Abnormality

Question 1

Abnormality can be defined in a number of ways including:

Answer 1

• Deviation from Social Norms (DSN)
• Failure to Function Adequately (FFA)
• Statistical Infrequency (SI)
• Deviation from Ideal Mental Health (DIMH)

Question 2

DSN

Answer 2

Deviation from Social Norms

Question 3

Outline the Deviation from Social Norms definition of abnormality (3 marks)

Answer 3

• In any society - social norms - standards of acceptable beh set by social group - e.g not walking in public naked. - sometimes unwritten but accepted. - abnormal beh - anything that deviates from norms of society. concerned w beh that is antisocial/undesirable - e.g Anti-social Personality disorder (APD) - impulsive, aggressive, irresponsible - therefore considered abnormal by this definition - cannot conform to moral standards of society

Question 4

A strength of the DSN definition is that it has face validity as it supports the general view of what abnormality is.

Answer 4

E.g someone w schizophrenia - deviate from social norms - may be talking to themselves or showing irrational decision making and beh. SB - easy for gen pop to identify abnormality within people they know or around them and get them support. obvious DNF - easier for clinitians to identify + treat mental illnesses - therefore useful - leads to valid diagnosis

Question 5

A limitation of the DSN def of abn is that it is too culture specific.

Answer 5

E.g hearing voices is socially acceptable (seen as gift) in some cultures - sign of mental abnormality in UK. WB: social norms vary from one community to another. Person of one culture may label beh from another as abnormal based on their own norms. Thus definition should be used with caution + take into consideration a person’s culture - or lead to misdiagnosis.

Question 6

FFA

Answer 6

Failure to Function Adequately

Question 7

Outline the FFA def of abn (3 marks)

Answer 7

Beh considered abn - individual cannot cope w day2day life. If beh causes enough distress/inability to function + work or ppt in rs - sign of abnormality according to FFA. Individuals may be characterised by being unable to experience usual range of emotions + beh. Rosenham and Seligman suggested characteristics: irrational beh + causing observer discomfort.

Question 8

Rosenham and Seligman suggested characteristics:

Answer 8

irrational beh + causing observer discomfort.

Question 9

Strength of FFA def - important criterion that helps us clearly identify serious cases of mental abnormality.

Answer 9

E.g - many ppl experience extreme sadness/ anxiety some of the time. However, key difference between diagnosed and gen pop - those that r diagnosed find that their condition interferes with day2day life, e.g holding down job/rs.
WB: FFA helps us distinguish between diff severities of mental health problems + helps identify who can and cannot cope w everyday life. Helps provide appropriate treatment. Useful in diagnosis + improving lives - increases validity as tool for defining abnormality

Question 10

Limitation of FFA - many individuals w mental health issues can appear to live perfectly normal lives, and abnormality is not always associated with FFA.

Answer 10

E.g Harold Shipman - doctor - responsible for death of over 200 of his patients over 23 period. In spite of appalling crimes, Shipman functioned adequately - seen to be a respectable doctor. WB: clearly abnormal - did not display features of disfunction + able to evade detection for many years. FFA - inadequate def of abn when used alone - lead to misdiagnosis.

Question 11

Face validity

Answer 11

Noticeable at first glance

Question 12

Harold Shipman was responsible for how many deaths:

Answer 12

Over 200

Question 13

Harold Shipman killed for how many years?

Answer 13

23

Question 14

SI

Answer 14

Statistical Infrequency

Question 15

Outline the Statistical Infrequency def of abn (3 marks)

Answer 15

• Abn beh is beh that is statistically rare / uncommon
• Very few ppl show beh/thinking - therefore abn
• Any beh strays far away from average - abnormal
• E.g - schizophrenia affects 1/100 ppl - statistically infrequent - abnormal
• Measured: psychologists measure characteristics + how they are distributed in gen pop. - One way: normal distribution curve - tells us for a given characteristic that most of the pop score around the mean. any individuals that fall outside of ND (up to 2.5% top +bottom) - seen as abnormal
• Thus individuals demonstrating beh at one extreme or the other viewed as abnormal - e.g very high or very low IQ

Question 16

How is Statistical Infrequency measured? (part of 3 marker)

Answer 16

• Measured: psychologists measure characteristics + how they are distributed in gen pop. - One way: normal distribution curve - tells us for a given characteristic that most of the pop score around the mean. any individuals that fall outside of ND (up to 2.5% top +bottom) - seen as abnormal

Question 17

A strength of SI def - once a way of collecting data and a cut off point is established - becomes an objective way of deciding who is abnormal.

