Psychology in Context Flashcards
What is Statistical Infrequency?
Its a way to describe abnormality as it follows how often it is seen. Any usual behaviour is ‘normal’ and any unusual behaviour is ‘abnormal’.
How is Statistical Infrequency Measured?
1 SD is 68% of population
2 SD is 95% of poplulation
3 SD is 99.7% of population
What are the strengths and limitations of deviation of social norms used to define abnormality?
Strenths- Has real life application in diganosing APD
Limitations- Cultural relavatism, Social norms vary generation to generation, Can lead to human right abuses.
What is failure to function adquately?
People not following the unwritten rules on how to present yourself within society.
What is a weakness of Failure to Function Adequately?
Hard to say whether its FFA or just deviation from social norms
Someone has to say whether someone is distressed or distresssing some pts may claim to be distressed but are judged as not.
Very objective to the individual.
What is a weakness of a deviation from ideal mental health?
Sets unrealistically high standards of mental health.
What are the behavioural characteristics of Phobias?
Panic
Aviodance
Endurance
What are the emotional chartacteristics of Phobias?
Anxiety
Emotional responses are unrecognisable
What are the Cognative Characteristic of Phobias?
Selective attention to the phobic stimulus
Irrational beliefs
Cognative Distortions
How are Phobias learnt?
Learnt through association/classical conditioning, eg. The noise (UCS) creates fear (UCR) and when paired with a mouse(NS) the NS and UCS become associated so the mouse becomes the CS causing fear CR without the loud noise.
How are Phobias maintained?
Operant Conditioning
OC occurs when behaviour is reinforced or punished. Reinforcement strengthens behaviour. Whenever we aviod a phobic stimulus we escape the fear and anxiety and so are negatively reinforced and the phobia is maintained.
What are the 3 parts of Systematic Deviation?
The anxiety hierarchy
Relaxation methods
Exposure to the phobic stimulus when pts are relaxed
What are the key characteristics of Flooding?
Exposing pts to their phobic stimuli with no build up to most feared situation
Flooding session are longer than SD
Only one session needed
What are behavioural characteristics of OCD?
Complusions
Avoidance
What are the emotional characteristics of OCD?
Anxiety and distress
Accompanying depression
Guilt and Disgust
What are the Cognitive characteristics of OCD?
Obsessive thoughts
Cognitive stratergies to deal with obsessions ie Praying due to torment of obsessive guilt
Insight into excessive anxiety
What are the biological explanations of OCD?
Genetic Explanation-> Passing on genetic vunerability
Candidate Genes-> 5H1-D beta implicated transport of serotonin across body
OCD is polygenic -> Caused by several genes meta analysis found up to 230 different genes
Different types of OCD-> One group of genes may cause OCD in one person but different in others
What are the Neural Explanations of OCD?
The role of serotonin-> In some cases OCD can be explained by a reduction in the functioning of the serotonin system in the brain
Decision making systems->OCD can be associated with the abnormal functioning of the lateral parts of the frontal lobe. Parahippocampel gryus associated with processing unpleasant emotions funtions abnormally in OCD.
What is the funtion of a SSRI to treat OCD?
Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors work on serotonin levels in the brain preventing their re-absorption and breakdown so increase levels in the synapse and continue to stimulate post synaptic neurons. To compensate for the low levels.
What are the alternatives to SSRI’s?
Tricyclics- these have same effects on the serotonin systems as SSRI’s but has more severe side effects.
Sertonin noradrenalin reuptake inhibitors (SNRI’s) - newer anti depressant drugs have also been used to treat OCD. These are a second line of defence for pts who failed to respond to SSRI’s.
What are the behavioural characteristics of depression?
Anxiety levels
Disruption to sleep and eating behaviour
Agression and self harm
What are the Emotional characteristics of Depression?
Lowered Mood
Anger
Lowered self esteem
What are the Cognitive Characteristics Of Depression?
Poor concentration
Attending to and dwelling on the negative
Absolutist thinking
What are the three parts of Becks cognative theory of Depression?
Faulty Information Thinking
Negative Self Schemas
The Negative Triad
What is the Negative Triad?
Negative view of world
Negative view of self
Negative view of future
What does Ellis ABC model consist of?
Activating Event-Irrational thoughts are triggered
Beliefs-Range of Irrational Beliefs
Consequences-Emotional and Behavioural consequences
What does Cognative Behaviour Therapy consist of?
Collaborative assessment where the pt and therpist work together
Jointly identify goals or therapy andd construct a plan to achieve them
The central task is to identify negative and irrational thoughts then to readress them into better places.
What does Becks cognative therapy consist of?
Aims to identify automatic thoughts about the world, the self and the future and to challenge them/ reality test. Might be set homework of documenting enjoyed events or people being nice to them. This may be used against them in future sessions to challenge negative beliefs.
What is Ellis’ REBT?
Rational Emotive Behaviour Therapy. Involve an arguement with intention of changing irrational beliefs and breaking the link between negative life events and depression.
