Individual differences Flashcards
What is anti-psychiatry?
This was a movement associated with Szasz and Laing that rejected the medical model of psychopathology. Instead they proposed that people had ‘problems with living’ rather than psychological disorders.
What is psychosis?
This refers to a state when the individual appears to have lost contact with reality. It occurs in disorders such as schizophrenia and bipolar depression. The individual does not have insight into their condition.
What do anti-psychiatrists believe?
That there is no such thing as ‘abnormality’; some see it as a sane reaction to an insane world, and psychiatry was seen as a political tool to label and control ‘difficult’ people. Their alternative suggestion was that the legal system should be used to control violent or antisocial behaviour, but otherwise people should not be forced to undergo psychiatric diagnosis and treatment.
What is a psychiatrist?
A person who has completed their medical training and then specialised in psychopathology.
What is a psychologist?
These clinical psychologists have completed a psychology degree and then specialised in the study of psychological disorders.
What are some ways of defining abnormality?
- Deviation from social norms
- Failure to function adequately
- Deviation from ideal mental health
What is deviation from social norms?
Whether written into the legal system or implicit, i.e. generally accepted but not legally binding, social norms allow for the regulation of normal social behavior. One approach to defining abnormality, therefore, is to consider deviations from social norms as an indication of abnoramlity.
What is the limitation of defining abnormality as deviation from social norms?
- It doesn’t take into account the importance of the context of behaviour
- Behaviour that deviates from social norms is not always a sign of psychopathology
- This definition is open to abuse, particularly as a means of political control, when norms are dictated by the ruling party.
- Social norms vary over time
- Cultural relativity
What is cultural relativity?
The idea that some aspects of psychology vary from culture to culture. SO patterns of infant attachment might vary across different cultures and definitions of abnormality such as DSN are certainly culture-specific.
What is meant by failure to function adequately?
This definition of abnormality focuses on the everyday behaviour of an individual. When someone deviates from the normal pattern of behaviour (going to work, getting washed etc.) we might argue that they are failing to function adequately. Failure to function adequately is a general sign of disorder, and not itself specific to any condition.
What characteristics of abnormal behaviour in relation to FFA definition did Rosenhan and Seligman (1989) suggest?
- Observer discomfort when another’s behaviour causes discomfort and distress to the observer
- Unpredictability; FF can involve behaviour that is unpredictable and sometimes uncontrolled
- Irrationality: FFA can involve behaviours that look irrational and are hard to understand.
- Maladaptiveness; this is central to the FFA definition; it refers to behaviour that interfers with a person’s usual daily routine.
What are the limitations of the failure to function adequately definition of abnormality?
- It does not take into account context, hunger strikes etc.
- Doesn’t take into account economic conditions, prejudice or discrimination that might affect people’s ability to function
- Psychological disorders may not prevent a person from functioning adequately.
- Cultural dimension; standard patterns of behaviour will vary from culture to culture
What is psychopathy?
A term used to refer to an apparent lack of empathy and understanding of others. People with high levels of psychopathy exploit others with no guilt or remorse.
What is self-actualisation?
This refers to our motivation to achieve our full potential as individuals
What is autonomy?
The ability to function as an independent person, taking responsibility for one’s actions.
What is deviation from ideal mental health?
Jahoda introduced the first systematic approach in 1956, listing a number of characteristics she felt indicated ideal mental health. Deviations from these ideals would be defined as abnoramlity;
- Individual should be in touch with their own identity and feelings
- Should be resistant to stress
- Should be able to focus on the future and self-actualisation
- Should function as autonomous individuals
- Have an accurate perception of reality
- Show empathy and understanding towards others.
What are the limitations to the deviation from ideal mental health definition of abnormality?
- The characteristics listed are rooted in Western societies and a Western view of personal growth and achievement- cultural relativity
- Very few people would match the criteria laid down by Jahoda and so by definition the majority of the population would be classified as abnormal.
What is the disease model?
This is the idea that psychological disorders can be seen as similar to physical illnesses and diseases. Each disorder has its own distinct symptoms and is separate from all others. However, it is likely that psychological disorders will often overlap with each other.
