Introduction to Abnormality Flashcards
What is meant by abnormality?
Abnormal psychology is concerned with understanding the nature, causes, and treatment of mental disorders. At the heart of abnormal psychology is the difficulty as to how we define abnormal from normal
Elements of abnormality? (7)
Suffering: Maladaptivness: Deviancy: Violation of the Standards of Society: Social Discomfort: Irrationality and Unpredictability: Dangerousness:
Define suffering
Suffering: We commonly think about abnormality involving suffering. For example individual living with anxiety or depression will often identify it causes suffering, such as distressing thoughts and/or feelings. However, in the case of a bi-polar manic phase, individuals would not identify that they are suffering, instead they may indicate feeling wonderful with expansive energy.
Maladaptiveness
Maladaptivness: Most commonly we see maladaptivness as part of a mental disorder when it causes a clinically significant impact on an individual’s life (e.g., not being able to go to school, work).
Deviancy
Deviancy: When something is statistically rare and undesirable we are more likely to consider it abnormal.
Violation of the standards of society
Violation of the Standards of Society: When individuals fail to adhere to formal or informal rule of their culture we are more likely to ascribe their behaviour as abnormal.
Social Discomfort
Social Discomfort: When individual violate social norms (e.g., personal distance, crying or shouting on the train) we are likely to see their behaviour as abnormal.
Irrationality/unpredictability
Irrationality and Unpredictability: When we see individuals acting in an unusual way e.g., having disorganized speech/behaviours we are likely to classify them as abnormal, unless the circumstances/environment explain this. For example an actor on stage acting out a play, etc.
Dangerousness
Dangerousness: When individuals are at risk of self-harm or harming others, this can be a sign of abnormal behaviour.
Mental Disorder (DSM-5)
A mental disorder is a syndrome characterized by clinically significant disturbance in an individual’s cognition, emotion regulation, or behavior that reflects a dysfunction in the psychological, biological, or developmental processes underlying mental functioning.
Why do we need classification system?
Provide nomenclature that allows information structuring
The disadvantages of classification
Loss of individual’s information
Stigma and stereotyping associated with diagnosis
Self-concept impact
How does culture affect the view of what is considered normal?
Certain forms of psychopathology highly specific to certain cultures
Examples of psychopathology specific to cultures
Taijin kyofusho—in Japan
Anxiety about body or bodily functions offending others
Ataque de nervios—in Latinos and Latinas especially from the Caribbean
Loss of control including crying, trembling, screaming often after a stressful event
Point-prevalence
Refers to the estimated proportion of actual, active cases of the disorder in a given population at a given point of time.
One-year prevalence
A count of everyone when experienced a particular disorder (e.g., depression) at any point in time throughout a 1 year period.
Life-time prevalence
the number of people what have had a particular disorder at any time in their lives
Incidence
refers to the number of new cases that occur over a given period of time (typically 1 year). Incidence figures are typically lower than prevalence figures because they exclude already existing cases
Lifetime prevalence of having any DSM disorder?
46.4% but does not include all disorders
1 year and lifetime prevalence of having any anxiety disorder (US)
1 yr= 18.1 % lifetime= 28.8 %
