Psychological Disorders

Chapter 15: Psychological Disorders

Chapter Preview

  • Overview topics include:

    • Defining/Explaining Abnormal Behavior

    • Anxiety-Related Disorders

    • Disorders Involving Emotion and Mood

    • Neurodevelopmental Disorders

    • Schizophrenia Spectrum

    • Personality Disorders

    • Suicide

    • Health and Wellness

Early Explanations of Mental Illness

  • Historical Perspectives:

    • Trepanning: In ancient times, holes were cut in an ill person’s head to allow evil spirits to escape.

    • Hippocrates: Proposed that mental illness resulted from an imbalance in the body’s four humors.

    • Middle Ages: The mentally ill were often labeled as witches; exorcism rituals were performed, often involving physical torture.

Abnormal Behavior

  • Criteria for Abnormal Behavior:

    • Deviant (Atypical): Behavior that is statistically odd or culturally unacceptable.

    • Maladaptive (Dysfunctional): Behavior that hinders functioning in daily life.

    • Personally Distressing (Despair): Emotional suffering experienced by the individual.

  • Persistence of abnormal behavior may lead to the diagnosis of a psychological disorder.

Defining Abnormality

  • Mental Disorder: Significant impairment in psychological functioning, examples include schizophrenia and major depression.

  • Psychopathology: The study of mental disorders.

  • Statistical Abnormality: Refers to scoring exceptionally high or low on psychological measures.

  • Social Nonconformity: Engaging in behaviors that violate social norms and expectations.

  • Subjective Discomfort: Feelings of pain or emotional distress, which may not always be viewed as abnormal.

  • Maladaptive Behavior: Behaviors that arise from psychological or biological dysfunction, impairing the ability to cope with daily demands.

Theoretical Approaches

  • Biological Approach: Views psychological disorders as medical diseases with biological origins.

  • Psychological Approach: Focuses on personal experiences, thoughts, emotions, and personality traits.

  • Sociocultural Approach: Considers social contexts including cultural influences.

  • Biopsychosocial Model: Integrated approach involving biological, psychological, and sociocultural factors.

    • Vulnerability-Stress Hypothesis: Proposes that predispositions interact with stressors to result in psychological disorders.

Psychological Viewpoints of Psychopathology

  • Psychodynamic Theorists: Attribute abnormal behavior to repressed conflicts and urges.

  • Behaviorists: View abnormal behavior as a learned response influenced by observable behavior and conditioning effects.

  • Cognitive Theorists: Argue that irrational beliefs and illogical thought patterns contribute to abnormal behavior.

Culture and Psychopathology

  • Cultural Relativity: Importance of considering cultural characteristics when assessing behaviors.

  • Culture-Bound Syndromes: Disorders unique to specific cultures not recognized by DSM-5-TR.

Biopsychosocial Model Vulnerability–Stress Hypothesis

  • Interaction between environmental stressors, psychosocial stress, and hereditary vulnerabilities contributes to mental illness development.

Causes of Mental Illness

Biological Factors:

  • Organic causes: Tumors or hormonal influences affecting mental health.

  • Environmental factors: Head injuries, exposure to toxins.

  • Genetic implications: Neurodevelopmental and neurocognitive disorders.

  • Neurocognitive disorders: Include age-related brain deterioration.

Psychosocial Factors:

  • Associated with various mental illnesses:

    • Stress, psychological trauma, learning disorders.

    • Lack of control or mastery in situations.

    • Social and family conditions may trigger or exacerbate disorders.

DSM-5-TR

  • Diagnostic and Statistical Manual, Version-5-TR: A comprehensive manual for diagnosing psychological disorders published by the American Psychiatric Association.

  • Influences diagnosis, therapy, and insurance billing workflows in mental health.

  • Comorbidity: The presence of more than one disorder simultaneously, with implications for diagnosis and treatment.

  • Over 40% of individuals with mental disorders are often comorbid.

Advantages and Disadvantages of DSM Classification System

Advantages:

  • Facilitates communication among professionals.

  • Aids in making predictions about disorders.

  • Naming disorders can provide individuals with relief.

Disadvantages:

  • May exacerbate stigma surrounding mental health issues.

  • Medical terminology can obscure environmental contributions.

  • Focuses on deficiencies without recognizing strengths.

Neurodevelopmental Disorders

General Characteristics:

  • Often emerge in early childhood, linked to genetic variations, atypical brain development, or prenatal exposure to harmful substances.

  • Includes:

    • Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)

    • Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)

Autism Spectrum Disorder:

  • Key Features:

    • Communication/interaction deficits.

    • Restricted and repetitive patterns of behavior and interests.

  • Etiology:

    • Not influenced by parenting styles or vaccinations.

    • Result of genetic or brain differences, varied causal factors.

Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder:

  • Symptoms:

    • Inattention, hyperactivity, impulsivity.

  • Etiology:

    • Factors include fetal risks (e.g., preterm birth, low birth weight), genetic components, and delayed brain maturation.

    • Neurotransmitter dysregulation is also a contributing element.