What is a syndrome?
A cluster of physical or psychological symptoms that regularly occur together is referred to as a specific syndrome
What is the DSM-IVR:?
The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders. A system used by psychiatrists to diagnose and classify psychological disorders.
What is the global assessment of functioning scale?
One of the scales used in the DSM-IVR system. It assesses the impact of the disorder on the individual’s everyday life. In this sense it has elements of the FFA definition of abnormality.
What is the dominant approach to psychopathology?
The biological approach
What elements is the diseasemodel made up of?
- Abnormality is associated with certain signs or symptoms.
- Signs and symptoms that regularly occur together are referred to as syndromes.
- The disease model assumes that the various syndromes represent distinctive disorders that can be considered independently of one another. It then tries to develop explanations and treatments for each seperate disorder.
What are the two widely used systems in psychiatry for defining and classifying psychopathology into separate syndromes?
The International Statistical Classification of Diseases (ICD) is used mainly in Europe, while the American-Based Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) has a more international usage. Bother follow the approach of categorising different disorders, but differ in some particulars.
How does the DSM-IVR system define abnormality?
After using signs and symptoms to identify the particular syndrome, it also takes into account social and environmental problems that might influence the disorder. Finally, it useds a global assessment of functioning scale to rate the impact of the disorder on the patient’s daily life; this is closely related to deviation from social norms and failure to function adequately approach. However, the global rating is secondary to the main aim of identifying the disorder through signs and symptoms.
What are the issues with the medical disease model of psychopathology?
- There can be significant disagreements between psychiatrists when symtpoms overlap, or illnesses themselves occur together.
- The medical model of psychopatholgy emphasises the biological aspects of disorders, and the possible role of psychological factors in causing psychopathology is minimised.
- Labelling patients is a serious ethical issue that might lead to people being stigmatised.
What is cognitions?
This term refers to the cognitive processes underlying behaviour. It can include attention, perception and memory, and more complex thought processes such as reflection and problem solving.
What is cognitive neuroscience?
This is an area of research that investigates the brain mechanisms underlying cognitive processes such as perception, language and memory.
What is the biological approach?
THis studies the relationship between behaviour and the body’s various physiological systems. THe most important of these is the nervous system, especially the brain. The brain is the focus for most biological psychologists as it is the processing centre controlling all complex behaviour. This means that in theory all behaviour, normal and disordered, can be related to changes in brain-activity.
What is the nature-nurture debate?
For at least the last century psychologists have argued over whether behaviour is influenced more by our genetic inheritance (nature) or by environmental factors such as upbringing and socialization (nurture.)
What assumptions does the biological approach make?
- As all behaviour is associated with changes in brain function, psychopathology will be caused by changes in either the structure or function of the brain.
- The development of the body, including the brain, is heavily influenced by genetics, and biological psychologists tend to assume that most behaviours,normal and disorders, involve a component inherited from the biological parents. Very much on the nature side of the nature-nurture debate.
Why does the biological approach not assume everything is genetic?
Brain activity is affected by all sorts of factors, including our envionment and our experiences. Everyday experiences can affect brain chemistry, and this in turn can lead to psychopathologies such as depression. So, while depression is associated with reduced serotonin activity and therefore a biological cause, the reduction can be caused by environmental factors and is not necessarily genetic etc.
What experiment did Watson et al (1998) do on social isolation?
He found that isolating monkeys from their social groups leads to reduced activity of brain serotonin and also to a state that looks very much like depression.
What are the strengths of the biological approach?
- Use of brain scanning and other modern techniques has identified biological aspects of many psychopathologies.
- Research into behavioural genetics has identified a genetic or inherited, component in many pscyhopathologies.
- Drug treatment which targets the biological bases of disorders can be very effective
What are the issues with the biological approach?
- It is heavily reductionist. A full picture requires a study of both biology and environmental influences.
- Although a genetic component has been identified in many disorders, in no case does this component provide a complete explanation. So even when there is evidence for a genetic influence, it is assumed that this must interact with non-genetic environmental factors.
