Abnormal Psychology
Mental disorders, psychopathology
- Patterns of thinking or behaving that are disruptive or uncomfortable for the individual or others
- In any 6 month period 20% of the population suffers from some typeof mental disorder
What is abnormal?
Statistical Approach
Rare is abnormal
Some infrequent behavior is desirable & valuable
- creativity, altruism
Tends to equate normality with conformity
Valuative Approach
Behavior is abnormal if it violates social values or norms
Normality = Consistency, Morality
Most people probably engage in some behavior that violates a norm
A Practical Approach
Considerations for the content and context of behavior
Content
What does the person actually do?
Abnormal if:
1. Causes discomfort
2. Appears bizarre or weird
3. It is dysfunctional
Context
Where and when does the person display the behavior?
Appropriate behavior for a given situation
Beliefs about Abnormality
Demonological Model
Dominant model in ancient times (? - 400 B.C.)
and in the middle ages (600 - 1600 A.D.)
Medical Model
Hippocrates
- Abnormal behavior symptomatic of physical illness
Biological Model
In the 1850's organic causes for some disorders were found
(e.g., brain deterioration due to syphillis)
Psychodynamic Model - Freud
Unresolved, unconscious conflicts between instinctual desires and environment result in abnormal behavior
The Behavioral Model
All behavior is learned
- Behavior disorders
The Phenomenological Model
Temporary blocks in a person’s growth toward self-actualization
Behavior assumed to be reasonable in terms of the client’s perception of the world
The Diathesis-Stress Model
General, integrative approach
Interaction of biological predisposition and environmental stress
Types of Disorders
Anxiety Disorders
Intense, long-standing, or disruptive anxiety
1. Phobias
Strong, irrational fear
Simple Phobias
- fear of physical situations or objects
Social Phobias
fear of being negatively evaluated or of being publicly embarrassed as a result of doing something impulsive
2. Generalized Anxiety Disorder
Mild, long-lasting with no specific focus
Free-floating anxiety
3. Panic Disorder
Terrifying "panic attacks"
No warning or obvious cause
Agoraphobia
4. Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder
Recurrent thoughts or images intrude into consciousness (obsessions)
Perform ritualistic and rigid behaviors (compulsions)
Causes of Anxiety Disorders
Biological Model
- Genetic predisposition to react with anxiety
Behavioral Model
Obsessive-compulsive behaviors are learned habits that allow a person to escape or avoid
anxiety-provoking situations
Somatoform Disorders
Psychological problems appear as physical (somatic) problems
1. Conversion Disorder
Physical problems w/o physical cause
- paralysis, blindness
Appear when the person is under stress
Makes no sense organically
Person shows little concern
2. Hypochondriasis
Strong fear of illness
Report many vague physical symptoms
3. Psychogenic Pain Disorder
Severe constant pain
Freud identified conversion disorder and stated that it masks anxiety related to unconscious impulses
Dissociative Disorders
Sudden, temporary disruption in memory, consciousness, or identity
1. Multiple Personalities
- at least two distinct identities
- extremely rare
Psychodynamic
- massive repression
Phenomenological
Mood Disorders
Extreme moods
1. Depression
30% adults may experience at least one episode
Major Depression
2. Bipolar Disorder
Manic-Depression
Physiological causes of mood disorders:
- Abnormalities in the amount of norepinephrine & serotonin are consistently found
Schizophrenic Disorders
Most serious and disabling Symptoms
Disorders of Thought:
Often incoherent
Neologisms
Loose associations
Word salad
Disorders of Perception & Attention:
Inability to concentrate
Feel detached from the world
Auditory hallucinations
- hear "voices"
Disorders of Emotion & Movement
Types of Schizophrenia
1. Disorganized
2. Catatonic
3. Paranoid
Schizophrenia tends to run in families
- Children & siblings of schizophrenics are 10 times more likely to develop schizophrenia
The Diathesis-Stress Model provides the best model
Inherited predisposition
Appears under extreme stress
Personality Disorders
Long-standing patterns of behaving or styles of life that create problems for other people
1. Narcissistic Personality Disorder
Exaggerated sense of self-importance
2. Antisocial Personality Disorder
Psychopaths, Sociopaths
- Considerable charm
- Average or above intelligence
- Absence of anxiety, shame, guilt
- conduct disorder before 15 often die from violence
- low levels of autonomic arousal
- chronically bored thrill seeking, impulsive
3. Borderline
- may have less severe symptoms of schizophrenia
- odd behavior and appearance
- emotionally unstable
-Dramatic disruption of interpersonal relations
- idealization to devaluation
- intolerance of being alone, fear of abandonment
- intense inappropriate anger
- suicidal gestures, self mutilation, impulsivity
Organic Mental Disorders
Biological basis
Delirium
Dementia