Anxiety Disorders

  • Defined by uncontrollable and disproportionate fears characterized by excessive anxiety and fearfulness. Symptoms manifest as:

    • Motor tension

    • Hyperactivity

    • Apprehensive expectations

    • Thought disturbances

  • Includes:

    • Generalized Anxiety Disorder

    • Panic Disorder

    • Specific Phobia

    • Social Anxiety Disorder

Generalized Anxiety Disorder:

  • Description:

    • Prolonged feelings of dread and physical stress symptoms lasting more than six months without identifiable causes.

  • Etiology:

    • Biological: Genetic predisposition, GABA deficiency, respiratory issues.

    • Psychological/Sociocultural: Personal standards, trauma experiences, and negative thinking.

Panic Disorder:

  • Definition:

    • Involves frequent panic attacks that disrupt daily life. Resulting panic attacks cause overwhelming physical stress symptoms, often paired with a sensation of dying.

  • Types:

    • Panic Disorder with Agoraphobia: Avoidance of public spaces due to panic attack fears.

  • Etiology:

    • Biological predispositions, neurotransmitter imbalances, psychological conditioning (e.g., CO2).

Specific Phobia:

  • Symptoms:

    • Persistent, irrational fears of specific objects or situations, such as spiders, heights, or tight spaces.

  • Etiology:

    • Associated with learned experiences or gender differences.

Social Anxiety Disorder:**

  • Description:

    • Characterized by fear of social interactions and negative evaluations.

  • Symptoms:

    • Intense fear of humiliation, embarrassment in social contexts.

  • Etiology:

    • Includes both biological components (genetic predispositions and neural behaviors) and psychological learning factors.

Anxiety-Related Disorders

  • Disorders associated with extreme anxiety yet not classified under DSM-V-TR as anxiety disorders include:

    • Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD)

    • Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)

Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder:

  • Description:

    • Consists of recurrent thoughts (obsessions) leading to anxiety, managed through repetitive behaviors (compulsions).

  • Symptoms:

    • Overall persistent anxiety linked to distressing thoughts and compulsions needing enactment.

  • Etiology:

    • Biological factors (genetics, neurotransmitter activity, digestive issues). Psychological factors may relate to avoidance learning habits.

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD):

  • Symptoms:

    • Resultant from exposure to traumatic events leading to:

    • Flashbacks

    • Emotional numbness

    • Excessive arousal

    • Sleep difficulties

  • Etiology:

    • Associated with experiences of overwhelming trauma.

Dissociative Disorders

  • Involve sudden memory loss or identity changes usually due to highly traumatic experiences, also entails:

    • Dissociative Amnesia: Inability to recall personal information.

    • Dissociative Fugue: Unplanned travel and identity confusion.

    • Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID): Presence of multiple distinct identities within one individual.

    • Depersonalization/Derealization Disorder: Feelings of detachment from self or reality.

Depressive Disorders

  • Description:

    • Characterized by persistent lack of pleasure (e.g., Major Depressive Disorder).

  • Symptoms include:

    • Fatigue, worthless feelings, appetite or sleep disturbances, persistent sadness, suicidal thoughts.

  • Etiology:

    • Neurological issues (genetic predisposition, neurotransmitter functions) alongside psychological stressors (negative life events, learned helplessness).

Bipolar Disorder:

  • Description:

    • Extremely fluctuating moods between depressive and manic episodes.

  • Types:

    • Bipolar I: Severe manic episodes.

    • Bipolar II: Milder forms of mania.

  • Etiology:

    • Identified genetic predispositions and environmental triggers influencing cognitive functions.

Understanding Psychosis

  • Defined by loss of connection with reality; often involves:

    • Hallucinations, delusions, and disordered thinking.

  • Major characteristic of severe mental disorders, notably schizophrenia spectrum disorders.

Delusional Disorders:

  • Delusions: Fixed false beliefs despite contrary evidence with types including:

    • Grandiose

    • Paranoid

    • Erotomanic

    • Jealousy-driven beliefs.

Schizophrenia Spectrum

  • Overview: A severe disorder primarily characterized by disordered thought processes and severe impairments in perception.

  • Symptoms:

    • Types of symptoms include positive (hallucinations, delusions), negative (lack of emotion), and cognitive symptoms (memory and attention deficits).

  • Causes:

    • Include both biological (genetic and neurotransmitter differences) and environmental stressors that interplay with existing vulnerabilities.

Personality Disorders

  • Chronic maladaptive cognition and behavioral patterns affecting interpersonal relationships.

  • Types of Disorders Listed in DSM-5-TR: 10 identified personalities including:

    • Paranoid, Schizoid, Schizotypal, Antisocial, Borderline, Histrionic, Narcissistic, Avoidant, Dependent, Obsessive-Compulsive.

Suicide

  • Prevalence:

    • In 2020, 45,855 deaths categorized as suicides; second leading cause of death for ages 10-24.

  • Factors Contributing to Suicide:

    • Biological (genetic, health factors), psychological (mental health disorders), and sociocultural (media portrayal, community support).

  • Warnings Signs:

    • Preoccupation with death, giving threats, withdrawal from social contacts, loss of purpose.

Help on Campus

  • Campus Mental Health Services (CMHS): Provide support for stress-related issues, inclusive of anxiety and mood disorders.

    • Services are available 24/7 for crisis situations and also for ongoing mental health needs.

Health and Wellness

  • Individuals with psychological disorders may face stigma and prejudice.

  • Recognizing stigma's consequences is crucial for improving mental health integration and community support.