Characteristics of OCD Flashcards
What is Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD)?
an anxiety disorder characterised by intrusive and uncontrollable thoughts (i.e. obsessions), coupled with a need to perform specific acts repeatedly (i.e. compulsions).
What are common clinical obessions?
- fear of contamination (esp. being infected by germs)
- repetitive thoughts of violence (killing or harming someone)
- sexual obsessions
- obsessive doubt
What are the most common compulsions?
cleaning, washing, checking, counting and touching
Cognitive
What do you THINK?
How does OCD effect someone cognitively?
Obsessions dominate ones thinking and are persistent and recurrent thoughts images or beliefs entering the mind uninvited and which cannot be remove
Emotional
How do you FEEL?
How does OCD effect someone emotionally?
Obsessive thoughts often lead to anxiety, worry and distress.
Behavioural
How do you BEHAVE?
How does OCD effect someone’s behaviour?
Compulsions are the repetitive behavioral responses intended to neutralize these obsessions, often involving rigidly applied rules.
How can this approach be criticised?
ignoring environmental influences. For example, people are not born with OCD they might learn it from their environment through the process of classical and operant conditioning.
What is a strength of this approach
include its testability via neuroscience research, evidence for genetic and neurotransmitter involvement in conditions such as schizophrenia. For example, the dopamine hypothesis argues that elevated levels of dopamine are related to symptoms of schizophrenia.
What are biological explanations?
reductionist as they focus on only one factor and at present our understanding of biochemistry is oversimplified
What else is biological explanations?
deterministic because they ignore the individual’s ability to control their own behavior, which in turn may affect their biochemistry levels.
