Chapter 1 - Concepts of Abnormality Throughout History Flashcards
What are the Elements of Abnormality?
- Statistical Concept
- Personal Distress
- Personal Dysfunction
- Violation of the Societal Norms
- Diagnosis by an expert
What did Hippocrates propose as the causes of mental disorders?
- Natural causes
- He associated dreams and personality
- Disturbances in bodily fluids
What are the tenets of Plato’s view on mental disorders?
- Are a response to the whole organism, not just one part
- Emphasized individual differences and sociocultural influences
- Pioneer in discussing hospital care
What was Aristotle’s view on treatment of mental disorders?
- Advocated for humane treatment
2. Agreed with Hippocrates view on bodily fluids
What was key to Roman medicine for mental disorders?
Comfort
What did Galen provide?
An anatomy of the nervous system
How were mental disorders treated in the Arab world historically?
Asylums were designed around comfort and kindness to the patients
What was seen as the cause of mental disorders in 500-1500 AD (Middle Ages)?
Supernatural Causes
What were some of the ‘mass madness’ phenomenon seen in Europe in the Middle Ages?
- Tarantism/Saint Vitus’s Dance
2. Lycanthropy
What was a popular European treatment of mental illness in the Middle Ages?
Exorcism
What are the symptoms of St. Vitus’ Dance?
Rapid uncoordinated movements primarily affecting the face, hands and feet
What are the biological causes of St. Vitus’ Dance?
An autoimmune response that occurs after an infection by group A B-hemolytic streptococci that destroys cells in the basal ganglia
What are some of the triggers of the autoimmune response that causes St. Vitus’ Dance?
Cerebrovascular accidents Collagen vascular diseases Drug intoxication Huntington's disease Hyperthyroidism Rheumatic fever
What did the Renaissance (16th century) bring to the understanding and treatment of mental disorders?
A resurge of scientific questioning
Establishment of asylums and workhouses - often prison-like places
What did the Enlightenment (18th century) bring to the treatment of mental disorders?
A philosophical movement that pushed for more humane treatment of the mentally ill
What did Philippe Pinel do?
In France, Pinel experimented with treating mental patients with kindness and pushed for more humane treatment
Who was Tuke?
A man in England who performed similar experiments to Pinel in France
Who was Benjamin Rush?
An American who pushed for moral management in the treatment of mental patients
What did Dorothy Dix campaign aggressively for?
From 1841 to 1881, she fought against the inhumane treatment of the mentally ill
What were some 19th century views on mental disorders?
Medical professionals (alienists) gained control of asylums. Alienists touted morality as important to mental health.
What was Benedict Morel’s theory on the cause of mental disorders?
Degeneration theory - deviations in normal function were transmitted via genetics
What did Emil Kraepelin publish in 1883?
Clinical Psychiatry: the first attempt to classify mental illnesses
Groups of symptoms of mental illnesses (Kraepelin)
Syndromes
What did Richard Von Krafft-Ebing establish?
A connection between GPI (general paresis of the insane) and infection (syphilis)
What was ECT (electroconvulsive therapy) used to treat during it’s initial use?
Schizophrenia
What is still used as a last line treatment for depression?
Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT)
When and why did psychopharmacology emerge?
In the 1950s in response to mental illness being seen as connected to disordered brain chemistry
What are one of the benefits of antipsychotics?
Take away delusions and hallucinations that allow for more normal functioning in regular society
What did Jean Charcot believe?
Hypnotism could treat psychological factors involved with hysteria
What Josef Breuer use to have clients free-talk about past events?
Hypnosis
Who is the ‘father’ of psychoanalysis?
Sigmund Freud
What does psychoanalysis emphasize?
Inner dynamics of unconscious motives
What does psychoanalysis concentrate on?
- Catharsis
- The unconscious
- Free association
- Dream analysis
What is behaviourism?
The belief that your experiences, culture, childhood etc. shape your behaviours.
What is classical conditioning?
A type of learning (via Pavlov) where a response is transferred from one stimulus to another
What is operant conditioning?
A type of learning (via Skinner) where the consequences of behaviour are important in influencing future behaviour
What factors contributed to Canada’s deinstitutionalization in the 1960’s?
Humanitarian
Scientific - surge of scientific activity
Economic - strong economy
Societal
What were the three main processes in Canada’s deinstitutionalization in the 1960’s?
- Reduce dependence on psychiatric hospitals
- Increase psychiatric beds in general hospitals
- Growth of community based outpatient services
Was the deinstitutionalization process successful?
More so in major cities - lack of community resources in rural areas remains a challenge
