PSYC 168 - Exam 1

What are the most common definitions of abnormality?

• Deviance

• Distress

• Dysfunction

• Danger

Deviance

Violates social norms which can change depending on culture leading to misdiagnosis. Some abnormalities are not seen as violating cultural norms.

Distress

Personal suffering

Dysfunction

Abnormality is in the way of pursuing a goal.

Danger

to oneself or to others. Often careless, hostile, desperate or confused.

What are norms?

Stated or unstated rules of conduct

Pathological abnormalities

Thoughts that break norms

What does it mean that the definition of abnormality is elusive?

Criteria used to identify abnormality are vague, subjective, and change across culture and time

What do we believe were some explanations of prehistoric abnormal behavior & how were they treated?

• Ancient Times - demonic spirits / trephining & exorcism

• Greek + Roman Times - 4 humors & internal psychopathology / changing enviroment

• Middle Ages - regression, not trusting science, satan / exorcism, death

4 humors

• Yellow bile → mania

• Black bile → melancholia (treatment: quiet life, veggies, temperance, exercise, celibacy, bleeding)

• Blood

• Phlegm

What revolutionary ideas did Hippocrates bring to the study of psychopathology?

Replaced supernatural explanations of mental illness with somatogenic (biological) theories. Pathological behaviors are a disease coming from internal physical problems (4 humors)

Humoral Theory of Disorders

4 humors in the body that when imbalanced lead to mental illness or pathological BXs

What is mass madness?

Large number of people sharing hallucinations and delusions

Examples of mass madness.

• Tarantism - groups of people started to dance

• Lycanthropy - believed they were possessed by wolves and acted wolf like and imagined fur growing all over their bodies

What was moral treatment?

Approach based on humane psychological care, kindness, and structured routines rather than chains, beatings, and physical punishment

How did Benjamin Rush influence the treatment of mentally ill in the US?

Father of American psychiatry and developed humane hospitals (intelligent and sensitive attendants to read, talk, and walk with patients). Also suggested giving small gifts to pts.

How did Dorothy Dix influence the treatment of mentally ill in the US?

Made humane care a public and political concern. Went to congress and shared horrors of asylums and called for reforms. Campaigns led to new laws and gov funding

Describe the first demonstration of a physical cause of abnormal behavior.

Discovery of syphilis as a cause fro general paresis

Describe the first demonstration of a psychological cause of abnormal behavior.

Hysteria - physical symptoms with no underlying cause

What made deinstitutionalization possible?

A combo of new pharmaceutical treatments, legal & civil rights shifts, and federal jurisdiction

What are the pros of deinstitutionalization?

Personal freedom, community integration, family involvement, reduced stigma

What are the cons of deinstitutionalization?

lack of support services, homelessness, criminalization & incarceration, family burden

What are some criticisms of managed care policies for mental health?

Restricting access to care through aggressive controls, strict prior authorization rules, and inadequate provider

What is the federal parity law?

insurance companies must treat mental health care as physical health care (no high cost, no strict limits, equal approval rules)

How did the Affordable Care Act (ACA) affect mental health care?

Protection of pre-existing conditions, free or lower cost coverage, essential health benefits (drugs, mental maternity, and preventive screenings), Obamacare

What is the difference between psychiatrists, psychologists, social workers and counselors?

• psychiatrists (MD/DD) - provide meds

• Psychologists (PHD/PsyD/EdD) - assessment and therapy

• Social workers (MSW) - therapy and other roles

• Counselors (MFT/MS) - therapy

What is a longitudinal study?

research design that tracks same indivs or variables repeatedly over an extended period of time

What do epidemiological studies tell us?

Reveals how often a problem (ex: psychological disorder) occurs in a population

Explain the difference between prevalence & incidence.

• Prevalence - the total number of cases in the population during a given period (including new and existing cases)

• Incidence - number of new cases that emerge in a population during a given period

Name and describe three important ways experimental design diffs from correlational research methods? What is the purpose of each of these features?

• Manipulation of independent variable - see if IV changes DV

• Random assessment - prevents skewed results

• Control of extraneous variables - eliminates confounding variables

Explain the difference between correlation and causation.

• Correlations - two variables move together

• Causation - one variable changes the other

What is a quasi-experiment?

Research that tests for cause and effect relationships by manipulating IV

Under what conditions are quasi-experiments used?

