Chap 1-3 LO Flashcards
LO 1.1 - Why being different is not mean abnormality
Because differences can sometimes be positive for the individual and perhaps for society.
LO 1.2 - Why behaving differently is doesn’t mean behaving abnormally
behavior can be deviant without being abnormal
LO 1.3 Understand why simply behaving dangerously does not always equal abnormality
dangerous behavior CAN be abnormal, but many people with psychological disorders don’t engage with dangerous behavior and vice versa
LO 1.4 Explain the difference between behaviors that are different, deviant, dangerous, and dysfunctional
Bold is the definition
Whether it creates dysfunction and/or emotional distress
LO 1.4 Explain the difference between behaviors that are different, deviant, dangerous, and dysfunctional
different: deviate from average
(behaving) deviant: different
dangerous: potientially harmful to oneself or others
LO 1.5 identify at least two contexual factors that need to be considered when determining whether a behavior is abnormal.
cultural norms, developmental stage, emotional and physical maturity, and socioeconomic status.
LO 1.6 Discuss ancient spiritual and biological theories of the origins of abnormal behavior
spirit pocession amongst first explanations for abnormal behavior, biological seat of abnormal behavior is the brain.
LO 1.7 Discuss spiritual, biological, and environmental theories of the origins of abnormal behavior in classical Greek and roman periods.
Hippocrates proposed that abnormal behavior resulted from an imbalance of bodily humors, indicating a biological cause.
Other physicians, such as Galen and Avicenna, proposed that psychological factors also played a role.
LO 1.8 Discuss the spiritual, biological, and environmental theories of the origins of abnormal behavior from the middle ages to the renaissance.
return to theories of spirit posession, During the Renaissance period, theories based on biology and environmental factors re-emerged in Europe
LO 1.9 Discuss the spiritual, biological, psychological and sociocultural theories of the origins of abnormal behavior in the nineteenth century.
marked beginning of humane treatment,
Kraepelin also introduced a sys-tem for the classification of mental disorders, and Charcot introduced psychological treatments.
L.O 10 Discuss the spiritual, biological, psychological and sociocultural theories of the origins of abnormal behavior in the twentieth century
psychoanalysis and behaviorialism.
sociocultural models show that behavior exists in a context.
LO 1.11 identify at least two biological mechanisms that are considered to play a role in the onset of abnormal behavio
genetic abnormality, abnormal brain structures, or abnormal brain functioning.
LO 1.12 identify at least two psychological models that may account for the development of abnormal behavior.
Within the psychological model are several distinctive approaches, including modern psychoanalytic, behavioral, and cognitive models
LO 1.13 Explain the sociocultural mode of behavior and how it differs from the biological and psychological models.
broad social and cultural forces are contribute more to onset of abnormal behaviors
LO 1.14 Explain how the biopsychosocial model accounts for the limitations in the three unidimensional
models (biological, psychological, sociocultural).
biology lays the foundation for sociocultural and psychological forces to constribute to behavior, and they wokr in tandem.
LO 2.1 Describe three core principles of ethics in the scientific study of abnormal behavior.
1: respect for persons (autonomus)
2: beneficence (protect from harm)
3: justice (what’s deserved)
LO 2.2 Understand important features of informed consent
participants should recognize that participation is voluntary. Researchers consder risks, IRB must review and approve.
LO 2.3 Identify the two main parts of the nervous system and brain/body components of each.
central nervous system: brain/spinal cord.
perpheral nervous system: sensory-somatic system, automatic nervous systems.
LO 2.4 Explain the role of neurotransmitters as they relate to abnormal behavior.
neurotransmitters: chemicals that relay electrical signals from one neuron to next.
Most drug treatments for abnormal behavior affect one or more of the core neurotransmitters.
LO 2.5 Recognize new techniques used to study abnormal psychology at the cellular or neuroanatomical level.
