Abnormal Psychology Module 1-Portage

What is a mental disorder?

A mental disorder is a syndrome characterized by clinically significant disturbance in an individual’s cognition, emotion regulation, or behavior that reflects a dysfunction in the psychological, biological, or developmental processes underlying mental functioning. Mental disorders are usually associated with significant distress or disability in social, occupational, or other important activities

(Point 1) What is clinically significant disturbance?

This means that the individual is greatly bothered by the disorder, such that they need clinical care. The disorder is causing the person significant distress that is interfering with everyday functioning.

(Point 2) What is Dysfunction...underlying mental functioning?

Dysfunction indicates that mental processes are not working well. By definition, "dysfunction" means that something is not operating normally or properly; that is, there is "impaired of abnormal functioning"

What else is significant about the DSM definition of a psychological disorder?

An expectable or culturally approved response to a common stressor or loss, such as the death of a loved one, is not a mental disorder. Socially deviant behavior (e.g. political, religious, or sexual) and conflicts that are primarily between the individual and society are not mental disorders unless the deviance or conflict results from a dysfunction in the individual, as described above

If points 1 and 2 are occurring, is there evidence of a psychological disorder?

yes

What did Hippocrates write about?

Epilepsy in a treatise called, "The Sacred Disease." His work showcases how Greek physicians didn't separate mental and physical disorders, but viewed them as one and the same.

What did ancient Greek physicians write about?

psychiatric symptoms such as hallucinations, delusions, and inappropriate behavior. Treatment emphasized counseling and physical restraint rather than the use of pharmaceuticals

What did Hippocrates create a theory about?

the "four humors": blood, yellow bile, black bile, and phlegm. Yellow bile was associated with mania, while black bile was associated with depression. Hippocrates recommended that treatment for both physical and psychological disorders seek to restore a balance between the four humors.

What did Galen (130-200 A.D.) emphasize?

four categories of mental illness: frenzy, mania, melancholy, and fatuity (or, foolishness). Like Hippocrates, Galen's recommendation for treatment of any of these conditions was to balance the humors.

What was a common treatment of both physical and psychological disorders?

blood-letting

What is the most famous "mad house"?

St. Mary of Bethlehem, established in 1247 for the mentally ill. Due to overcrowding, chaos reigned. Inmates lived in terrible conditions, often chained like criminals.

Where does the term "bedlam" come from?

nickname of St. Mary's

What is an issue that continues today?

The issue of where to safely house individuals who are a danger to themselves and others and yet do so in a humane manner, emphasizing treatment and support rather than incarceration

What model are we using for psychological disorders?

the medical model; This model views mental disorders as being similar to physical disorders. That is, there is particular, often physical, cause to a psychological disorder. Signs and symptoms can be clustered together and patterns discerned. Someone who has the same pattern of symptoms as someone else is said to have the same disorder. Labeling the disorder with a particular name (such as schizophrenia or obsessive-compulsive disorder) enables a diagnostic code to be used that can then inform treatment.

Do clinical psychologists also use the medical model like psychiatrists?

yes

What are the 4 approaches to psychological disorders?

Humanistic, Psychodynamic, Cognitive and Behavioral, Sociocultural

What is the humanistic approach to psychological disorders?

Humanistic therapists emphasize a wellness model rather than a medical model. That is, the emphasis in humanistic therapy is on becoming the best version of yourself, rather than focusing on pathology. Therefore, a humanistic approach to psychotherapy is likely to de-emphasize someone's particular diagnosis and instead emphasize the process of reaching one's potential. Humanistic approaches also advocate for more community-based models of treatment, compared to clinical models.

What is the psychodynamic approach to psychological disorders?

Sigmund Freud is a particularly famous name affiliated with the psychodynamic approach. The psychodynamic approach emphasizes the role of early life experiences as well as patterns of emotions and beliefs in the development of psychological problems.

What is the cognitive and behavioral approaches to psychological disorders?

This approach emphasizes peoples' perceptions. That is, one's perceptions of something influence how one responds. For instance, if a situation is perceived as being very threatening, one might respond with anxiety or fear. But, if the lens could be changed such that the situation was no longer viewed as being threatening, the response could change. Therefore, therapies like cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) focus on changing behaviors as well as changing perceptions.

What is the sociocultural approach to psychological disorders?

A sociocultural approach brings an important reminder that psychological disorders need to be considered in cultural contexts. Culture influences whether people report psychological symptoms and, if they do, which symptoms to emphasize. For instance, a patient may present with somatic (physical) symptoms before they describe any psychological symptoms, and the reason for this may be due to their gender, culture, or age. One strong example of culture influencing psychological disorders is the worldwide incidence rate of major depression, which varies fairly widely across countries. This variation is most likely due to sociocultural causes of depression, such as poverty and violence, particularly since heritability of depression isn't as strong as with schizophrenia or bipolar disorder.

What is neurosis?

The term “neurosis” was used particularly by therapists in the psychodynamic tradition to refer to behavioral and psychosomatic (or, the experience of physical symptoms as a result of psychological causes) symptoms arising from the ego’s attempts to deal with conflicts with the id. However, diagnoses today typically do not focus on neuroses and instead focus on the specific disorder in question, such as panic disorder or bipolar disorder. Neurotic (or, someone with a neurosis), therefore, is a carry-over term from when neuroses were widely discussed and diagnosed. In psychology today, we still use the term neuroticism to refer to a dimension of personality. Neuroticism is one of the Big Five personality traits. Those who score high on neuroticism respond strongly to stressors with negative emotions such as anger, fear, and envy. These individuals may be more likely to be diagnosed with a psychological disorder.

What is psychosis?

Psychosis is a term that is still widely used today in clinical psychology and psychiatry. It refers to a condition in which someone’s emotional and cognitive impairment is so great that the individual loses touch with reality. A psychotic break or a psychotic episode, then, is when someone is experiencing psychotic symptoms. These include delusions (false beliefs, such as thinking that the CIA is searching for you when that is not the case) and hallucinations (seeing or hearing things that other people do not see or hear). Sometimes people discuss psychosis as if it is a permanent state for people, but “psychotic episode” is a more accurate way of describing what occurs. For most individuals experiencing psychosis, the symptoms come and go. There are a number of psychological disorders for which psychosis is a potential symptom. It is important to note that having a psychotic episode is not the same thing as being a psychopath.

What is psychopathy?

Psychopathy is a developmental disorder—that is, it starts early in life—and is marked by a reduction in guilt and empathy for others, as well as an increased risk for antisocial behavior. Antisocial behavior is the opposite of prosocial behavior and has to do with acts intended to harm people or animals.

What is insanity?

Finally, insanity is also a term that is widely used today, but it is primarily used in a legal sense. There is no “insanity” diagnosis in the DSM. Again, if someone is having a marked break with reality, “psychosis” would be the symptom rather than “insanity.” It is common to hear people in everyday life talking about the “definition of insanity.” However, neither psychologists nor psychiatrists came up with this definition.

What is the DSM-5?

Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, DSM-5. It took 12 years to develop the DSM-5, which followed a line of manuals of mental disorders that had been published starting in 1844. The DSM-5 went into print in 2013. The team that developed DSM-5 was comprised of physicians, psychologists, social workers, nurses, neuroscientists, statisticians, and counselors, among other professionals.

What are the major concerns with “labeling” in psychological disorders? How can these concerns be addressed?

Labelling focuses on the disorder instead of the person and can increase the stigma a person experiences. Person-first language (e.g, “person with schizophrenia” rather than “schizophrenic”) can help avoid labels.