Week 6- child psychopathology

Developmental Psychopathology

An integrative framework that views mental health through the lens of human development.

Developmental Principle

Understanding psychopathology requires studying it as a developmental process of change and variation over the life course.

Systems Principle

Individuals are viewed as living systems where development emerges from interactions across multiple levels—from neurobiological to cultural.

Multiple-Levels Principle

Psychopathology is influenced by processes occurring at various levels (e.g., genetic, family, societal) simultaneously or sequentially.

Normative Principle

To identify what is 'abnormal,' one must first understand normative development for a given age, culture, and historical period.

Mutually Informative Principle

The study of typical development informs the study of psychopathology, and vice versa.

Microsystem

Direct interactions (e.g., family, school, peers).

Mesosystem

Interactions between microsystems (e.g., parent-teacher relationships).

Exosystem

Indirect environments (e.g., a parent's workplace or mass media).

Macrosystem

Broad cultural ideologies, laws, and health care systems.

Chronosystem

The influence of historical time and transitions over the life course.

Equifinality

Different initial pathways or risk factors can lead to the same outcome (e.g., trauma, harsh parenting, or deviant peers all leading to Conduct Disorder).

Multifinality

A single risk factor or starting point can lead to different outcomes (e.g., childhood trauma leading to PTSD, depression, or conduct problems).

Developmental Cascades

The 'snowballing' effect where changes in one domain spread to others over time.

Continuity of Psychopathology

The stability or change of disorders over time.

Homotypic Continuity

The manifestation of the same disorder remains stable over time.

Heterotypic Continuity

The underlying pathology stays the same, but the symptoms change as the child develops (e.g., childhood separation anxiety evolving into adult panic disorder).

Vulnerability

A biologically-based trait (e.g., genetic predisposition or difficult temperament) that increases susceptibility to psychopathology in the face of risk.

Risk Factors

Environmental circumstances (e.g., poverty, community violence, parental mental illness) that increase the likelihood of maladaptation.

Resilience

The capacity of a system to adapt successfully despite significant challenges or trauma.

Protective Factors

Common factors that promote resilience include good intellectual functioning, self-efficacy, authoritative parenting, and stable relationships with adults.

Neurodevelopmental Disorders

Disorders that typically manifest early in development and are characterized by developmental deficits that impair personal or social functioning.

Intellectual Developmental Disorder (IDD)

Requires deficits in both intellectual functions (reasoning, learning) and adaptive functioning (independence, social responsibility).

Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)

Defined by persistent deficits in social communication and restricted, repetitive patterns of behavior or interests.

ADHD

A persistent pattern of inattention and/or hyperactivity-impulsivity that interferes with development.

Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD)

Characterized by an angry/irritable mood, argumentative behavior, or vindictiveness.

Conduct Disorder (CD)

A more severe pattern involving aggression toward people/animals, destruction of property, deceitfulness, or serious rule violations.

Parenting Practices

Factors like low supervision, inconsistent discipline, and positive reinforcement of challenging behaviors are major contributors to conduct disorders.

Developmental Tasks

Assessment must consider whether a child is meeting age-appropriate milestones, such as attachment in infancy, academic skills in middle childhood, or autonomy in adolescence.

Timing of Intervention

There are windows of opportunity (e.g., preschool years for self-regulation or puberty for affective changes) where the brain shows greater plasticity and interventions may be more effective.

Targeting

Effective programs often combine competence promotion (boosting strengths) with psychopathology prevention (reducing symptoms).

Neurodiversity Paradigm

There is an increasing shift toward recognizing the strengths of neurodivergent individuals and focusing on the 'goodness of fit' between the individual and their environment.