Week 11 - Psychological Disorders

psychological disorder

syndrome characterized by clinically significant disturbance in cognition, emotion regulation, or behaviour that reflects a dysfunction in psychological, biological, or developmental processes underlying mental functioning

biomedical model on mental disorders

they are brain diseases, not person’s fault, doesnt reduce stigma

biopsychsocial model

health and illness is made up of psychological factors, social conditions, and biological characteristics

diathesis-stress model

mental illness results from an interaction between a pre-existing vulnerability (diathesis) and life experiences (stress)

assessment

examining mental state to diagnose and treat a disorder

evidence based practice

decision-making approach in healthcare, education, and social work that integrates the best available research evidence with practitioner expertise and patient values

comorbidity

presence of two or more chronic diseases or medical conditions in a patient simultaneously

what criteria do psychologists use to determine normal vs abnormal behaviour

maladaptive behaviour, and must interfere with at least 1 important part of persons life

treatment

interactions between practitioner and patient

psychotherapy

service provided by professional, mainly communication and interaction to assess, diagnose, and treat dysfunctions

categories of psychodynamic therapy

humanistic therapy, cognitive behavioural therapy

psychoanalytic therapy

focus on bringing unconscious struggles into consciousness, increases their understanding of their processes

humanistic therapy

encouragement of personal growth through self-understanding

cognitive therapy

attempts to modify maladaptive thought patterns, recognize, challenge, replace

behaviour therapy

attempts to modify maladaptive behaviours and environments that trigger them

examples of behaviour therapy

fear hierarchy, relaxation training, exposure therapy

cognitive behavioural therapy

uses techniques from cognitive and behavioural therapy to correct faulty thinking and change maladaptive behaviours, very successful over long term

psychotropic medication

drugs that affect mental processes

examples of psychotropic medication

anxiolytics, antidepressants, antipsychotics

anxiolytics

treatment of anxiety, benzodiazepines to increase GABA activity

antidepressants

SSRIs, increase serotonin levels

antipsychotics

block dopamine, reduce positive symptoms of schizophrenia (hallucinations/delusions)

schizophrenia

alterations in perceptions, emotions, thoughts, consciousness

positive symptoms

excesses in behaviour

examples of positive symptoms

delusions, hallucinations, disorganized speech, disorganized behaviour

delusions

false personal beliefs based on incorrect inferences about reality

hallucinations

false sensory experiences

disorganized speech

loosening of associations, speech pattern where thoughts are meaningless

disorganized behaviour

abnormal motor behaviour

negative symptoms

deficits in functions

examples of negative symptoms

isolation, withdrawal, apathy, blunted emotion, slow monotonous speech

factors influencing schizophrenia

genetics, frontal lobe dysfunction, environmental stress, cannabis use

treatments for schizophrenia

pharmacological most effective, neuroleptics

bipolar disorders

manic episodes, different subtypes based on nature of manic/depressive episodes

manic episode

elevated mood, increased activity, diminished need for sleep, grandiose ideas, racing thoughts, extreme distractabiltiy

major depressive disorder

depressed mood, physical/cognitive symptoms

most frequently diagnosed disorder

major depressive disorder ~7% of adult pop each year

mdd is more common amongst?

18-29 year old, women

suicide warning signs

mood disorders, recent stressful life events, loses interest in stuff, withdraws from social circles, troubles eating/sleeping

potential causes of depression

learned helplessness, depressive attributional style (blame themselves), heritability, severe stress

what is the heritability of depression

around 40%, genes affecting serotonin function and circadian rhythms

treatment of depression

antidepressants, cognitive-behavioural therapy, phototherapy, aerobic exercise, ECT, DBS

anxiety disorders

excessive anxiety in absence of true danger

common symptoms of anxiety disorders

autonomic system arousal, worry, anxiety, tenseness, restlessness

generalized anxiety disorder

hypervigilance, specific phobias, social anxiety, agoraphobia, panic disorder

causes of anxiety

cognitive factors, threats, bodily sensations, genetics, fear circuitry dysfunction

treatment of anxiety

anxiolytics like xanax to increase GABA, cognitive behavioural therapy, exposure therapy

obsessive compulsive disorder

frequent intrusive thoughts and/or compulsive actions, anticipate catastrophe and loss of control

obsessions

recurrent, intrusive, and unwanted thoughts or ideas or mental images, often include fear of contamination, accidents, or own aggression

compulsions

particular acts that one feels driven to perform over and over again, often include cleaning, checking, counting

causes of ocd

genetics strong, classical and operant conditioning processes

how is ocd linked to conditioning

anxiety paired with an event CC, behaviour linked with relief OC

depressive attributional style

individuals habitually explain negative events with internal, stable, and global causes, I failed because I'm stupid and always fail at everything

cognitive triad

three main areas of dysfunctional, negative thinking in depressed individuals. self, world, future

electroconvulsive therapy

highly effective medical procedure for treatment of severe depression, bipolar disorder. using a brief, controlled electrical current to stimulate the brain, inducing a therapeutic seizure that alters brain chemistry and promotes neuronal growth

deep brain stimulation

surgical treatment involving implanted electrodes that send electrical pulses to specific brain areas, acting as a "pacemaker for the brain" to manage movement and neurological disorders

specific phobias

intense, irrational, and lasting fears of specific objects or situations that pose little actual danger

panic disorder

anxiety disorder characterized by recurrent, unexpected panic attacks

agoraphobia

anxiety disorder characterized by an intense fear of being in situations where escape might be difficult or help unavailable