When true randomized experiments are impossible, impractical, unethical

What is the purpose of IRBs?

Protect the rights, safety, and welfare of participants

What is a model or paradigm? What does it influence?

A set of assumptions and concepts that help scientists explain and interpret observations. Influences what is observed, questions asked, information they seek, and how information is interpreted.

What are the parts of the neuron?

• Dendrites

• Cell body (soma)

• Axonhillock

• Axon

• Myelin sheath

• Nodes of Ranvier

• Axon terminals

• Synapse

Dendrites

Tree like fibers that receive incoming chemical signals from other neurons and carry them toward the cell body

Cell body (soma)

Central control hun containing the nucleus and organelles that maintain cell health and process incoming inputs

Axon hillock

Cone shaped area at the edge of cell body where electrical signals are gathered and initiated

Axon

Long, fiber like tails that conduct electrical impulses (action potentials) away from the cell body toward other cells

Myelin sheath

Fatty insulating layer wrapped around the axon that helps nerve impulses travel much faster

Nodes of Ranvier

Small gaps in myelin sheath where electrical signals jump to speed up transmission

Axon terminals

End of the axon that released chemical messengers (neurotransmitters) into the synapse to communicate with neighboring cells

Synapse

Tiny gap between the axon terminals of one cell and the dendrite of the next

What are neurotransmitters?

Bind to receptors of post-synaptic neuron and are chemical messengers

What is the process of synaptic transmission (how do cells communicate with each other?

Dendrites send signals to axon hillock which then gets to the axon and then it reaches the synapse

Which neurotransmitters are most closely tied to psychological disorders?

• serotonin

• dopamine

• norepinephrine

• GABA

What is the endocrine system?

Endocrine glands throughout the body work with neurons to control growth, reproduction, sexual activity, heart rate, body temp, responses to stress

How does the endocrine system work?

Glands release chemicals (hormones) into blood stream and hormones propel organs into working

What are the messengers in the endocrine system called?

• Hypotthalamus

• Pituitary gland

• Thyroid

• adrenal glands

• Pancreas

Hypothalamus

Master control center in the brain that links nervous system to endocrine system

Pituitary gland

“Master gland” that takes signals from hypothalamus and controls other glands

Thyroid

Metabolism

Adrenal glands

Stress

Pancreas

Blood glands

What is a brain circuit?

Network of brain structures that work together to produce a behavioral, cognitive, emotional reaction

What are the 4 types of psychotropic medications?

• Antidepressants

• Antipsychotics

• Anti-anxiety

• Mood stabilizers

• Stimulants

Antidepressants

• serotonin

• Norepinephrine

Antipsychotics

• dopamine

• Serotonin blockers

Mood stabilizer

Lithium (treats bipolar)

Anti anxiety

Benzos (treats anxiety)

What are 4 types of brain stimulation?

• Electroconvulsive Therapy (ECT)

• transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS)

• Deep brain stimulation

• Vagus nerve stimulation (VNS)

Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT)

Brain seizure is triggered when electrical signals jump current passes through electrodes attached to pts forehead

Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS)

Electric coils attached to pts head sending currents to certain areas of the brain

Vagus nerve stimulation (VNS)

Pulse generator implanted in neck and stimulates vagus nerve so it can deliver info to the brain

Deep brain stimulation

Form of psychosurgery in which electrodes are connected to a pacemaker in the chest and sends pulses to target areas

What is psychosurgery?

Brain surgery for mental disorders (trephining →lobotomy → deep brain stimulation)

What are the pros and cons of the biological model?

Pros

• biological research constantly produces valuable new info and treatments bring relief where others fail

Cons

• limiting understanding of psychopathology

• Some proponents seem to expect all human behavior can be explained in biological terms and treated with biological methods

• Treatments today are capable of producing undesirable effects

How does classical conditioning work?

People learn to respond to a CS the same way as an US as a result of both being paired

What is modeling?

“Observational learning” in which people learn new bxs, values, and attitudes by watching others and repeating

What kind of disorder is linked to classical conditioning?

• Phobias

• Anxiety disorders

• PTSD

• Substance use disorder

How does operant conditioning work?

People learn to behave in a certain way as a result of consequences delivered throughout their environment using reinforcers (positive and negative + reinforcemnt and punishment)

What kind of disorder may be linked to operant conditioning?