CAT and MRI: snapshot images of brain
PET and fMRI: see neurotransmitter pathways and changes in bloodflow
LO 2.6 Understand the differences between **family, adoption, and twin studies (which do not study genes directly) **and molecular genetics research (which does directly study genes) and the strengths and limitations of each approach
Family studies: whether the family members of someone with a particular disorder (proband) are more likely to have that disorder than family members of people without the disorder.
Adoption: allows examination for genetically related people in different families
Twin: twin (fraternal and identical) pairs
LO 2.6 Understand the differences between family, adoption, and twin studies (which do not study genes directly) and molecular genetics research (which does directly study genes) and the strengths and limitations of each approach
In candidate gene association studies, scientists compare one or a few specific genes in a large group of individuals who have a specific trait or disorder with a well-matched group of individuals who do not have that trait or disorder.
A genome-wide asso-ciation study (GWAS) is also a case-control design but compares millions of genetic variants across the genome
LO 2.7 Describe the strengths and limitations of case studies.
strengths: examination of rare phenomina, generate hypothesis for group studies, illustrate important clinical issues not possible with group research
limits: cant’ determine causes of symptoms or change following treatment, high variety
LO 2.8 Identify two types of single-case designs and the strengths and limitations of each
ABAB design: treatment only occurs in the B phase
LO 2.9 Understand the principles of correlational research and their application to the study of abnormal behavior
Correlational research helps us understand abnormal behavior by examining relations between variables or conditions.
correlational coefficient: stat that tells whether relation between two variables is positive or negative
LO 2.10 Describe the factors that influence outcomes of randomized controlled trials
how participants are selected, assessment strategies, (and whether they are blinded)
internal validity (how well controlled the variables are) and external validity (how representative conditions are to the real world)
LO 2.11 Understand the importance of diversity in group-based research in abnormal psychology
Generalizability (apply the results of a study to a broader group of people or situations) of findings from group-based research is influenced by how diverse the study sample is.
LO 2.12 Explain the difference between cross-sectional and longitudinal cohorts and the strengths and limitations of each
cross-sectional: compare groups of people (cohorts) who are assessed at the same point in time. Is efficient and cost-effective.
longitudinal: examines changes in a single group of people over time, allows examinations to change over long stretches
LO 2.13 Differentiate incidence and prevalence as these terms relate to understanding abnormal behavior.
incidence: number of new cases that emerge in a given population during a specified period of time (e.g., the number of new cases of depression over the past year).
prevalence: the total number of cases of a disorder in a given population at a designated time (e.g., the number of people with depression at any specified point in time or over their lifetime).
LO 2.14 Recognize the types of epidemiological research as they relate to abnormal psychology
Observational epidemiology: documents the presence of psychological disorders in human population usually by administration of diagnostic review
Experimental epidemiology: documenting the presence of psychological disorders after the researcher manipulates exposure to causal or preventative factors.
LO 3.1 Understand the steps in a clinical assessment
begins with referral question that establishes goals and influences selection of instruments, then psychologist develops preliminary answers to referral question(s) and shares findings with the patient and others involved in assessment.
LO 3.2 Identify the purpose of a screening assessment and define what is meant by sensitivity and specificity.
screening assessment: used to identify potiential further assessment.
sensitivity: ability to identify problem that actually exists.
specificity: percentage of time that screener accurately identifies absence of probelm.
LO 3.3 Describe the purpose of a diagnostic assessment and how it is different from screening.
involves a clinical interview to determine which diagnosis or diagnoses best describe a person’s symptoms. more extensive and provides more through understanding of psychological status.
LO 3.4 Explain how clinical assessments can be used to evaluate a person’s progress during treatment
Clinical assessments can be repeated at regular intervals dur-ing treatment to evaluate whether change in symptoms is occurring.
LO 3.5 Explain the importance of standardization to the interpretation of assessment results and the difference between normative and self-referent comparisons.
Standardization helps us to interpret the results of clinical assessments by comparing a person’s score either with the scores of a large sample of people who are representative of the population (normative comparison) or with the per-son’s own prior scores (self-referent comparison).
