Definitions of Abnormality Flashcards
What are the definitions of abnormality?
- Statistical infrequency
- Deviation from social norms
- Failure to function adequately
- Deviation from ideal mental health
What is statistical infrequency?
Abnormality is defined as those behaviours that are extremely rare i.e any behaviour that us found in very few people is regarded as abnormal
What is deviation from social norms?
Abnormal behaviour is seen as a deviation from unstated rules about how one ought to behave
What is failure to function adequately?
Abnormality is seen as lacking the ability to go about daily life resulting in distress to themselves and others
What is deviation from ideal mental health?
Abnormality is defined in terms of an absence of criteria which indicated good mental health
What is an example of statistical infequency?
Intellectual disability disorder
What is an example of deviation from social norms?
Antisocial personality disorder
Borderline personality disorder
What is an example of failure to function adequately?
PTSD
What is an example of deviation from ideal mental health?
Depression
What is the strength of statistical infrequency?
Real-life application- using statistics has proven as a useful diagnosing and assessment tool. E.G the diagnosis of intellectual disability disorder requires an IQ of below 70 (bottom 2%). For the beck depression inventory a score of 30+ (top 5%) is regarded as severe depression.
Determines between desirable/ undesirable behaviours- It takes into account the effect behaviour has on others Deviance is described in terms of transgression of social rules made to help people live together. using this definition abnormal behaviour is behaviour that damages others so is a way to identify undesirable behaviour.
What are the strength of deviation from social norms?
Determines between desirable/ undesirable behaviours- It takes into account the effect behaviour has on others Deviance is described in terms of transgression of social rules made to help people live together. using this definition abnormal behaviour is behaviour that damages others so is a way to identify undesirable behaviour.
What are the two limitations of statistical infrequency?
Some abnormal behaviours are desirable- Infrequent characteristics can be viewed as positive as well as negative. For example, very few people have an IQ over 150, yet this abnormality is one deemed as desirable. Some ‘normal’ behaviours are undesirable e.g. experiencing depression is relatively common.
Cultural relativism- Social norms vary from one culture to another. A person from one cultural group may label someone from another culture as behaving abnormally according to their standards. For example, hearing voices is socially acceptable in some cultures, but is seen as a sign of mental abnormality in the UK. The DSM’s classification systems are almost entirely based on social norms of the West.
Counter- cultural relativism is now acknowledged in the most recent revision to the DSM in 2013, which makes reference to cultural contexts in many areas of diagnosis – in the section on panic attacks a note is made that uncontrollable crying may be a symptom in some cultures, whereas difficulty breathing may be a primary symptom in other cultures.
