7A: Psychological Disorders Flashcards
What are psychological disorders?
Characteristic sets of thoughts, feelings or actions that cause noticeable distress to the sufferer, cause maladaptive functioning in society or are considered deviant by the individual’s culture
What is the Biomedical Approach?
It believes that illnesses are due to abnormal somatic processes; it believes that there is a single-factor cause that leads to biological malfunction; considers the mind and body are separate entities
What is the Biopsychosocial Approach?
It believes that illnesses are deviations from steady state; that there are biological, psychological and social components to an individual’s disorder; multiple-factors cause that leads to multiple effects; considers mind and body to be inseparable
How are Psychological Disorders classified?
By the ICD-10 or DSM-5
Schizophrenia
A psychotic disorder that causes delusions, hallucinations, disorganized thoughts, disorganized behavior, catatonia and negative symptoms (absence of normal/desired behavior)
What are delusions?
False beliefs discordant with reality and not shared by others
Types of delusions
- Reference
- Persecution
- Grandeur
- Thought Broadcasting/Insertion
What are hallucinations?
Perceptions that are not due to external stimuli but have a compelling sense of reality
What is catatonia?
Certain motor behaviors characteristic of schizophrenics
What is echolalia?
Repeating another’s words
What is echopraxia?
Imitating another’s actions
What is disturbance of affect?
It can lead to severe reduction in the intensity of affect expression, no signs of emotional expression or discordant with content of the individuals speech
What is the prodromal phase?
Characterized by poor adjustment, social withdrawal, role functioning impairment, peculiar behavior, inappropriate affect and unusual experiences
What characterizes Major Depressive Disorder?
Sleep Issues Lack of Interest (Anhedonia) Guilt Energy Lack of Concentration Appetite disturbances Psychomotor Symptoms Suicidal Thoughts
What characterizes Persistent Depressive Disorder?
It’s considered a depressed mood that isn’t severe enough to meet the criteria of a major depressive episode
What characterizes Seasonal Affect Disorder?
Seasonal onset of major depressive disorder; normally present in the winter months; related to abnormal melatonin metabolism
What characterizes Bipolar Disorders
Increased distractibility, insomnia, grandiosity, flight of ideas, agitation, talkativeness and thoughtlessness
What characterizes Bipolar I Disorder?
Manic episodes with or without major depressive episodes
What characterizes Bipolar II Disorder?
Hypomania with at least one major depressive episode
What characterizes Cyclothymic Disorder?
Consists of a combination of hypomanic episodes and periods of dysthymia
Monoamine (Catecholamine) Theory of Depression
It posits that too much norepinephrine and serotonin in the synapse leads to mania while too little leads to depression
What characterizes Generalized Anxiety Disorder
Disproportionate and persistent worry about many different things for at least six months. These individuals often have physical symptoms like fatigue, muscle tension and sleep problems that accompany the worry
What is a phobia?
An irrational fear of something that results in a compelling desire to avoid it
What characterizes social anxiety?
Anxiety in social situations, they have a persistent fear when exposed to social or performance situations that may result in embarrassment