- Drug treatments are not effective for all people, and are sometimes largely ineffective.
What has depression been associated with?
Lowered levels of brain serotonin
What has schizophrenia been associated with?
Overactiity of the neurotransmitter dopamine
What is reductionism?
This is the attempt to explain behaviour by reducing it to the smallest possible elements. There are many types of reductionism, but biological reductionism is the most common.
What is Diathesis-stress?
This refers to a model that explains behaviour through an interaction between nature and nurture. For example, a vulnerability to depression is inherited, but the condition is only triggered if severe life stress is encountered.
What is psychodynamic?
Approaches to understanding behaviour that emphasise the balance between conscious and unconscious processes, and the significance of early development.
What is repression?
One of Freud’s most important defence mechanisms. Material that is too threatening to be deal with consciously is repressed into the unconscious.
What is the psychodynamic approach?
This approach assumes that adult behaviour reflects complex dynamic interactions between conscious and unconscious processes, many of which have their origins in development from birth onwards. THere are a number of different psychodynamic approaches, but all have their origins in the work of Sigmund Freud.
What were the two key elements in Freud’s work on abnormality?
His model of human personality and his detailed theory of psychosexual development in childhood.
What three interacting elements did Freud propose that personality was made up of?
The Id, The Ego and the superego
What is the id?
This is the reservoir of unconscious and instinctual psychic energy that we are born with. The most important aspect of psychic energy is the libido or life instincts, but this energy may also be directed into aggression. The id operates on the pleasure principle and constantly tries to gratify these instincts through sex and other forms of pleasureable activity, but may also lead to aggression and violence.
What is the ego?
This represents our conscious self. It develops during early childhood and regulates interactions with our immediate environment. It also tries to balance the demands of the id for self-gratification with the moral rules imposed by the superego or conscience. The ego operates on the reality principle, in that it constantly balances the demands of the real world against the instinctive drives of the id.
What is the superego?
This is our personal moral authority, or conscience. It develops later in childhood through identification with one or other parent, at which point the child internalises the moral rules and social norms of society.
How may the ego influence the development of psychological disorders according to Freud?
If the ego fails to balance the demands of the id and superego, conflicts may arise and psychological disorders may result. Dominance of id impulses may lead to destructive tendencies, pleasurable acts and uninhibited sexual behaviour. If the morality of the superego dominates, the individual may be unable to experience any form of pleasureable gratification.
Why does Freud focus on the early years as the source of adult disorders?
As the id is present from birth while the ego and superego develop through the early childhood years, such conflicts are particularly likely at this time when the ego is undeveloped.
What is the reality principle?
The ego operates on the reality principle, trying to balance id and superego in the face of the demands of the real world.
What is intra-psychic?
In Freud’s model, the psyche, or mind, is made up of the id, ego and superego. Conflict between these components (i.e. intra-psychic) can lead to anxiety.
What is ego-defence mechanism?
These protect our conscious self from the anxiety produced by intra-psychic conflict. THese can include mechanisms such as repression, displacement, and denial.
What is displacement?
This occurs when an unacceptable drive such as hatred is displaced from its primary target to a more acceptable target.
What is denial?
This occurs when an individual refuses to accept that a particular event has happened.
How do ego-defence mechanisms lead to abnoramlity?
There are a number of ego defence mechanisms and one of the aims of psychodynamic therapy is to break through these defences to reveal the underlying conflicts. Defence mechanisms protext our conscious self from the anxiety produced by unconscious intra-psychihc conflict. If they are unsuccessful this anxiety may reveal itself through clinical disorders such as phobias and generalised anxiety.
What are erogenous zones?
In Freud’s theory, the instinctual energy of the id is focused on different parts of the body (the erogenous zones) at different psychosexual stages.
What is meant by fixated?
In Freud’s theory of psychosexual stages, failure to resolve one of the stages may lead to fixation at that stage. The characteristics of, e.g. the oral stage, may then show themselves in adult behaviour such as smoking.
What is the oedipus complex?
