Chapter 16

Question 1

Psychological Interventions - Therapies

Answer 1

A psychological intervention is designed to help people resolve emotional, behavioural, and interpersonal problems and improve the quality of their lives

Question 2

Who seeks therapy

Answer 2

One in five people in Canada experiences a mental health problem at some point in life

But only about 30% seek help at some point in their lives

Question 3

Who is qualified to provide therapies

Answer 3

Clinical psychologists, psychiatrists, psychotherapists, counsellors, and clinical social workers are the primary provides of therapy

Question 4

Community Psychology

Answer 4

Community psychology focuses on identifying how individuals’ mental health is influenced by the community in which they live and emphasizes community-level variables such as social programs, support networks, and community resource centers to help those with mental illness adjust to the challenges of everyday life.

Question 5

Barriers to receiving therapy/support

Answer 5

Availability of appropriate support

Disorders are ambiguous – lack of correct or complete diagnosis

Attitudes toward treatment

Cultural attitudes to seeking support

availability of appropriate cultural support

Geographical barriers – rural and remote
Financial barriers

significantly long and increasing wait lists

Question 6

Insight Therapies

Answer 6

A form of psychotherapy where the goal is to expand awareness or insight into how an individual’s past life experiences may influence their thinking, feeling, and acting

Question 7

Psychodynamic therapy

Answer 7

Developed by Freud, one of the first forms of therapy

Adults’ psychological conflicts have their origins in early experiences - traumatic or adverse childhood experiences (ACEs).

Question 8

Freud’s Psychoanalysis Core Ideas

Answer 8

Try to bring to conscious awareness previously repressed impulses, conflicts, and memories

Question 9

Free association

Answer 9

Technique in which clients express themselves without censorship of any sort

Question 10

Transference

Answer 10

Client projecting intense, unrealistic feelings onto therapist

Such as a young adult who has been abused by a parent may see a therapist who resembles the parent as a threat.

Question 11

Countertransference

Answer 11

Therapist projecting thoughts, feelings, onto client

The client’s story may be very familiar to the therapist’s story

Question 12

Humanistic Therapies

Answer 12

Assumes that human nature is fundamentally positive, rather than emphasizing the essentially negative perspective advanced by psychoanalytic approaches.

Emphasizes individual strengths and the potential for growth

Focuses on the importance of facing painful experiences such as feelings about isolation, death, and meaninglessness, transforming fears and negativity.

Stresses importance of assuming responsibility for our lives and living in the present

Question 13

Behavioural Therapies

Answer 13

Behavioural therapies attempt to address problem behaviours and the environmental factors that trigger them

Question 14

Cognitive Therapies

Answer 14

A limitation of behavioural therapies is that they don’t directly address cognition or problematic thoughts.

Question 15

Albert Ellis (1962) and Aaron Beck (1963)

Answer 15

Conscious thinking is the basis for most behavior and emotional response

Unconscious or preconscious can easily be brought to the forefront with probing and reflection

Question 16

Beck’s Cognitive Therapy

Answer 16

Distorted beliefs are the result of cognitive errors

Goal = stop negative thoughts, replace with objective thoughts

Guide clients so real-world experience provides evidence to refute false beliefs

Question 17

Group Therapy

Answer 17

Refers to therapies that treat more than one person at a time

Can be efficient, time-saving, and less costly than individual

Most groups usually have 8-10 people
Drop-in open based groups vs. closed groups with # of sessions

Effective for a wide range of problems and about as helpful as individual treatments

Question 18

Couple and Family Therapies

Answer 18

Therapist helps couples or family members work through certain changes.

Heal wounds, improve communication patterns.

Create more understanding and harmony within family

Question 19

Biomedical Therapies

Answer 19

Attempt to directly alter the brain’s chemistry or physiology to treat psychological disorders

Psychological disorders = symptoms of underlying physical disorders.

Drug therapy.

Electroconvulsive therapy (E C T).

Psychosurgery

Question 20

Drug Therapies

Answer 20

Psychopharmacotherapy

Use of medications to treat psychological disorders

Today, medications are available to treat most psychological disorders

Antianxiety, antidepressants, mood stabilizers, antipsychotics, psychostimulants

Question 21

Electroconvulsive Shock Therapy (ECT)

Answer 21

for severely depressed, suicidal patients.

In electroconvulsive therapy, a mild electric current is passed through the brain for one to two seconds, causing a brief seizure.

Used to treat severe problems (intractable depression, schizophrenia) as a last resort

6-10 treatments given three times a week

Question 22

Psychosurgery

Answer 22

For serious psychological disorders, severe chronic pain.

Severe O C D, depression, bipolar disorders

Question 23

Lobotomy (Psychosurgery)

Answer 23

Psychosurgery severs nerve fibers connecting frontal lobes to deeper brain centers.

Question 24

Cingulotomy (Psychosurgery)

Answer 24

Electric currents through electrodes to destroy cingulum