Definitions of abnormality Flashcards
Statistical infrequency
Occurs when an individual has a less common characteristic for example being more depressed or less intelligent than most of the population.
Example IQ and intellectual disability disorder: measuring intelligence, majority of people’s score will cluster around the average, and that further we go above or below that average, the fewer people will attain that score. - normal distribution. The average IQ is set at 100. In a normal distribution , most people have a score in the range from 85-115. Only 2% of people have a score below 70. Those who score below 70 are classed as abnormal and are liable to receive a diagnosis of IDD
Deviation from Social Norms.
- Concerns behaviour that is different from the accepted standards of society.
Norms are specific to the culture we live in:
E.g. Homosexuality was considered abnormal in our culture in the past and still continues to be viewed as abnormal in some cultures. Brunei introduced new laws that make sex between men an offence and punished by stoning to death.
EXAMPLE: APD. a person with this is impulsive, aggressive and irresponsible. According to the DSM-5 one important symptoms is an absence of prosocial internal standards associated with failure to conform to lawful and culturally normative ethical behaviour.
STRENGTHS-REAL WORLD APPLICATION
one strength of SI is its usefulness. SI is used in clinical practice, both as part of formal diagnosis and as a way to assess the severity of an individuals symptoms. E.g. a diagnosis of IDD requires an IQ below 70. An example of of an assessment tool is the BDI. A score of 30+ indicates severe depression.
WEAKNESS- UNUSUAL CHARACTERISTICS CAN BE POSITIVE
For every person with an IQ below 70 there is another with an IQ above 130. yet we would think of someone as abnormal for having an high IQ and we wouldn’t think of someone with a very low depression score as abnormal.
STRENGTH-REAL WORLD APPLICATION
DFSN
DFSN is used in clinical practice e.g. the key characteristic of apd is the failure to conform to culturally acceptable behaviour i.e recklessness. These signs of the disorder are all deviations from social norms.
These norms also play a part in the diagnosis of schizotypal personality disorder where the word strange is used to characterise the thinking of people with the disorder.
WEAKNESS-CULTURAL AND SITUATIONAL RELATIVISM
- the variability between social norms in different cultures and even different situations.
A person from one group may label someone from another group as abnormal using their standards. E.G. someone hearing voices is the norm in some cultures as messages from ancestors but would be seen as abnormal in the uk. This means that it’s difficult to judge deviation from social norms across different cultures.
Failure to function adequately
Occurs when someone is unable to cope with ordinary demands of day to day living.
WHEN IS SOMEONE FAILING TO FUNCTION ADEQUATELY?
MARTIN AND ROSENHAN (1989).
- when a person is no longer conforming to standard interpersonal rules, e.g. maintaining eye contact and respecting personal space.
- when a person experiences severe distress.
- when a persons’ behaviour becomes irrational or dangerous to themselves or others.
EXAMPLE: IDD An individual must also be failing to function before a diagnosis would be given.
Deviation from ideal mental health
When someone doesn’t meet a set of criteria for good mental health.
JAHODA(1958)-suggested that we are in good mental health if we meet these criteria:
- no symptoms or distress
- we are rational and can perceive ourselves.
-we self-actualise.
-we can cope with stress
- we have good self esteem
- we are independent of other people.
Evaluation-strength REPRESENTS A THRESHOLD FOR HELP
it represents a sensible threshold for when people need help. According to the mental health charity Mind, around 25% of people in the UK will experience a mental health problem in any year. Many people press on in the face of fairly severe symptoms. it tends to be at the point we cease to function adequately that people seek help or are noticed and referred by others.
THIS CRITERION MEANS THAT TREATMENT AND SERVICES CAN BE TARGETED TO THOSE WHO NEED THEM THE MOST.
WEAKNESS- DISCRIMINATION AND SOCIAL CONTROL
one limitation is its easy to label non-standard lifestyle choices as abnormal. In practice its hard to say when someone is failing to function and when they have chosen to deviate from social norms. e.g. not having a job might seem like failing to function.
this means people who make unusual choices are at risk of being called abnormal.
STRENGTH- A COMPREHENSIVE DEFINITION
- highly comprehensive. jahodas concept includes a range of criteria for distinguishing mental health from mental disorder. it covers most of the reasons why we may seek professional help.
This means that it provides a checklist against which we can assess ourselves and others and discuss psychological issues with a range of professionals
WEAKNESS- extremely high standards
The main issue with this definition of abnormality is that Jahoda may have had an unrealistic
expectation of ideal mental health, with the vast majority of people being unable to acquire, let alone maintain, all of the criteria listed.
