Ch. 1 Intro to Psychopathology — Key Concepts and Terminology pt.2
Terminology and scope in psychopathology
Terms are often used interchangeably in ordinary language: psychopathology, mental health, and behavioral health.
Behavioral health is newer and slightly less intuitive, but increasingly used, especially in medical settings.
Behavioral health recognizes that psychological conditions affect outward behavior and functioning, not just inner thoughts and feelings.
When people refer to behavioral health or mental health in clinical settings, they are generally pointing to the same broad idea: conditions that impact thinking, feeling, and functioning.
In this course, the focus is on categories of psychological disorders and a framework for understanding them, not on delivering treatment.
Core components we’ll cover for each disorder:
Clinical description: what the disorder looks like, symptoms, functional impact, how it presents in clinics, homes, or assessments.
Etiology: what causes the disorder; multiple contributing factors are common; causation is a multifactorial and often murky area.
Onset: when the disorder starts; terms include early vs late onset; acute vs insidious onset.
Course: how the disorder progresses over time; episodic, time-limited, chronic; sometimes a mix.
Prognosis: expected outcomes and trajectory; independence versus need for long-term care; duration of treatment; likelihood of returning to pre-diagnostic functioning; differences depending on type of therapy or lack thereof.
Treatment and outcomes: broad discussion of how disorders are treated and typical outcomes (this is not a treatment course).
Onset and course terminology in detail
Onset terms:
Early onset vs late onset: whether the disorder begins earlier or later relative to typical ages.
Acute onset: starts abruptly, all at once.
Insidious onset: gradual development over time.
Course terms:
Episodic: discrete periods of symptoms separated by times of relative remission.
Time-limited disorders: symptoms occur for a limited period and then resolve; may resemble episodes but do not recur.
Chronic: symptoms persist for years or a lifetime.
A disorder can be episodic and also have chronic phases (intense episodes with ongoing but milder symptoms in between).
Prognosis (expected outcomes)
What the person’s life and functioning are expected to be like in the context of the disorder.
Considerations include independence, need for long-term care, duration of treatment, and likelihood of returning to pre-diagnostic functioning.
Prognosis can differ with different therapeutic approaches or with no treatment.
Important to remember that prognosis is an evidence-informed guess, not a crystal ball.
Etiology and the biopsychosocial lens
Etiology means “cause” or origin.
Etiology is typically multifactorial, involving interactions across biology, psychology, and social factors.
The biopsychosocial model is a central framework for understanding how these factors contribute to the development and course of disorders.
Prevalence and incidence: key epidemiological terms
Prevalence: how many people in the population have the disorder at a given time.
Incidence: how many new cases occur over a period of time.
Example (illustrative): Incidence rate may be ext{Incidence rate} = rac{ ext{new cases during a period}}{ ext{population at risk during the same period}} \
Terminology and scope in psychopathology
Psychopathology, mental health, and behavioral health are often used interchangeably, with behavioral health recognizing the impact of psychological conditions on outward behavior and functioning.
This course focuses on categories of psychological disorders and a framework for understanding them, including:
Clinical description: symptoms and functional impact.
Etiology: multiple contributing factors causing the disorder.
Onset: when the disorder starts (early vs late, acute vs insidious).
Course: how it progresses (episodic, time-limited, chronic).
Prognosis: expected outcomes and trajectory.
Treatment and outcomes: broad discussion of interventions.
Onset terms:
Early/late onset: relative to typical ages.
Acute onset: abrupt start.
Insidious onset: gradual development.
Course terms:
Episodic: periods of symptoms separated by remission.
Time-limited: symptoms resolve within a period, no recurrence.
Chronic: symptoms persist for years or a lifetime.
Prognosis refers to expected outcomes considering independence, long-term care, and return to pre-diagnostic functioning. It's an evidence-informed guess.
Etiology (cause) is typically multifactorial, explained by the biopsychosocial model, involving biological, psychological, and social factors.
Epidemiological terms:
Prevalence: number of people with the disorder at a given time.
Incidence: number of new cases over a period of time. Example: ext{Incidence rate} = rac{ ext{new cases during a period}}{ ext{population at risk during the same period}}$$