders, #1 reason why people seek mental health, more accurate view of the world and themselves

Schizophrenia

the mind is split from reality, e.g. a split from one’s own thoughts so that they appear as hallucinations. Includes:

• disorganized and/or delusional thinking

• disturbed perceptions

• inappropriate emotions and actions

Psychosis

refers to a mental split from reality and rationality

Bipolar and Schizophrenia

Highest Genetic Correlation

flat affect

facial/body expression is “flat” with no visible emotional content (associated with Schizophrenia)

catatonia

sitting motionless and unresponsive for hours (associated with Schizophrenia)

personality

An individual’s characteristic patterns of thoughts, feelings, and behaviors [persisting over time and across situations]

Psychodyamnic/Psychoanalytic Theories

These theories of human personality focus on the inner and outer forces that interact to make us who we are

dynamic

interacting, changing

Sigmund Freud

(1856-1939) started his career as a Vienna physician. He decided to explore how mental and physical symptoms could be caused by purely psychological factors. He became aware that many powerful mental processes operate in the unconscious, without our awareness. His name for his theory and his therapeutic technique: psychoanalysis. Three models of psychoanalytic thought!

(i) affect-trauma model, (ii) topographic, drive theory model; (iii) structural model of id, ego, and superego

What are Freud’s three frames of reference? Psychoanalytic thought

free association

A techniques for revealing hidden childhood trauma. Freud encouraged patients to speak whatever comes to mind, then the therapist verbally traces the traumatic roots of adult symptoms.

Freud’s Techniques for revealing the unconscious mind (topographic model)

• free association

• slips of the tongue

• dreams = ‘royal road to the unconscious’

personality

develops from the efforts of our ego, our rational self, to resolve tension between our id, based in biological drives, and the superego, society’s rules and constraints

unconscious

in Freud’s view: a reservoir of thoughts, wishes, feelings, memories, that are hidden from awareness because they feel unacceptable | a stream, not a reservoir

id

is focused on the needs of erogenous zones, sensitive areas of the body. People feel shame about these needs and can get fixated at one stage, never resolve how to manage the needs of that zone’s needs.

ego

In a toddler, this develops, a self that has thoughts, judgements, and memories following a “reality principle”, though still focused on serving the id’s needs. This works as the “executive” of this three-part system, to manage bodily needs and wishes in a socially acceptable way

supergo

a conscience internalized from parents and society, following the ideals of a “morality principle”

Oedipus complex

boys seeing fathers as their rivals, feeling guilt and fearing punishment by castration

regression

a defense mechanism retreating to a more infantile psychosexual stage, where some psychic energy remains fixated. Example: A little boy reverts to the oral comfort of thumb sucking in the car on the way to his first day of school

reaction formation

a defense mechanism switching unacceptable impulses into their opposite. Example: Repressing angry feelings, a person displays exaggerated friendliness

projection

a defense mechanism disguising one’s own threatening impulses by attributing them to others. Example: “The thief thinks everyone else is a thief”

rationalization

a defense mechanism offering self-justifying explanations in place of the real, more threatening unconscious reasons for one’s actions. Example: a habitual drinker says she drinks with her friends “just to be sociable”

displacement

a defense mechanism shifting s3xual or aggressive impulses toward a more acceptable or less threatening object or person. Example: a little girl kicks the family dog after her mother sends her to her room

denial

a defense mechanism refusing to believe or even perceive painful realities. Example: A partner denies evidence of his loved one’s affair

Carl Jung

Highlighted universal themes in the unconscious as a source of creativity and insight. Found opportunities for personal growth by finding meaning in moments of coincidence.

Alfred Adler

Focused on the fight against feelings of inferiority as a theme at the core of personality, although he may have been projecting from his own experience.K

Karen Horney

Criticized the Freudian portrayal of women as weak and subordinate to men. She highlighted the ned to feel secure in relationships.

projective tests

are a structured, systematic exposure to a standardized set of ambiguous prompts, designed to reveal inner dynamics

Abraham Maslow

The Humanistic Perspective. He studied healthy people. In his view, people are motivated to keep moving up a hierarchy of needs, growing beyond getting basic needs met.

humanism

focusing on the conditions that support healthy personal growth

self-actualization

fulfilling one’s potential, and self-transcendence. In this ideal state, a personality includes being self-aware, self-accepting, open, ethical, spontaneous, loving, caring, focusing on a greater mission than social acceptance.

