PS1016 - Individual Differences & Mental Health Psychology

Question 1

What are the two main eating disorders in the DSM-5?

Answer 1

Anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa

Question 2

What is AN?

Answer 2

• reduced food intake, refusal to maintain minimal weight
• fear of becoming fat despite low body weight
• often preoccupied with food and has high mortality rate

Question 3

Medical complications of AN

Answer 3

• Low BMI, electrolyte imbalance, kidney damage
• Poor temp regulation, heart arrhythmias
• Hair thinning, brittle skin, vitamin deficiencies

Question 4

Bulimia nervosa characteristics

Answer 4

• loss of control over food intake (binging and purging)
• Concern with body shape/weight
• normal/high BMI

Question 5

Medical complications of bulimia nervosa

Answer 5

• throat/mouth damage, dental issues, mouth ulcers
• electrolyte imbalance, heart muscle damage, swollen glands

Question 6

What is pica?

Answer 6

disorder involving the consumption on non-nutritive substances, e.g. dirt, soap, ice for at least a month

Question 7

How do AN and bulimia affect body size perception?

Answer 7

Both disorders involve overestimation of body size compared to control groups, shown in body morphing studies (Tovee et al 2003)

Question 8

What are some historical perspectives on EDs?

Answer 8

13th-14th centuries - self-starvation as an act of piety
19th century - Sir William Gull’s recognition of AN as a medical condition

Question 9

Main factors in the aetiology of eating disorders

Answer 9

Biological
Sociocultural
Family
Individual

Question 10

Aetiology of eating disorders - Biological

Answer 10

Genetic predisposition, serotonin imbalances, puberty-related changes

Question 11

Aetiology of eating disorders - Sociocultural

Answer 11

Media and peer influences promoting thin ideals

Question 12

Aetiology of eating disorders - Family

Answer 12

Parental pressure, comments on weight, abuse

Question 13

Aetiology of eating disorders - Individual

Answer 13

Perfectionism, body dissatisfaction, dieting

Question 14

What are the primary treatments for anorexia nervosa?

Answer 14

• Family therapy (most effective for adolescents).
• Cognitive-behavioural therapy (CBT).
• Limited success with SSRIs or medical interventions

Question 15

What is the diathesis-stress model?

Answer 15

A framework suggesting that disorders arise when a predisposition (diathesis) interacts with an environmental stressor

Question 16

What does the biological/medical model emphasize?

Answer 16

Mental disorders are seen as physical diseases caused by genetic, neurological, or biochemical factors, treated through pharmacology or other medical interventions

Question 17

How does the cognitive model explain mental disorders?

Answer 17

• Focuses on distorted or inaccurate thought processes and self-schemas.
• Conditions like anxiety and depression result from maladaptive cognitive patterns

Question 18

What does the psychoanalytic viewpoint suggest about mental disorders?

Answer 18

Disorders stem from unresolved childhood conflicts and unconscious processes influencing adult behaviour

Question 19

How does the behaviourist model view abnormal behaviour?

Answer 19

• Abnormal behaviour is learned through conditioning and maladaptive experiences.
• Treatments involve desensitization, modelling, and behaviour reinforcement