Chapter 1: Abnormal Psychology in Historical Context

Question 1

abnormal behavior

Answer 1

Actions that are unexpected and often evaluated negatively because they differ from typical or usual behavior.

Question 2

behavior therapy

Answer 2

Array of therapeutic methods based on the principles of behavioral and cognitive science, as well as principles of learning as applied to clinical problems. It considers specific behaviors rather than inferred conflicts as legitimate targets for change.

Question 3

behavioral model

Answer 3

Explanation of human behavior, including dysfunction, based on principles of learning and adaptation derived from experimental psychology.

Question 4

behaviorism

Answer 4

Explanation of human behavior, including dysfunction, based on principles of learning and adaptation derived from experimental psychology.

Question 5

castration anxiety

Answer 5

in psychoanalysis, the fear in young boys that they will be mutilated genitally because of their lust for their mothers.

Question 6

catharsis

Answer 6

Rapid or sudden release of emotional tension thought to be an important factor in psychoanalytic therapy.

Question 7

classical conditioning

Answer 7

Fundamental learning process first described by Ivan Pavlov. An event that automatically elicits a response is paired with another stimulus event that does not (a neutral stimulus). After repeated pairings, the neutral stimulus become a conditioned stimulus that by itself can elicit the desired response.

Question 8

clinical description

Answer 8

Details of the combination of behaviors, thoughts, and feelings of an individual that make up a particular disorder.

Question 9

collective unconscious

Answer 9

Accumulated wisdom of a culture collected and remembered across generations, a psychodynamic concept introduced by Carl Jung.

Question 10

course

Answer 10

Pattern development and change of a disorder over time.

Question 11

defense mechanisms

Answer 11

Common pattern of behavior, often an adaptive coping style when it occurs in moderation, observed in response to a particular situation. Psychoanalytic theory suggests that defense mechanisms are unconscious processes originating in the ego.

Question 12

dream analysis

Answer 12

Psychoanalytic therapy method in which dream content is examined as symbolic of id impulses and intrapsychic conflicts.

Question 13

ego

Answer 13

in psychoanalysis, the psychic entity responsible for finding realistic and practical ways to satisfy id drives.

Question 14

ego psychology

Answer 14

Psychoanlytic theory that emphasizes the role of the ego in development and attributes psychological disorders to failure of the ego to manage impulses and internal conflicts. Also known as self-psychology.

Question 15

etiology

Answer 15

cause or source of a disorder.

Question 16

exorcism

Answer 16

Religious ritual that attributes disordered behavior to possession by demons and seeks to treat the individual by driving the demons from the body.

Question 17

extinction

Answer 17

Learning process in which a response maintained by reinforcement in operant conditioning or pairing in classical conditioning decreases when that reinforcement or pairing is removed; also the procedure of removing that reinforcement or pairing.

Question 18

free association

Answer 18

Psychoanalytic therapy technique intended to explore threatening material repressed into the unconscious. The patient is instructed to say whatever comes to mind without censoring.

Question 19

id

Answer 19

in psychoanalysis, the unconscious psychic entity present at birth representing basic drives.

Question 20

incidence

Answer 20

Number of new cases of a disorder appearing during a specific period (compare with prevalence)

Question 21

intrapsychic conflicts

Answer 21

in psychoanalytic theory, a struggle among the id, ego, and superego

Question 22

introspection

Answer 22

Early, nonscientific approach to the study of psychology involving systematic attempts to report thoughts and feelings that specific stimuli evoked.

Question 23

mental hygiene movement

Answer 23

Mid-19th century effort to improve care of the mentally disordered by informing the public of their mistreatment.

Question 24

moral therapy

Answer 24

Psychosocial approach in the 19th century that involved treating patients as normally as possible in normal environments.

Question 25

neurosis (neuroses plural)

Answer 25

Obsolete psychodynamic term for a psychological disorder thought to result from an unconscious conflict and the anxiety it causes.

Question 26

object relations

Answer 26

Modern development in psychodynamic theory involving the study of how children incorporate the memories and values of people who are close and important to them.

Question 27

person-centered therapy

Answer 27

therapy method in which the client, rather than the counselor, primarily directs the course of discussion, seeking self-discovery and self-responsibility.

Question 28

phobia

Answer 28

Psychological disorder characterized by marked and persistent fear of an object or situation.

Question 29

presenting problem

Answer 29

Original complaint reported by the client to the therapist. the actual treated problem may be a modification derived from the presenting problem.

Question 30

prevalence

Answer 30

Number of people displaying a disorder in the total population at any given time (compare with incidence).

Question 31

prognosis

Answer 31

predicted development of a disorder over time.

Question 32

psychoanalysis

Answer 32

Assessment and therapy pioneered by Sigmund Freud that emphasizes exploration of, and insight into, unconscious processes and conflicts.

Question 33

psychoanalyst

Answer 33

Therapist who practices psychoanalysis after earning wither an M.D. or a Ph.D. degree and receiving additional specialized postdoctoral training.

Question 34

psychoanalytic model

Answer 34

Complex and comprehensive theory originally advanced by Sigmund Freud that seeks to account for the development and structure of personality, as well as the origin of abnormal behavior, based primarily or inferred inner entities and forces.

Question 35

psychodynamic psychotherapy

Answer 35

Contemporary version of psychoanalysis that still emphasizes unconscious processes and conflicts but its briefer and more focused on specific problems.

Question 36

psychological disorder

Answer 36

Psychological dysfunction associated with distress or impairment in functioning that is not a typical or culturally expected response.

Question 37

psychopathology

Answer 37

scientific study of psychological disorders.

Question 38

psychosexual stages of development

Answer 38

Psychoanalytic concept of the sequence of the phases a person passes through during development. Each stage is named for the location on the body where id gratification is maximal at that time.

Question 39

psychosocial

Answer 39

treatment practice that focuses on social and cultural factors (such as family experience), as well as psychological influences. Psychosocial approaches include cognitive, behavioral, and interpersonal methods.

Question 40

reinforcement

Answer 40

in operant conditioning, consequences for behavior that strengthen it or increase its frequency. Positive reinforcement involves the contingent delivery of a desired consequence. Negative reinforcement is the contingent escape from an aversive consequence. Unwanted behaviors may result from reinforcement of those behaviors or the failure to reinforce desired behaviors.

Question 41

scientist-practitioner

Answer 41

Mental health professional expected to apply scientific methods to his or her work. A scientist-practitioner must know the latest research on diagnosis and treatment, must evaluate his or her methods for effectiveness, and may generate research to discover information about disorders and their treatment.

Question 42

self-actualizing

Answer 42

Process emphasized in humanistic psychology in which people strive to achieve their highest potential against difficult life experiences.

Question 43

shaping

Answer 43

in operant conditioning, the development of a new response by reinforcing successively more similar versions of that response. Both desirable and undesirable behaviors may be learned in the manner.

Question 44

superego

Answer 44

In psychoanalysis, the psychic entity representing the internalized moral standards of parents and society.