Carl Rogers

Humanism, studied healthy people. This person agreed that people have natural tendencies to grow, become healthy, move toward self-actualization

Genuineness, acceptance, empathy

What is needed in client’s approach and the three conditions that facilitate growth

self-concept

In the humanistic perspective, the core of personality is this, our sense of our nature and identity. People are happiest with this that matches their ideal self.

trait

an enduring quality that makes a person tend to act a certain way. Examples: honest, shy, hard-working.T

trait theory of personality

That we are made up of a collection of traits, behavioral predispositions that can be identified and measured, traits that differ from person to person

factor analysis

identifying factors that tend to cluster together

personality inventory

Questionnaire assessing many personality traits, by asking which behaviors and responses the person would choose

empirically derived test

all test items have been selected to because they predictably match the qualities being assessed

Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI)

designed to identify people with personality difficulties

• T/F questionnaire; items were selected because they correlated with various traits, emotions, attitudes

• Example: depressed people tend to answer “true” to “Nothing in the paper interests me except the comics.”

Big Five Personality Factors

CANOE

• Conscientiousness self discipline, careful pursuit of delayed goals

• Agreeableness helpful, trusting, friendliness

• Neuroticism anxiety, insecurity, emotional instability

• Openness flexibility, nonconformity, variety

• Extraversion drawing energy from others, sociability

defense mechanisms

unacceptable sihes and impulses and how we defend against these feelings by Anna Freud

Maslow’s hierarchy of needs

Bottom to top: physiological needs, safety needs, belonging needs, esteem needs, self-actualization

Albert Bandura

believes that personality is: the result of an interaction that takes place between a person and their social context, involving how we think about ourselves and our situations

reciprocal

a back and forth influence, with no primary cause. Example: a tendency to enjoy risky behavior affects choice of friends, who in turn may encourage rock climbing, which may lead to identifying with the activity

reciprocal determinism

a reinforcing cycle, traits will get reinforced based on interactions with other people and their environment. Example: maybe someone treats Daniel as warm or accepting which makes him happier and will make him smile

Biopsychosocial Approaches to Personality

Biological influences, psychological influences, social-cultural influences

biological influences

• genetically determined temperament

• autonomic nervous system reactivity

• brain activity

psychological influences

• learned responses

• unconscious thought processes

• expectations and interpretations

social-cultural influences

• childhood experiences

• influence of the situation

• cultural expectations

• social support

internal locus of control

we feel that we are in charge of ourselves and our circumstances. Too much of this locus of control: We blame ourselves for bad events, or have the illusion that we have the power to prevent bad events

external locus of control

we picture that a force outside of ourselves controls our fate. Too much of this locus of control: We lose initiative, lose motivation to achieve, have more anxiety about what might happen to us, don’t bother developing willpower

self-control

the ability to control impulses and delay gratification, sometimes called “willpower”

• this is a finite resource

• with practice, it can improve

• there seem to be individual differences in this trait in childhood

  • The Marshmallow study: kids who resisted the temptation to eat marshmallows later had more success in school and socially

learned helplessness

declining to help oneself after repeated attempts to do so have failed.

personal control

when people are given some choices (not too many), they thrive

Martin Seligman

Give a dog no chance of escape from repeated shocks. Result: It will give up trying to escape pain, even when it later has the option to do so

prediction

we can be optimistic or pessimistic this way. We can expect the best or the worst. At the extremes, can get ourselves overconfident or simply depressed or anxious about the future

focus of attention

we can be optimistic or pessimistic this way. We can focus on what we have (half full) or what we don’t have (empty)

attribution of intent

we can be optimistic or pessimistic this way. We can assume that people meant to hurt us or that they were having a bad day

valuation

we can be optimistic or pessimistic this way. We can assume that we or others are useless, or that we are lovable, valuable

potential for change

we can be optimistic or pessimistic this way. We can assume that bad things can’t be changed, or have hope

positive psychology

the scientific study of optimal human functioning, finding ways to help people thrive by Martin Seligman

• Focus: building strengths, virtue, emotional well-being, resilience, optimism, sense of meaning

three pillars of positive psychology

• Emotions

• Character

• Groups, Culture, Institutions

social-cognitive perspective on personality

helps us focus on the interaction of behaviors, thoughts, and social situations

• May distract us from noticing an individual’s feelings, emotions, inner qualities

  • Critics notes traits may be more a function of genetics and upbringing, not just situation

self

the core of personality, the organizer and reservoir of our thoughts, feelings, actions, choices, and attitudes

the spotlight effect

assuming that people have attention focused on you when they actually may not be noticing you (adolescent egocetnrism)

normal or high self-esteem

• increased resistance to conformity pressure

• decreased harm from bullying

• increased resilience and increased self-regulation skills

low self-esteem

even temporarily lowered by insults, leads to problems: prejudice, being critical of others

self-serving bias

we all generally tend to think we are above average. This bias can help defend our self-esteem