Answer 17

E.g - can be used to define + diagnose somebody suffering from intellectual disability disorder (IDD) - people who have an IQ in the range from 85-115 viewed as normal - only 2% have score below 70. Those individuals scoring below 70 are rare therefore labelled as having IDD. SB: allows objective measurement + diagnosis + ensures abnormality not reliant on subjective interpretation of diagnostic criteria - produce reliable + accurate diagnoses. Therefore, SI - valid + reliable way of diagnosing abn

Question 18

Limitation of SI def - misdiagnoses both desirable + nondesirable beh.

Answer 18

E.g very low IQ - statistically as abnormal as very high IQ (e.g IQ above 160) but high IQ - desirable. Issue - according to SI since high IQ is rare - abormal.
Furthermore, depression affects approx 1 in 5 people in UK - statistically common beh - normal under this def. Therefore, SI misdiagnoses desirable + undesirable beh which reduces the validity of this definition.

Question 19

IDD

Answer 19

intellectual disability disorder - IQ of less than 70

Question 20

APD

Answer 20

Anti-social Personality disorder

Question 21

Depression affects how many people in UK?

Answer 21

Approx 1 in 5 people

Question 22

DIMH

Answer 22

Deviation from Ideal Mental Health

Question 23

Outline the Deviation from Ideal Mental Health def of abn (3)

Answer 23

This definition starts from what is normal / mentally healthy and works backwards from that. Jahoda suggested that NORMAL mental health includes:
- Positive attitudes to the self
- Accurate perception of reality
- Personal autonomy
- Environmental mastery
- Resistant to stress
- Self actualisation and personal growth
The more characteristics individuals fail to meet and the further they are away from realising individual characteristics, the more abnormal they are.

Question 24

PAPERS

Answer 24

• Positive attitudes to the self
• Accurate perception of reality
• Personal autonomy
• Environmental mastery
• Resistant to stress
• Self actualisation and personal growth

Question 25

Positive…

Answer 25

attitudes to the self

Question 26

Accurate…

Answer 26

perception of reality

Question 27

Personal…

Answer 27

autonomy

Question 28

Environmental…

Answer 28

mastery

Question 29

Resistant…

Answer 29

to stress

Question 30

Self…

Answer 30

actualisation and personal growth

Question 31

Positive attitudes towards the self:

Answer 31

Having self-respect and a positive self concept

Question 32

Self actualisation and personal growth: ****

Answer 32

Having a motivation to achieve our full potential

Question 33

Being resistant to stress:

Answer 33

Able to cope with stressful situations and anxiety

Question 34

Personal autonomy: *****

Answer 34

Being independent, self-reliant and able to make personal decisions

Question 35

Accurate perception of reality: *****

Answer 35

Perceiving the world in a non-distorted fashion. Having an objective and realistic view of the world.

Question 36

Environmental mastery:

Answer 36

Being competent in all aspects of life and able to meet the demands of any situation. Having the flexibility to adapt to changing life circumstances

Question 37

A strength of DIMH def - offers alternate view of mental disorders by focusing on positive traits rather than what is undesirable.

Answer 37

E.g. The ideas have had some influence + in accord w positive psychology movement from the humanistic approach in psychology. Covers a broad range of criteria for mental health. The 6 criteria cover most of the reasons someone would seek help from mental health services or be referred for help.
SB: broad nature of criteria allows for def to be a comprehensive diagnostic for mental illness. Valuable def of abn within psych. Increase in validity of DIMH def as a tool for diagnosing abnormality

Question 38

Limitation of DIMH - criteria it sets for mental normality is unrealistically high

Answer 38

E.g. Due to stresses of everyday life - very few ppl match all criteria laid down by Jahoda - prob no one achieves all at same time or keep them up for very long. WB: DIMH def - diagnose majority of ppl as abn and in need of help. But other research on prevalence on mental illness shown this is not the case. Therefore, DIMH lead to misdiagnosis if followed

Question 39

Limitation of DIMH - characteristics listed by Jahoda rooted in Western societies + have a western view of personal growth and achievement.

Answer 39

E.g self actualisation (seeking to fulfil one’s full potential) may be seen as a goal in life within some cultures e.g Western individualistic cultures, but not others, e.g Non-Western collectivist cultures. WB: in collectivist cultures - normal for elders in one family to plan young person’s future - may b seen as abnormal to go after your own goals if they are in conflict with those of your own culture. Therefore culture bias limits validity of DIMH when looking at abnormality in non-western cultures.