L10 Emotion Dysfunction Flashcards
(28 cards)
What is an affective disorder?
A mental disorder characterised by sudden changes or extremes of affect. It involves significant distress and impaired functioning.
It can include episodes that are manic and/or depressive
How do we classify affective disorders?
ICD-10
DSM-5
Use diagnostic symptoms and are usually determined by interviews - individuals have to meet defined criteria for defined period
Alternative method would be to use a continuum
What are the symptoms of depression?
Unbearable sadness, loss of pleasure in activities for 2 weeks, sleep problems, lack of energy, can’t concentrate, feeling worthless/guilt, suicidal thoughts
What are the 4 unipolar subtypes?
Atypical depression (reactive)
Melancholy (loss of pleasure)
Post-partum depression
Seasonal Affective Disorder
They require 5 symptoms
What does non-major depression include?
Dysthymia (low daily mood for long periods) and brief recurrent episodes <2 weeks
Requires 2-4 symptoms
What are the symptoms of bipolar disorder?
Elevated, expansive or irritable mood, inflated self-esteem, decreased sleep need, racing thoughts, distractible, and risk taking
Hypomanic is briefer, not psychotic and less impairment
How do we classify bipolar I?
One or more manic episodes with or without a major depressive episode
Typical year = 32% weeks depressed, 9% weeks manic/hyper-manic
How do we classify bipolar II?
Hypomanic and depressive episodes
Typical year = 50% weeks depressed, 1% weeks hypomanic
What are the symptoms of anxiety?
Overwhelming fears, anxiety, avoidance of fears, loss of confidence
What are the different types of anxiety?
GAD Panic disorder Phobias Obsessions and compulsions PTSD
What are childhood externalising disorders?
Involve anger, hostility and aggression e.g. oppositional defiant disorder and conduct disorder
What are childhood internalising disorders?
Involve depression, anxiety and withdrawal e.g. depression, anxiety disorder
What are the prevalences of disorders in children?
Externalising disorders more common in younger children, and boys show these externalising behaviours more at all ages compared to girls
Anxiety disorder shows 9 fold increase from ages 3-8 and is more common in girls
Depression rate increases with age, equally likely in girls and boys until late adolescence and then its higher in girls
What are the prevalences of disorders in adults?
Major Depression is seen in 21% of women and 13% of men in a lifetime and is more likely in Western countries - is this due to better diagnostic systems?
30% of women and 19% of men have an anxiety disorder in their lifetime
There is a prevalence of 1% in bipolar disorder and no gender differences
What is the stress-diathesis hypothesis?
Davidson & Neale (2001)
Diathesis = predisposition or vulnerability to the disorder
Stress = negative environmental impact
What are some examples of stressors in children?
Conflict between parents increases risk of externalising disorders
Parental psychiatric problem increases the risk of the same type of problem
Quality of parent-child relationship
Poverty
What risk factors did Rutter identify for children?
6
Marital disharmony, parental depression, poverty, institutionalisation, large family, parental criminality
What are some causes of affective disorders in adults? (stress)
Brown and Harris (1978) women in a community showed that a severe life event had preceded depression in >80% of cases
Events often involve: loss of valued role, humiliation, entrapment or danger
Life events usually precede anxiety too
Not everyone who experiences adversity develops a disorder
Social support may protect against life events
How are genetics involved with affective disorders?
Twin studies show a moderate genetic risk for depression and anxiety
Genes may bias cognitive processes via serotonin
Genetic influence on personality may also influence the likelihood of a person encountering particular life events
How are early experiences involved with affective disorders?
Only parental divorce, a frightening event and physical abuse predicted depression (Wainwright & Surtees, 2002)
What is disordered in affective disorders?
May be an attentional problem e.g. noticing information consistent with fear
May be an appraisal/attribution bias e.g. making stable, internal and global attributions for negative events
May be due to one emotion system dominating - biased towards particular type of emotion
May be due to making inappropriate emotional responses
May be due to dysregulation of emotions
Or due to prolonged negative interpersonal interactions e.g. living with a depressed roommate
What did Joorman (2010) suggest about cognitive inhibition and emotional regulation in depression?
That something negative happens, it puts us in a bad mood and activates negative cognitions
Deficit in the cognitive inhibition so can’t get rid of the negative material in our WM
Vicious cycle as now easier to access negative material
What is the relationship between rumination and depression?
The repetitive dwelling thoughts that are involved in rumination may prolong depression
Women report high levels of rumination - explaining gender differences?
What is the relationship between rumination, depression and creativity?
There is a 50% prevalence of depression in creative arts which is quite high compared to other fields
Rumination requires sensitivity to the self and reduced inhibition of cognitive material may lead to creative thought
