Defining Abnormality Flashcards
Outline Deviation from ideal mental health
Rather than defining what is abnormal, we define what is normal and anything that deviated from this is regarded as abnormal.
outline 2 of Jahodas criteria which defines deviation from ideal mental health
ACCURATE PERCEPTION OF REALITY-if someone was hallucinating and having dellusions, they they do not have ideal mental health.
PERSONAL AUTONOMY- if you cannot take care of yourself ie was and feed etc then you cannot be considered as normal.
what psychological abnormality would Deviate from ideal mental health
Schizophrenia suffers as they do not have an accurate perception of reality
Evaluate Deviation from ideal mental health
Cannot generalise as it is based on western cultures-reducing the validity of the explanation
Most people would be classed as abnornal-it is a bias opinion, if you were experiencing grief, you would be considered abnormal, reducing the validity
Self Actualisation-only 5% of people reach this, therefore classing 95% of the population abnormal
Outline Failure to function adequately
A person is abnormal if they are unable to cope with the demands of everyday life.
they may be unable to perform the behaviours necessary for day to say living, ie self care, holding down a job, etc.
Outline two of Rosenhans criteria which shows Failure to function adequately
VIOLATION OF MORAL STANDARDS-when your behaviour differs from behaviours expected in certain situations, eg laughing at a funeral
OBSERVER DISCOMFORT-the behaviours of others makes the person uncomfortable eg social withdrawl.
One example of a psychological abnormality that Fails to function adequately
Schizophrenia-has hallucinations which may cause them to not leave the house and therefore cannot go to work
Limitations of Failure to function adequately
Context of the behaviour-the behaviour may seem abnormal ,but in context, for example, a charity event, may make the behaviour normal
Someone may fail to function adequately but may be psychologically normal-eg if theyre grieving, they may not go to work but this is a normal reaction, this explanation would say that this is abnormal
Psychopaths-they are psychologically abnormal byt can function adequately
outline deviation from social norms
a persons thinking or behaviour is classified abnormal if they violate the unwritten rules of what it expected in society. the behaviour may make others feel uncomfortable or threatened. for example, taking your pet to a party.
One example of a psychological abnormality that deviates from social norms.
Schizophrenia, not everyone has voices in their head telling them what to do, or noone thinks that they are someone greater than they are eg jesus
Limitations of deviation from social norms
Eccentric or abnormal-this states that anyone with eccentric behaviour would be seen as psychologically abnormal when they arent
Social norms change over time-for example, homosexuality wasnt accepted as a social norm but is now
Social norms differ with culture-Russia dont accept homosexual people so they see this as abnormal still whereas the UK accept this.
