Abnormal Behaviour in Historical Context Flashcards
psychological disorder
psychological dysfunction associated with distress or impairment in functioning that is not a typical or culturally expected response
abnormal behaviour
psychological dysfunction within an individual associated with distress or impairment in functioning and a response that is not typical or culturally expected
psychological dysfunction - abnormal behaviour
a breakdown in cognitive, emotional or behavioural functioning
personal distress or impairment - abnormal behaviour
individual is extremely upset, this does not work for all disorders
atypical or not culturally expected - abnormal behaviour
abnormal because it occurs infrequently, violating social norms, harmful dysfunction
harmful dysfunction
psychological disorder us caused by a failure of one or more mechanisms to perform their evolved function and the dysfunction produces harm or distress
DSM5 definition of abnormal behaviour
behavioural, psychological, or biological dysfunctions that are unexpected in their cultural context and associated with present distress and impairment in functioning, or increased risk of suffering, death, pain, or impairment
the supernatural tradition
deviant behaviour is a reflection of the battle between good and evil, magic to solve problems, insanity was a natural phenomenon but considered possession in the middle ages, exorcisms were used, movement of the sun and stars have effects on psychological functioning
the biological tradition
psychological disorders can be treated like any other disease, humeral theory, insanity has physical causes, mentally ill should be treated as physically ill, electric chock therapy to drugs
the psychological tradition
moral therapy, psychoanalysis, humanistic theory, behaviourism
moral therapy
19th century social approach to treatment that involved treating patients as normally as possible in normal environments
psychoanalysis
emphasizes exploration of and insight into the unconscious processes and conflicts
defence mechanisms
with which the mind defends itself from the clashes between the id and superego
- denial
- displacement
- projection
- rationalization
- reaction formation
- repression
- sublimation
early psychosexual development
oral, anal, phallic, latency, genital; oedipus and electra complex
ego psychology
emphasized the role of the ego in development and attributes psychological disorders to failure of the ego to manage impulses and internal conflicts
psychoanalytic psychotherapy
free association, dream analysis, transference, psychodynamic psychotherapy
humanistic theory
self-actualizing, person-entered therapy
behaviourism
explanation of human behaviour based on principles of learning and adaptation derived from experimental psychology
- classical conditioning
- operant conditioning
criteria for determining abnormality of behaviour
behaviour that is statistically rare, behaviour that is socially or culturally unacceptable, behaviour that causes significant distress or discomfort to the individual, behaviour that is maladaptive, behaviour that poses a risk to the self or others, behaviour that reflects harmful dysfunction
behaviour that is statistically rare - criterion 1
idea that statistically rare or atypical behaviours are abnormal and are possible signs of disorder whereas typical or common behaviours as normal
problems with criterion 1
there are many examples of uncommon or atypical behaviours/traits that we do not label or diagnose as abnormal, there are abnormalities that are very common, there is a need for the sociocultural context in which the behaviour is occurring, need to decide on a statistical cut point
behaviour that is socially or culturally unacceptable - criterion 2
idea that there are wide social norms that dictate what is acceptable behaviour; any behaviour that violates such norms would be considered abnormal or even pathological
problems with criterion 2
there is a need to define culture, assumes there is such thing as normal behaviour that is considered as such across all cultures, sociocultural norms change over time
behaviour that causes significant discomfort or distress to the individual - criterion 3
notion that a behaviour is not pathological and is not worth of clinical attention unless it causes significant distress or discomfort to the individual
problems with criterion 3
it is possible for people to be displaying or engaging in clinically-significant behaviour without being bothered or distressed by it
behaviour that is maladaptive - criterion 4
behaviour is abnormal or discorded then it gets in the way of a person’s functioning in an important domain like work, school or relationships
problems with criterion 4
many people with psychological disorders do not experience a degree of impairment that leads to interference in their ability to function, decisions about what constitutes as normal, healthy functioning are inherently subjective
behaviour that poses a risk to the self or others - criterion 5
any behaviour that threatens the wellbeing of the self or others should be considered pathological
problems with criterion 5
easily turns into a slippery slope - suicide, criminal behaviour
behaviour that reflects harmful dysfunction - criterion 6
- jerome Wakefield’s harmful dysfunction hypothesis
- counter analysis
jerome wakefield’s harmful dysfunction hypothesis
definition is primarily biological, dysfunction component refers to the failure of an internal system to function adaptively as designed by nature, any behaviour that arises from dysfunction can potentially meet the criteria for disorder - when dysfunction is harmful
counter analysis of harmful dysfunction
many physical and mental functions are no longer shaped by their original evolutionary functions but represent adaptations-functions that have evolved secondary to natural selection
challenges with the DSM
does not always do a great job of differentiating a pathological behavioural pattern from one that is normal, does not always provide sufficient guidance on how to distinguish mental disorders from unhelpful or dangerous behaviours occurring in response to problems of living
mental disorder - DSM5
a mental disorder is a syndrome characterized by clinically significant disturbance in an individual’s cognition, emotional regulation, or behaviour that reflects a dysfunction in psychological, biological or developmental processes underlying mental functioning. Mental disorders are usually associated with significant distress or disability in social, occupational, or other important activities. An expectable or culturally approved response to a common stressor or loss such as death of a loved one, is not a mental disorder. Socially deviant behaviour and conflicts that are primarily between the individual and society are not mental disorders unless the deviance or conflict results from a dysfunction in the individual, as described above