During the phallic stage of psychosexual development boys develop love for their mother, leading to fear of the father. To resolve this fear the boy identifies with the father, leading to development of the superego or conscience.
What is the electra complex?
The equivalent in girls to the Oedipus complex in boys. It is less detailed in Freud’s theory than the Oedipus complex, leading to criticism of the phallocentric nature of Freud’s work.
What is psychosexual development?
According to Freud’s theory, the child goes through a series of stages where the instinctive energy of the id looks for gratification in different bodily areas: the so called erogenous zones. If the developing child is either deprived or over-gratified at a particular stage they may become fixated at this stage and this will have effects on their adult behaviour.
What are the stages of psychosexual development?
The oral stage, the anal stage, the phallic stage, the latency state.
What is the oral stage?
This lasts from birth to about 18 months. id impulses are satisfied by feeding, and so the mouth is the focus of this stage. Activities include sucking initially,a nd then biting.
What does fixation at the oral stage led to?
It may produce an adult gaining pleasure from oral gratification through activities such as smoking, drinking or eating. As this stage also involves complete dependency of the infant, the fixated adult may also show overdependence in their relationships.
What is the anal stage?
From 18 months to about 3 years of age, gratification focuses on the anus. Key activities revolve around retaining and expelling faeces. This is a significant stage in Freudian theory as for the first time that child can exert some control over its environement. They can show obedience or disobedience by expelling or retaining faeces.
What does fixation at the anal stage led to?
Fixation at this stage may lead to an obsession with hygeine and cleanliness, and perhaps obsessive-compulsive disorder.
What is the phallic stage?
After the anal stage, and lasts until age 4-5, where the focus is on the genitals and gratification comes through genital stimulation. This is the key stage in sexual development as gender differences are noticed and psychosexual development differs between the sexes. The most important feature of this stage is the Oedipus complex. In the Electra complex, freud proposed that the girl realises she has no penis, which produces a state of penis envy, which leads her to develop more affection for the father.
What is the latency period?
During the period from 4-5 up to puberty psychosexual development enters a latent period, to re-emerge at puberty. At puberty, sexual feelings become less focused on the self and instead are directed at potential partners.
What are neurotic disorders?
Now largely discarded, this term refers to disorders such as anxiety and depression where the person has insight into their condition. It is contrasted with psychotic disorders such as schizophrenia, where insight is lost.
What are the strengths of the psychodynamic approach?
- It was the first to emphasise the significance of unconscious processes and repressed material influencing our behaviour- This is now widely accepted
- He was also the first to suggest how our adult behaviour could be influenced by early childhood experiences, supported by the work of Ainswroth, on early attachment styles and later adult relationships
What are the weaknesses of the psychodynamic approach?
- He overemphasised infantile sexuality to the exclusion of other aspects of development.
- He did not study children directly, but developed his theory largely on the case studies with adults, and linked their disorders to their early childhood experiences.
- Most of his concepts and theories are impossible to test using conventional scientific methodology.
- His theory is clearly related to the historical and cultural period, for instance its phallocentric nature.
What is the behavioural approach?
This approach to psychopathology emphasises the role of learning and experience in causing psychological disorders. Behaviourists deal with three main forms of learning: classical conditioning, operant conditioning, and social learning.
What study did Watson and Rayner (1920 Do on classifcal conditioning?
They classically conditioned an 11-month-old child- little albert- to fear fluffy animals. They did this by pairing presentation of a tame white rat with a sudden loud noise. The noise caused fear, an unconditioned reflex equivalent to salvation in Pavlov’s experiment, while the rat was the equivalent of the bell. Eventually he was conditioned to associate the rat with ear. He also became afraid of other fluffy objects, similiar to the white rat such as a rabbit and white dog; this is known as stimulus generalisation.
How has classifcal conditioning been used to account for the development of phobias?
Phobias are characterised by extreme fear of certain objects or situations. One simple explanation of phobias is that a traumatic experience, especially early in life, leads to the conditioning of fear to that particular object or situation. This fear then generalises to similiar objects or situations. THis leads to the adult having a general phobia of, say, all spiders or all enclosed spaces/
Why is classical conditioning not enough to explain phobias?
