Causes of Psychological Disorders & DSM-5 Categories

Causes of Psychological Disorders

• Diverse Perspectives: The causes (etiologies) and treatments of various psychological disorders are debated among different psychological perspectives.

• Psychodynamic Perspective: Attributes psychological disturbances to unconscious conflicts, often stemming from adverse childhood experiences (ACEs).

• Behavioral Perspective: Attributes psychological problems to maladaptive learned associations resulting from a person's history of reinforcement.

  • Example: A phobia could be seen as a learned fear response through classical conditioning.

• Humanistic Perspective: Focuses on a person's feelings, self-esteem, and self-concept as the root of such disorders.

  • Emphasizes the failure to strive toward one's potential or being out of touch with one's feelings.

• Cognitive Perspective: Locates the source of disorders in irrational or dysfunctional thoughts and ways of thinking.

  • Example: Cognitive distortions can lead to anxiety or depression.

• Sociocultural Perspective: Attributes psychological disorders to societal factors such as racism, sexism, ageism, poverty, and the resulting discrimination.

• Biomedical Model (or Biological Perspective): Views psychological disorders as caused by biological factors, such as hormonal or neurotransmitter imbalances, or differences in brain structure.

  • Associated with genetic abnormalities that may lead to physiological abnormalities.

• Interaction of Factors: Many psychologists believe that disorders result from the interaction of multiple factors.

  • Biopsychosocial View: Problems likely result from the interplay of biological, psychological, and social factors.
  • Diathesis-Stress Model: Environmental stressors can trigger a biological predisposition for illness to express itself.

• Example: Explains why identical twins do not always suffer from the same disorders.

• Eclectic Approach: Psychologists who do not strictly adhere to one perspective and use ideas from various perspectives.

Table 17.1: Different Perspectives on the Causes of Psychological Disorders

Categories of Disorders

• DSM-5: Lists hundreds of different psychological disorders. The content in the notes will cover the disorders most likely to appear on the AP Psychology exam.

• Psychologists may view the cause of disorders within a category from various perspectives; many psychologists do not strictly adhere to any one perspective.

Neurocognitive Disorders

• Included in DSM-5.

Neurodevelopmental Disorders

• Autism Spectrum Disorder: Involves deviations from typical social development.
  • Children seek out less social and emotional contact than other children.
  • Less likely to seek out parental support when distressed.
  • Tend to be hypersensitive to sensory stimulation.
  • May exhibit intense interest in objects not viewed as interesting by most people (e.g., rubber bands).
  • Often engage in simple, repetitive behaviors (e.g., flipping things).