definitions of abnormality

Question 1

what is psychopathology?

Answer 1

the study of the psychological disorders

Question 2

what is statistical deviation/infrequency?

Answer 2

it occurs when someone has a less common characteristic which can be reliably measured

Question 3

how are behaviours perceived as normal and abnormal?

Answer 3

any behaviour can be defined as normal or abnormal depending on the number of times we observe the specific behaviour

Question 4

what is seen as an abnormal IQ?

Answer 4

an IQ of below 70 is seen as very abnormal as only 2% of people have an IQ this low

Question 5

what disorder may someone have if they have a low IQ?

Answer 5

I.D.D ( intellectual disability disorder)

Question 6

what is the average IQ in the population?

Answer 6

the average is 100 for most people however 68% of people have an in between 85-115

Question 7

what is deviations from social norms?

Answer 7

this identifys behaviour that is different from the accepted standards of the typical behaviour in a community or society

Question 8

how does society define certain behaviours?

Answer 8

society defines behaviour as abnormal because it offends the idea of what is acceptable or is the norm?

Question 9

what are norms?

Answer 9

they are culture specific and may be different for each generation, so few behaviours are universally abnormal

Question 10

what are some examples of norms?

Answer 10

• acceptance towards homosexuality
• sex before marriage
• women as the bread winner
• slavery
• less religious

Question 11

what is antisocial personality disorder?

Answer 11

it is a personality disorder where the individual is impulsive, aggressive and irrisponsible
according to the DSM-5 a symptom of A.S.P.D is failiure to conform to our moral standards

Question 12

what is failiure to function adequately?

Answer 12

this is when someone is unable to cope with the ordinary demands of day to day life

Question 13

what are some examples of failiure to function adequately?

Answer 13

• lack of motivation to shower
• lack of motivation to make food
• unable to get up to work/school
• unable to maintain relationships

Question 14

what do Rosenhan and Seligman (1989) suggest are the signs for not functioning?

Answer 14

• not conforming to interpersonal rules (e.g. respecting personal space)
• experiencing personal distress
• irrational or dangerous behaviour
• I.D.D is usually diagnosed with statistical deviation but failiure to function adequately is also used to back up this diagnosis

Question 15

what is deviation from ideal mental health?

Answer 15

it is when someone’s ideal mental health doesn’t fit a set of criteria’s

Question 16

what are Jahodas (1958) criteria for good mental health?

Answer 16

Environmental mastery: you can meet the demands that every day life throws at you
Autonomy: you are able to act independently of others and you can rely on your own abilities
Resisting stress: you are able to deal with anxieties caused by life
self actualisation: you can maximise your personal growth and development to achieve our potentials
positive attitude to oneself: you have high levels of self esteem and respect
accurate perception of reality: you have a realistic view of the world that is not distorted by personal biases ( our own view of the way things are may be warped)

Question 17

AO3: how is real life application a strength to statistical deviation/infrequency?

Answer 17

it is used in clinical assessments (e.g. it diagnoses intellectual disability disorder). All assessments of patients with mental disorders include a measurement of how severe there symptoms are compared to statistical norms. This means it is a relatively easy method of identifying patterns of abnormality

Question 18

AO3: how is unusual characteristics people can have be positive a weakness to statistical deviation/infrequency?

Answer 18

IQ scores over 130 are as usual as those under 70, but we don’t think of super-intelligence as an undesirable characteristic that doesn’t need treatment. Just because few people display certain behaviours, this makes the behaviour statistically abnormal but they may not require treatment to return to normal. This means statistical infrequency can’t be used as a sole diagnosis for abnormality.

Question 19

AO3: how is not everyone unusual benefits from a label a limitation to statistical deviation/infrequency?

Answer 19

there is no benefit to some people to be labeled as abnormal because they may have a happy and fulfilled life (e.g. someone with a very low IQ but who wasn’t distressed and capable of working), they wouldn’t need a diagnosis of I.D.D. this label may, therefore be harmful as it may have a negative effect on how others view them and they view themselves

Question 20

AO3: how is social norm are culturally relative a strength to deviation from social norms?

Answer 20

social norms vary massively from one generation to another and from one community to another (e.g. hearing voices is socially acceptable in some cultures but would be seen as a sign for a mental abnormality in the uk). this does however mean this definition may cause problems for people in one culture living within another culture group because it may lead to people being discriminated against or picked on.

Question 21

AO3: how is using this definition can lead to human rights abuses a limitation to deviation from social norms?

Answer 21

there are many historical examples deviation from social norms where they were used to maintain control over minority ethnic groups and women. these examples seem ridiculous today but only because our social norms have changed. some suggest that some of our modern categories of mental disorder are really abuses of peoples right to be different.

Question 22

AO3: how does this is never the sole reason for defining abnormality a strength and a weakness of deviation from social norms?

Answer 22

a strength of this definition is that it has real life application in the diagnosis of antisocial personality disorder, but, in practice, it is never use to diagnose abnormality on its own

Question 23

AO3: what is a limitation from failiure to function adequately?

Answer 23

it can be hard to say when someone is really failing to function and when they are just deviating from social norms. we might think that not having a job or a permanent address is a sign of failiure to function adequately. but then what do we say about people who choose to have alternative lifestyles who choose not to have those things? similarly those who participate in extreme sport could be accused of behaving in a maladaptive way, whilst those with religious or supernatural beliefs could be seen as irrational. if we treat these behaviours as ‘failiures’ of adequate functioning, this means we may limit personal freedom and discriminate against minority groups

Question 24

AO3: what is a strength of failiure to function adequately?

Answer 24

this definition recognises that the experience of the individual is important, it identifies the different experiences of many of the people who need help and so is a useful criterion for assessing abnormality

Question 25

AO3: how is the definition has an unrealistically high standard for mental health a limitation to deviation from ideal mental health?

Answer 25

this definition has an unrealistically high standard for mental health. very few people meet all of jahodas criteria for mental health, and probably no one achieves them all at the same time or keep them up for very long. therefore, this approach would see most people as abnormal.

Question 26

AO3: how is it covers a broad range of criteria for mental health a strength to deviation from ideal mental health?

Answer 26

this definition probably covers most of the reasons why someone would seek help for mental health issues. the huge range of factors detailed in jahodas ideal mental health list make it a good tool for thinking about mental health.

Question 27

AO3: how is some of the ideas in jahodas classification are specific to western european and northern american cultures and limitation to deviation from ideal mental health?

Answer 27

some of the ideas are specific to only western european and northern american cultures, for example the emphasis on personal achievement with the concept of of self-actualisation would be considered self indulgent (too bothered about yourself) in much of the world because the emphasis is so much on the individual rather than the family or community