Normality Flashcards
What is normal behaviour?
Conforming to usual, typical or expected standard of behaviour
What are the six types of normality (Groß 1995)?
They fit into 2 categories: Context Dependent (Socio-cultural, Historical, Functional, Situational) and Maladaptive Focused (Medical, Statistical).
What is socio-cultural normality?
Sociocultural normality refers to the characteristic patterns of normal behaviour and beliefs.
What is cohort normality?
What is normal for people who share similar life experiences.
What is functional normality and what does it depend on?
Functional normality: Can an individual function (think, feel and behave) in the roles that have developed around them? It depends on context.
What is historical normality?
Historical Normality describes how normality changes over time. E.g., smoking was accepted, now people object to it.
What is situational normality?
Situational Normality focuses on how normal behaviors are constructed according to the environment.
What is medical normality?
Refers to Normal and abnormal; normality is seen as an expected state.
What is statistical normality?
Statistical Normality describes normality as typicality or an expression of central tendency.
How does a society maintain norms?
Through Ritual/Routine Behaviours, Mores, and Law.
How can norms be violated?
By failing to fulfil role obligations, responding to auditory hallucinations in public areas, or committing a crime.
How can norms be changed? Give an example.
Smoking has been practiced for centuries, but evidence of its health risks has led to restrictions on where to smoke.
Can a deviation from the norm be positive?
It depends on how destructive it is; flexibility and progress can lead to positive deviations.
What is conformity?
Crutchfield (1954) defined it as ‘yielding to group pressure’; Myers (1999) defined it as ‘a change in behaviour as a result of real or imagined group pressure’.
What is informational influence?
Seeking info and advice from others can lead to private conformity.
What is normative influence?
Motivated by a desire to avoid the severe consequences of being a deviant, leading to public conformity.
What do our perceptions of normal behaviour influence?
They influence our self-concept, particularly in early adolescence.
What do misperceived social norms challenge?
They challenge individuals to conform to their perception rather than actuality.
What is maladaptive behaviour and its effect?
Maladaptive behaviour negatively impacts daily life and hinders personal growth.
What is a common maladaptive behaviour?
Avoidance and social anxiety disorder.
What is abnormal behaviour a combination of?
A combination of personal distress, psychological dysfunction, deviance from social norms, dangerousness, and costliness to society.
Which aspects are considered when judging abnormality?
Distress, Dysfunction, Deviance (unusualness), Dangerousness.
What is the summary of normality?
Normality is complex and multi-factorial; norms change over time.