It soon became clear that many people with phobias had not actually experienced traumatic encounters with, for instance, spiders or enclosed space.
What concept did Seligman (1971) propose to explain phobias?
He proposed the concept of preparedness. Preparedness is the idea that our evolutionary history has prepared humans to be sensitive to biologically-relevant stimuli such as dangerous animals and situations. So even today we are more likely to be phobic of spiders than, for example tulips.
What did Ohman et al (2000) demonstrate about classical conditioning in relation to phobias?
They showed experimentally that fear in human participants can be conditioned to pictures of spiders but not to pictures of flowers.
What is stimulus generalisation?
A phenomenon in which a response to one stimulus can be elicited by a similar stimulus.
What are schedules of reinforcements?
In operant conditioning , the pattern of rewards and punishments can be used to ‘shape’ behaviour. Continous reinforcement is when every response is rewarded and leads to rapid learning. However,t he response rapidly fades or extinguishes when reinforcement is withdrawn. Occasional rewards (intermitten schedules) lead to slower learning, but the behaviour persists for much longer when reinforcement is withdrawn.
What is social learning theory?
Based largely on Bandura’s work, this is an extension of operant conditioning theory that focuses on learning through observation and imitation of others. Vicarious learning and reinforcement are key components of social learning theory.
What is vicarious learning?
This is an important part of social learning theory, and refers to learning through observing the consequences of behaviour in others. Observed behaviour that is reinforced is more likely to be imitated.
How can social learning explanations be applied to the developments of disorders?
It can be applied to areas such as eating disorders, these are found mainly in young women and one popular hypothesis is that observation and imitation of slim models and film stars play an important role. Operant conditioning can also contribute to the persistence of disorders, such as depression and anorexia, which may attract more attention, which, if rewarding, will reinforce the behaviour and make it more likely to continue.
What are the strenghts of the behavioural approach?
- It can provide convincing explanations of some psychological disorders, including the role of classical conditioning in phobias and social learning in eating disorders.
- Treatments based on this approach can be effective
What are the weaknesses of the behavioural approach?
- It is reductionist, as it ignores cognitive and emotional contributions to the development of psychopathology.
- It ignores any genetic contribution
- Heavily deterministic, viewing human behaviour as simply a product of stimuli. THere is no role for conscious choice.
What is the cognitive approach?
In relation to abnoramlity, the cognitive approach emphasis the role of cognitive processes (beliefs, thoughts, perceptions) in causing psychological disorders.
What is schemata?
Organised systems of knowledge that we use to understand and interpret the world.
What are negative automatic thoughts?
In the cognitive approach to depression negative schemata lead to NATs. Examples of NATs include cognitive biases such as minimisation and selective abstraction.
What are cognitive biases?
In the cognitive approach to abnormality biases are irrational and maladaptive thoughts that can lead to depression. They include the tendencies to maximise failures and minimise successes.
Who were the pioneers of the cognitive approach and what were they influenced by?
Aaron Beck (1963) and Albert Ellis (1962), were heavily influenced by their backgrounds as therapists. DIsappointed in what they saw as the ineffectiveness of psychodynamic and humanistic approaches, they were also influenced by the behavioural approach and the cognitive revolution in psychology that occurred in the 1960’s
Why did the focus turn towards critical cognitive processes in the 1960’s?
It was fuelled by the development of computers as information processors, providing a model of how the human brain might work.
How did Beck and Ellis develop the cognitive approach to abnormality?
As a combination of behaviourism and cognitive models of psychopathology.
What assumptions does the cognitive approach make?
- Human behaviour is heavily influenced by schemata. Many of these schemata relate to how we see ourselves.
- Schemata develop on the basis of early experience. Traumatic or unhappy experiences early in life may lead to the development of negative schemata.
- Negative schemata, or core beliefs as they are sometimes called, when actived lead to negative automatic thoughts. In this approach, NATs are misplaced and dysfunctional.