OCD

What is the premise of the cognitive model?

Our emotional, behavioral, and physiological reactions are caused by how we interpret and perceive situations rather than by external events themselves

What is the main goal of cognitive therapy?

Help individuals identify, challenge, and replace unhelpful distorted thinking patters and maladaptive behaviors with more balanced, realistic, and adaptive responses

Why is the cognitive-behavioral model so popular and what are some drawbacks?

Pros

• It can be tested in the labs where others cant

• Can be observed and measured

• Impressive research performance of cog-BX therapies

Cons

• precise role of maladaptive BX and disturbed role of cognitive processes has yet to be found

• Might not be helpful for everyone

• Pay too little attention to early life experiences

What is the basic premise of the new wave of cognitive-behavioral therapies?

Acceptance and commitment therapy that help clients accept troubling thoughts rather than judge, act, or try to change them which will allow them to let those thoughts pass without being troubling

What three aspects do family-social theorists focus on to explain abnormal behavior?

• Social labels and roles - BX influenced by labels and roles

• Social connections and supports - direct social environment in which people operate (ties between deficit social connections and psychological dysfunction)

• Family structure and communication - family systems theory (unwritten rules unique to a family)

What kind of therapies fall under the umbrella of the multicultural perspective?

Culturally responsive therapies & affirmative therapy

What is the focus of the multicultural perspective?

The view that each culture in a society has particular values, beliefs, and pressures that influence the BX and functioning of its members

What is the basic assumption of the multicultural process?

Seek to understand how race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, religion, abilities, socioeconomic class, and other factors affect BX, emotion, thoughts and how they differ psychologically

What types of therapies fall under the umbrella of family-social treatments?

• interpersonal psychotherapy

• Group therapy

• Family therapy

• Couples therapy

• Community treatment

What are the strengths and weaknesses of sociocultural models?

Strengths

• added to understanding of psychopathology

• Most used

• More clinicians aware of impact of clinical and social roles

• Treatment usually successful

Weaknesses

• sociocultural research findings are hard to interpret

• Fails to establish a cause

• Inability to predict psychological dysfunction in specific individuals

What is the biopsychosocial model?

Pyschopathology results from interaction of genetic, biological, emotional, behavioral, cognitive, social, cultural, and societal influences

What does it mean if a therapist is eclectic or integrative?

• Eclectic → technique driven

• Integrative → theory driven

• Both use more than one approach

What is equifinality?

The principle that a number of different developmental pathways can lead to same psychological disorder

What is multifinality?

Persons with similar developmental histories may have different clinical outcomes or react to current situations in very different ways

What is the diathesis-stress explanation of abnormal behavior?

Protective factors modify impact of stressors of vulnerability and exposure to environmental stress

Diathesis

Pre-existing vulnerability for disorder either biological or genetic

What does a diagnosis essentially tell us? What should it help the clinician predict?

Tells us what specific condition or disease is causing a pts symptoms and can help predict the future course of the person’s condition and the treatments that are likely to be helpful

What is the DSM and who develops it?

Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders and it is written by the ADA (used by US)

What is the ICD and who develops it?

International Classification of Diseases developed by WHO. It lists both medical and psychological disorders.

What categorical and dimensional information is included in DSM-5-based diagnoses?

The name and symptoms along with how severe those symptoms are and how dsyfunctional a client is across dimensions in personality and BX

What other additional information might be included in a diagnosis?

May indicate other psychosocial conditions client had like relationship distress, family issues

What is reliability?

Likelihood different clinicians are to agree on the diagnosis when they see the same client based on symptoms

What is validity?

Accuracy if the into that it’s diagnostic categories provides

What are some concerns about the DSM-5?

• possible race and gender bias

• Turning normal humans processes into disorders

• Over diagnosis and false positives

• Lack of biological markers

In what ways can diagnosis, and labeling in general, cause harm?

Easily influenced by early info, pay attention to certain info, personal bias can distort opinion, can become a self-fulfilling prophecy, or influence social factors (finding a job)

What does empirically-supported or evidence-based therapy mean?

Treatment has received research support for a disorder and has corresponding treatment guidelines

Why is it so hard to determine whether therapy is effective?

It is hard to define success and there are a variety of treatments because everyone is different