DEFINING AND SUPPORTING PSYCHOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENT

PSYCH, sac 2

what is typical behaviour

behaviour that would usually (‘typically’) occur and is appropriate and expected in a give situation

what is a atypical behaviour

Behaviour that is not typical and differs markedly in some way from what is expected in a give situation

How may typical/atypical behaviour be categorised?

does the behaviour violate social norms?
Is the behaviour maladaptive?
Does the behaviour cause personal distress?
Is the behaviour statistically rare?

Is the behaviour culturally appropriate?

List the psychological criteria for categorising behaviour

Social norms

Statistical rarity

Personal distress

Maladaptive behaviours

Cultural perspectives

What are cultural perspectives and what do they involve

Cultural perspectives are the influence of society and community on one’s thoughts.

Cultural perspectives involve the awareness of:

Different customs, beliefs and traditions

Different rules and etiquette

Attitudes towards the importance of mental health.

What are social norms?

Social norms are widely held standards that govern what people should and should not do in different situations, especially in relation to others.
They are unwritten, but widely understood within a society or group, and help us to judge what is typical.

Strengths & limitations of using Social Norms as a way to categorise behaviour as typical or atypical.

Strengths: acts as a baseline to compare behaviours to, allowing relatively easy identification of atypicality.

Limitations: social norms can depend on situations or contexts, therefore it is important to take external factors into account for classifying behaviour, which can require effort.

What are the strengths and limitations of cultural perspectives for classifying behaviour as atypical or typical?

Strengths: enables different cultural contexts to be taken into account

Limitations: can allow for a collective evaluations of behaviour rather than an individual evaluation.

In multicultural society, it can be difficult to isolate certain cultural influences on behaviour.

What is statistical rarity?

Statistical rarity is something that lies outside the range of statistical normality and is also unusual enough to be considered significant.

What are the strengths and limitations of statistical rarity

Strengths: provides an objective perspective, allowing for a more accurate way to categorise behaviours as typical or atypical

Limitations: not all statistical rarities are damaging or negative

Can be difficult to understand and apply to an abstract concept, such as behaviour and can lead to miscategorisation

What is distress?

A strong, natural emotional response to certain events
Reasonable & fits cultural norms = typical
Intense, long lasting, and affects daily functioning = may be atypical & concerning

Strengths and Limitations of using Personal distress to determine behaviour as typical versus atypical

Strengths: can be used as an indicator when cultural, social, and statistical measures are not applicable or appropriate
Can provide visual indication someones is behaving in a way that is uncommon for them

Limitations: Can hide personal distress, causing difficulty identifying atypical behaviours

What is adaptive behaviour?

Adaptive behaviour is any behaviour that enables the individual to adjust to the environment appropriately and effectively.

Helps a person manage daily tasks & responsibilities

What is maladaptive behaviour?

Maladaptive behaviour is any behaviour that is detrimental, counterproductive or otherwise interferes with the individual’s ability to successfully adjust (‘adapt’) to the environment and fulfil their typical roles in society.

Interferes: with daily functioning and coping: desision-making hygiene, sleep, eating, school, relationships

Violate social & cultural norms.

S & L of maladaptive behavior being used to define behaviour as atypical or typical

Strengths: Enables the consideration of the consequences of behaviour. 

Limitations: What is considered maladaptive behaviour can change depending on who is judging the behaviour

Define normality

Normality has been suggested as a person who is able to perform everyday tasks at the level required of society free from maladaptive behaviour.

Define abnormaility

Abnormality is any deviation from what is considered normal, typical, usual or healthy.

What is neurotypicallity?

Neurotypicality is used to describe people whose neurological development and cognitive functioning are atypical, conforming to what of people would consider to be normal in the general population.

What is an intellectual disability?

Is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterised by mild to profound limitations in cognitive abilities and in skills required to function independently in everyday life.

What is neurodivergence

Neurodivergence is an umbrella term that covers all psychological disorders involving some kind of neurological disturbance due to either hereditary influences, environmental influence or a combination of both.

From the neurodiversity perspective how should each neurological disorder be considered?

From the neurodiversity perspective, each condition should be considered as a neurological disorder involving normal variation inbrain development.

What is autism

autism is a neurodevelopmental disorder that affects the way people communicate and interact with others and the world.

How is autism disagnoised?

Autism is diagnosed when a person displays a pattern of behaviour involving persistent difficulties interacting and communicating with others and more highly restricted or repetitive behaviours.

What is typical characteristics for people with autism in relation to social interaction?

There is likely to be little or no response to social interaction

Little or no initiation of social interaction or sharing of emotion

Many autistic infants do not demonstrate typical behaviours associated with secure attachment.

They tend to make very little eye contact, and generally do not respond to hugging when held.

Children with autism are unlikely to engage in pretend or interactive play instead having a preference for a small range of toys

What is associated with social communication in people with autism?

People with autism may have delayed speech development, limited language skills and a limited range of facial expressions.

Are behaviours associated with autism predominantly maladaptive or adaptive?

Many behaviours associated with autism are predominantly maladaptive so they are often severe enough to cause impairment in everyday life.

What is a spectrum?

A spectrum is used to represent the position of something on a scale between two extreme points.

What are the risks and contributing factors of autism developing?