LO 3.6 Describe how reliability is important for understanding results of a clinical assessment.
reliability: consistent results for each use. increase confidence in assessment results.
LO 3.7 Explain how validity of a measure affects a psychologist’s ability to predict behavior
Validity (degree to which a test measures what it was intending to measure) is often assessed by evaluating correlations between measures of similar or different constructs and by examining how well assessment scores predict behavior.
LO 3.8 Understand how a person’s age, developmental status, and culture affect the clinical assessment process.
diffrent tests are needed for kids, teens, adults, etc. may involve other people depending on developmentaql status, cultural factors may affect results.
LO 3.9 Describe at least two ethical issues that a psychologist needs to consider before conducting an assessment.
adequete training in any assessment/instrument used
use measures only with reliability and validiity
obtain informed consent
LO 3.10 Recognize the purpose of a clinical interview and the difference between unstructured and structured formats.
the purpose of clinical interviews is to gather information and make judgments related to assessment goals.
unstructured interview: the clinician decides what questions to ask and how to ask them.
structured interview: the clinician asks the same standard set of ques-tions to each patient.
LO 3.11 Understand the function of personality tests and the difference between objective and projective methods.
Personality tests measure personality characteristics.
objective methods: self-report and ask the person tested to answer a series of standardized questions.
projective tests: have person respond in unstructured way to series of images.
LO 3.12 Explain the purpose of tests designed to assess general functioning and specific symptoms.
Assessments of general functioning give a broad overview of how well a person is doing psychologically without attention to specific symptoms. Both general and specific assess-ments can be useful to compare a person’s functioning to a normative group and/or to evaluate change as a result of treatment.
LO 3.13 Describe commonly used neuropsychological and intelligence tests.
Wisconsin Card Sorting Test: think flexibly
Bender Visual Motor Gestalt: detects problems in visula-motor development in kids and general brain damage.
Stanford–Binet and Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scales.
LO 3.14 Describe procedures used in a behavioral assessment with attention to the importance of a functional analysis, self-monitoring, and behavioral observation.
A functional analysis allows clinician to identify causal links between problem behaviors and contextual variables that include internal and environmental antecedents and consequences of the behavior.
Self-monitoring allows real-time assessment of symptoms and contextual cues.
Behavioral observation also involves measuring behavior as it occurs, but mea-sures are taken by someone other than the person with the symptoms.
LO 3.15 Explain the purpose of psychophysiological assessment and what it can tell us about abnormal behavior.
Psychophysiological assessment measures brain structure, brain function, and nervous system activity as it changes in response to emotions or psychological events.
Measuring changes in the sweat glands of the skin (EDA) can tell us about a person’s emotional reactions.
LO 3.16 Describe the value of classifying abnormal behavior and the two major systems currently used for this purpose.
Classification of abnormal behavior provides a common language to facilitate clinical practice and research.
Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM)
International Classification of Disease and Related Health Problems (ICD).
LO 3.17 Explain the meaning of comorbidity and factors that may contribute to comorbidity in psychiatry.
Comorbidity: the presence of more than one disorder.
shared genetic factors provide bio explanation
LO 3.18 Recognize the importance of developmental and cultural variables that affect the experience and classification of abnormal behavior.
developmental stages affect how people express symptoms (eg children cant comprehend the future, no hopelessness)
gender and sociocultural factors affect classification as well (women have more anxeity, men substance abuse)
LO 3.19 Describe some of the limitations and drawbacks of a diagnostic classification system
Different people with the same disorder also may not respond to the same treatments.
Stereotyping by diagnosis also can lead to stigma and inadequate treatment.
current diagnostic systems may include too many disorders that overmedicalize normal variations in human behavior.
LO 3.20 Discuss the potential benefits of dimensional models for understanding abnormal behavior as alternatives to more traditional classification systems.
dimensional models: normal and abnormal behavior lie on a continuum and that what are now called disorders are simply extreme variations of normal experience
high rates comorbidility support utility, better understadning of behavior that don’t neatly fall into dianogstic category.
