Abnormal Psychology and Mental Health Review

A set of vocabulary flashcards covering psychological models, mood disorders, dissociative disorders, anxiety disorders, and suicide risk factors.

The Four D's

The four criteria used in defining abnormality: Distress, Deviance, Dysfunction, and Danger.

Psychodynamic Model

A model of psychological functioning that focuses on the past, childhood experience, and the unconscious.

Biological Model

A model proposing that psychological illnesses are rooted in malfunctioning biological systems.

Humanistic-Existential Model

A model focused on helping individuals meet their full potential with the guidance of a therapist.

Cognitive Behavioral Model

A model that seeks to modify thoughts and behaviors and challenge dysfunctional thoughts.

Sociocultural Model

A perspective asserting that psychological phenomena must be understood in the social, cultural, and environmental context in which they develop.

Equifinality

The principle that different pathways or risk factors can lead to the same psychological outcome.

Multifinality

The principle that the same pathway or risk factor can lead to different psychological outcomes.

Fear

An immediate, present-oriented emotional reaction.

Anxiety

An apprehensive, future-oriented mood state.

Phobias

Intense and persistent fear that interferes with everyday life and lasts at least 6 months.

Panic Disorder

A disorder characterized by fear surrounding panic attacks, requiring at least a month of unforeseen panic attacks that occur out of the blue.

GABA

A neurotransmitter in GAD that produces a calming effect.

Norepinephrine

A neurotransmitter in GAD associated with physiological symptoms.

Serotonin

A neurotransmitter in GAD that regulates mood, thoughts, and behaviors.

Obsessions

The repetitive thoughts of doing something, as seen in OCD.

Compulsions

The acts performed in response to obsessive thoughts to relieve distress in OCD.

PTSD

Post-traumatic stress disorder; lasts more than a month with no persistent or negative thoughts of significant functional impairment.

Acute Stress Disorder

A disorder involving significant stress in a short amount of time before returning to normal life.

HPA

Hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis; regulates the release of cortisol from the adrenal gland when triggered.

Dissociative Identity Disorder

A condition marked by blackout periods with amnesia and altered realities that the individual does not remember.

Dissociative Fugue

A state involving sudden, unexpected traveling with amnesia regarding one's past and identity.

Dissociative Amnesia

An involuntary psychological response featuring memory loss, not done willingly.

Mania

A state lasting at least a week (or any duration if hospitalization is required) causing impaired functioning, characteristic of Bipolar 1.

Hypomania

A state lasting at least 4 days that is less severe and features higher functionality, characteristic of Bipolar 2.

Bipolar 1

A mood disorder defined by full mania episodes.

Bipolar 2

A mood disorder characterized by hypomanic and major depressive episodes without full mania.

Cyclothymia

A disorder involving mild depressive episodes and hypomanic episodes that alternate often, lasting at least two years, present for at least half the time, and with no symptom-free period greater than two months.

Parasuicides

Nonfatal attempts or gestures to kill oneself, made by around 14 million people globally and 1.2 million in the US each year.