There is no known single cause of autism. Research suggests that autism results from changes to the development of the brain.

Biological factors:

physical/chemical changes in the developing brain before birth or early infancy, as well as genetic inheritance of autism is suggested.

psychological and social factors: is apart of individual differences.

What is ADHD

Attention deficit hyperactivity disorders (ADHD) is a disorder involving persistent pattern of inattention, and/or hyperactive-impulsive behaviour that adversely affects development or everyday functioning.

What are the Characteristics of ADHD?

Inattention

Hyperactivity

Impulsivity

How does inattention present in ADHD.

Inattention associated with ADHD means the individual has significant difficulty maintaining their attention on tasks that do not provide high level of stimulation or are frequently rewarding in some way.

How does hyperactivity present in ADHD.

Hyperactivity refers to excessive motor activity and difficulties with remaining still, most evident in structured situations that require behavioural self-control.

How does Impulsivity present in ADHD.

Impulsivity s a tendency to act on the spur of the moment in response to immediate stimuli, without a plan or consideration of the outcomes. Impulsive people act before they think

what must be present in order to get diagnosed for ADHD?

The pattern of inattentiveness, hyperactivity and impulsivity must be present for at least six months and have caused impairment in everyday social and school or work settings before a diagnosis of ADHD is given.

Risks and contributing factors towards ADHD.

ADHD is caused by a mix of genetic and environmental factors.
Brain development differences neurotransmitter imbalances and responses to sensory input are involved.

Other risks, include low birth weight, premature birth, and prenatal exposure to substances,

Define disability

Disability is any impairment that makes it significantly more difficult for a person to undertake everyday activities.

Define learning disability

A learning disability is any disorder that impairs learning and results in the person learning with greater difficulty than a person without the disorder.

May result from physical issue like hearing or vision problems.
With the right support individuals with learning difficulties can often reach age-appropriate levels.

Learning disability vs learning difficulty

A learning disability is long-term and ongoing, whilst a learning difficulty is usually short-term and can change with circumstances.

What is dyselxia?

Dyslexia is a learning disability characterised by significant difficulties with accurate and fluent word reading, spelling and writing words.

What are the different types of dyslexia.

Developmental dyslexia is present from birth and lifelong, whilst acquired dyslexia (or alexia) results from brain injury or damage.

What is dyscalculia

Dyscalculia is a condition that affects the ability to acquire mathematical concepts and skills

What is dyspraxia

Dyspraxia is a condition that affects physical coordination and sometimes speech. It can be developmental (present from childhood) or acquired (due to brain injury or neurological conditions).

What is a psychologist?

A psychologist is a professional trained in the science of how people think, feel and behave, must complete 6 years of university training, supervised practical experience, and ongoing education.

A referral is not needed to see a psychologist.

What is a psychiatrist?

A psychiatrist is a qualified medical doctor who has obtained additional qualifications to become a specialist in the diagnosis and treatment of mental illnesses. This involves at least 11 years of study, usually more.

Can prescribe medication and a referral is needed to see a psychiatrist.

What is assesment?

Assessment involves collecting and interpreting information about how a person, thinks, feels and behaves in order to make a diagnosis so that appropriate treatment can be provided.

Biological, psychological and social factors will be considered.

What are the stages of treating neurodivergence.

Interviews, Behavioural observations, Psychological testing,

Assessment

Diagnosis

Treatment

Ongoing assessment (linked to treatment)

What is a clincial interview

Conduct a face to face interview with a person to explore and understand the presenting problem.

Mental health professional will ask free- and fixed-response questions about the person’s concerns and symptoms, their current and past thoughts, feelings and behaviour, their family history, school or work experiences, and other relevant life experiences.

What are behavioural observations?

Behavioural observations are when the mental health professional will watch for cues and expressive behaviours that may have diagnostic significance.

What are psychological tests?

Psychological tests are a wide variety of valid reliable, ‘standardised’ tests devised for people of all ages and abilities are available.

what is a diagnosis?

Diagnosis is the process of identifying the type of disorder affecting an individual on the basis of its signs and symptoms, through the use of assessment techniques and other available evidence.

What is the DSM?

The DSM provides a system for classifying and diagnosing mental disorders based on recognisable sign and symptoms.

What is the diagnostic criteria?

The diagnostic criteria includes signs and symptoms that help identify a particular disorder.

What is the categorical approach used in the DSM.

The categorical approach used in the DSM, classifies mental disorder by placing symptoms into specific categories

What is the dimensional approach?

The dimensional approach views symptoms along a continuum, focusing on how much a person is affected rather than whether they meet strict criteria.

what type of classification is this:
Does this person have anxiety? - yes/no

Categorical classification.

What type of classification is this?
Where does the person’s anxiety fall on a continuum of measurement?
Slightly anxious. moderately anxious. extremely anxious

Dimensional classification

Why is the term labelling used?

The term labelling is used in mental health to describe the process of classifying an individual according to a specific diagnostic category.

What is a concern with labelling?

A major concern with labelling is that it can lead to stigma- social disapproval or disgrace

What is social stigma?

Social stigma

involves negative community attitudes, leading to fear, exclusion, and discrimination against those with mental disorders

what is self stigma

Self-stigma happens when a person internalises social disapproval or disgrace views, leading to low self-estee